1. "The Body Guard's Secrets"

"Sir. It's me, Vic. Come I come in?"

"Enter."

A woman dressed in black entered the room. The scent of paperwork and books enveloped her as she looked at her boss, Martin Cadell, the young Chairman of Crimson Corporation.

Martin remained focused on his laptop, not bothering to glance up as she walked in. His attention was clearly elsewhere, highlighting that he was busy.

"Are you here to submit your resignation letter once again?" Martin asked without facing her.

Vic anxiously bit her lower lip. She held the resignation letter in her hand, but she hadn't expected Martin to figure out her purpose.

Martin flashed a smile as he spoke, "I've already told you. You can't resign. I haven't found anyone as skilled as you to be my bodyguard."

It's been a whole month since Vic told Martin about quitting as his bodyguard. Martin promised to let her go once he found a suitable replacement, but it seems like he hasn't made any effort at all.

"Sir Martin," Vic called out. "I want to thank you for trusting me all this time. But I can't continue in this role any longer."

"If you explain to me why you're resigning, I might consider letting you go," Martin suggested.

The issue was that Vic couldn't bring herself to tell Martin the true reason behind her decision to leave, despite being by his side for years.

There are a couple of reasons why.

Firstly, she has strong feelings for Martin.

If only Martin would pay attention to the way Vic looks at him, he would be able to uncover Vic's secret. However, he was too preoccupied to notice her longing gaze.

Well, Vic has no intention of getting caught. There's no reason for her to confess her feelings to her boss because of the second reason.

"If you can't provide me with a good enough explanation, then I can't just let you go, Vic," Martin stated.

Simultaneously, the door swung open. A woman with brunette hair, green eyes, fair skin, and vibrant red lips walked into Martin's office.

"Gosh Martin, are you still working?" Zoe asked, raising an eyebrow.

Martin finally tore his eyes away from his laptop and stood up when he saw Zoe. "What brings you here?" he inquired.

The way his eyes instantly softened proved that Zoe held a special place in his heart. Vic knew that Martin was particularly vulnerable when it came to Zoe. There were even rumors that if Martin's fiancée didn't wake up within a year, he might marry Zoe instead.

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd pay you a visit. I was surprised to find you working late, Martin," Zoe explained, her gaze shifting to Vic, who was standing nearby.

For a brief moment, no one noticed the slight change in Zoe's expression when she realized that Vic and Martin were still together.

"Vic is here too," Zoe muttered.

"Good evening, Miss Zoe," Vic greeted.

Zoe simply nodded at Vic before turning to Martin and saying, "You really shouldn't be so hard on your bodyguard. Look, you've made Vic work overtime."

"It's alright, miss," Vic chimed in. "As Sir Martin's bodyguard, it's only natural for me to do this."

It was true. But Vic's heart felt heavy as she spoke the truth. She was just a bodyguard to the man she loved.

"But it's late. Come on, Martin. Just go to sleep," Zoe said as she walked past Vic and approached Martin. She took hold of Martin's hand and pleaded, "Please?"

Martin let out a sigh. "Alright, let's do that."

Martin was completely defeated by Zoe's enchanting voice. And Vic knew that only Zoe had the power to soften Martin's heart.

"Vic, you should also go and rest. We'll discuss your plan to resign tomorrow, okay?" Martin said.

Zoe wrapped her arm around Martin. When Vic noticed their intertwined arms, she looked down and replied, "Yes, I will."

The two of them strolled past Vic and exited the office.

Left by herself, Vic switched off the lights. As darkness surrounded her, she pondered the second reason why she couldn't explain to Martin why she wanted to resign.

"Ugh!" Vic coughed.

She felt a sudden pain that immobilized her. Unable to stand, Vic leaned against the wall and retrieved the medicine box from her pocket.

With great effort, she opened the box and swallowed a pill to ease her aching heart.

"Ahh," she suppressed the curse rising in her throat.

The pain gradually faded, and Vic's vision became blurry.

"This is the second reason," she murmured.

Vic is on the brink of death.

** **

After some time, the medicine kicked in and Vic returned to her room. She resides in Martin's mansion, serving as his bodyguard.

However, with her condition deteriorating, she realized she needed to part ways with Martin soon.

