CLARA (The State Governor’s Daughter)
EPISODE 1
First Saturday of February 2008,
Time: 8am,
Location : Mbano
I was busy enjoying the roasted yam my mother served me when I got an unexpected call from my boss. I nervously answered the call without wasting time, equally wondering why he was calling by that hour.
‘’agent val, where are you?’’ my boss asked in his usual gruff voice.
‘’I’m at home sir’’ I stammered, standing up nervously as if the man was right there before me.
‘’report to my office immediately. It’s very urgent. You have five minutes’’ he ordered.
‘’yes sir’’ I breathed sharply even though deep down I was extremely unhappy. I planned spending the weekend with mum after staying away from home for so long and I just couldn’t imagine how disappointed she would be, seeing me leaving just an hour after I got home.
Anyway that’s exactly the life of an agent. My life and everything belonged to the government and I had no reason to protest because I clearly knew what I was getting into when I applied to join the department of state services.
———————
I slowly made my way to the kitchen to tell my dear mother that I was leaving again. Luckily for me, I had no much explanation to do. One look at my face told her everything. She simply shrugged and bit her lips as I made my way towards her.
‘’I guess the call was from your office?, when am I seeing you again?’’ she asked.
‘’maybe today, maybe tomorrow. Once I’m free, I will be back here’’ I answered with a forced smile as I hugged her.
———————-
one hour later @ DSS Quarters Owerri
As I drove into my work place, I couldn’t help but wonder why my boss needed me so urgently. I wasn’t really holding any sensitive material or position at the moment. The general election of the previous year and every post election security matter has already been dealt with. I really had hoped on having a wonderful weekend with mum only to be ordered back to the office. Yes I really was far from happy but I hid my feelings as I appeared before my boss who was in his office with a senior colleague who was in charge of the governor’s security.
‘’agent val, I gave you five minutes to report here but you took an hour?’’ my boss asked with a frown while I quickly apologized.
‘’I’m reassigning you. From now you are part of the state governor’s security, any problem with that?’’ he asked.
‘’no sir’’ I answered, wondering the reason I was chosen for such a job since I clearly knew that we lost none of the agents working with the state governor. I instantly felt there was more to it.
‘’agent mike will brief you more on your new assignment’’ my boss added, nodding at the senior agent who smiled at me while I nervously stared back at him as he opened a file he was holding.
‘’According to your file, you are currently 26years old. A law graduate, did remarkably well in law school, been out of the country twice, still single and from a royal family’’ agent Mike calmly summarized my life as I stood still.
‘’have you ever been in real combat before?’’ he asked.
‘’no sir?’’ I answered, wondering why he asked such a question, since he was with my file which clearly stated that I had been in the department for just a year and few months and only worked at the vetting department.
‘’good, the governor needs a well educated and exposed agent of your age to watch over his rebellious daughter who will be arriving the state this evening. She is 24years old.
A Harvard graduate and it’s her first time of coming home since her dad became the state governor, so listen carefully to what I have to tell you. Before accepting to come home, the girl made her father promise not to cage her, nor suffocate her life with security and bodyguards. She wants to live a free life and mingle with people like she used to do in the past. But you know we can’t let that happen.
Her father needs someone within her age range to be with her all the time as a friend without her really knowing that the person is an agent and that’s where you fit in. You get me?’’ he asked.
‘’yes sir, I understand. I think I have seen a similar movie sometime back’’ I answered freely.
‘’shut up. This is real life. Don’t mess this up or you will see yourself out of this department. The governor is very close to the president and he can ruin your life if you play with his daughter’s safety’’ he threatened seriously while I instantly hid my smile as my heart froze.
‘’I need not to tell you that the governor has a lot of enemies and you are being assigned a very tasking job’’ he added while I looked down with slight tension as the burden of my new assignment played before me.. It really would be my first major tasking assignment outside office work and I couldn’t imagine protecting a very rebellious governor’s daughter all on my own without any backup
Yes I was a good shooter but I really was yet to face any combat and with the way I was seeing my new assignment I felt a day would come when my shooting skills would be needed. I hated being with rich kids, talk more of protecting a rebellious one who could spend all her time putting herself in harm’s way.
‘’lord help me’’ I breathed.
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