"Should I just disappear without a word?" Vic pondered.

While contemplating how to leave her employer without revealing her illness, she received a text from an unexpected sender.

["Miss Vic. Can you come to my room?"] Zoe texted.

Curious as to why Zoe wanted to meet, considering they had never spoken one-on-one before, Vic decided to put her doubts aside and visit Zoe's room in the dead of night.

Knock. Knock.

“Miss Zoe. It’s me, Vic.”

"Come on in."

Vic entered the room and found Zoe sitting on her bed, massaging her injured leg.

"I suddenly got really hungry. I wanted to eat some fruit, but I couldn't reach it," Zoe mentioned, pointing to the plate of fruit next to the bed.

Vic thought that Zoe didn't really need her company, but considering her injured leg, she decided to stay.

Without complaining, Vic grabbed an apple and handed it to Zoe.

"Thanks," Zoe said gratefully.

"Can I leave now?" Vic asked.

"Miss Vic, do you know how I ended up being injured?" Zoe inquired instead of letting her go.

Vic had no idea why Zoe asked the question. But she answered regardless her doubts. 

"Yes, I've heard about that incident. Back when you and Martin were young, you had an accident that resulted in an injury," Vic acknowledged.

"Exactly. I went to Martin's place to play, but during our playtime, he accidentally pushed me and I ended up falling from a high spot. Ever since then, it became quite challenging for me to walk like I do now," Zoe explained the story.

Although Zoe didn't have any trouble walking, she couldn't run as vigorously or strain her legs too much. That's why Martin always made sure to give her extra attention.

"Martin always feels guilty because of my injury," Zoe whispered.

"I understand. But why are you bringing this up to me?" Vic finally inquired.

Zoe gestured towards the knife on the side. Vic interpreted it as Zoe asking her to pass the knife so she could cut the apple. However, as Vic reached for the knife and turned aroun, Zoe spoke up.

“There is no room for you to come between me and Martin,” Zoe said something that made Vic stop.

“Pardon?” Vic inquired.

Zoe fixed her with a piercing gaze and continued, "I can see it in your eyes. You can't fool me with your feelings for Martin."

Vic felt a sinking sensation in her chest as Zoe spoke. Her heart raced at the idea of her figuring it out, causing her palms to become clammy with sweat.

Zoe grinned, relishing Vic's confusion. "I'm the one closest to Martin. Are you dense, Vic? You of all people should know how Martin will react when he learns that his BODYGUARD has feelings for him."

Vic gazed at Zoe. She was planning to leave soon, so she didn't see it as a threat.

"I don't intend to tell Sir Martin about this," Vic replied.

"You're more composed than I expected. I thought you'd be groveling on the floor, begging me to keep quiet," Zoe chuckled sarcastically.

“Didn’t you call me separately to threaten me?” Vic responded calmly, standing his ground.

Dealing with Zoe wasn't too challenging for Vic, especially since she worked closely with the perfectionist Martin.

"Or are you going to suggest that I resign?" Vic added.

Zoe slowly extended her hand towards Vic's, gripping the hand that held the knife. She leaned in and whispered, "You're partially right. I will make sure you leave this place, but with a twist. Martin will despise you miserably before you go."

Confused, Vic asked, "What do you mean?"

Before Zoe could respond, she abruptly yanked Vic's hand and stabbed her own arm. Vic's eyes widened in shock.

"Ahh!" Zoe winced, feeling the pain shoot through her arm.

Perplexed, Vic muttered, "What are you doing?" She took a step back, watching as blood seeped from the wound.

Despite the pain, Zoe grinned at Vic and then shouted, "Help! Miss Vic just tried to kill me! Help!"

Vic couldn't believe what she was witnessing.

Zoe had stabbed herself with the knife that Vic was holding, yet she was acting as if Vic had attacked her. Confused and shaken, Vic glanced at her boss, Martin, who had just entered the room.

Martin's voice boomed, “What happened?!”

With pounding heart, Vic looked at her boss.

Behind Vic, Zoe said, “Martin! Help me! Vic tried to kill me!”

At that moment, it all became clear to Vic. Zoe had set a trap for her, and she had fallen right into it.