The reality of the situation

Laila and Maria were looking at the shadow with a look of total bewilderment. Despite the situation they were in and what state their partners could currently be in, the shadow's words were not landing at all. From the moment the shadow began to speak their heads had been filled with something else. Namely the shadow's gender. They had thought the shadow was a man but when they heard the shadow's voice, they began to wonder if this he could in fact be a she??

They couldn't believe how sexist they had been as two women themselves. They had immediately assumed that the bodyguard would be a man. Partly because of the connotation the word bodyguard has but also because of the way he, or most likely she, had handled the crazed man. A man of that size, with such brute strength had been dealt with so easily, which they somehow did not think was possible for a woman. But why couldn't it be a woman who was a strong and fierce bodyguard? Dealing with the scum of the world and showing them the strength a woman could possess despite her frame and physical disadvantage. In a way, with Noah's jealous nature, it would make sense that he would request a woman bodyguard to protect his wife and Steve probably wouldn't be too far behind in wanting that.

Now that their minds had circled back to Noah and Steve, and after the bodyguard called out to them once more, they were suddenly pulled back to the reality of the situation. Laila said out loud, "Noah and Steve. We have to go. I hope they are safe. We have to get to them, now." As she said these words she walked over to the panel and quickly typed in the release code, before using the large button on the side to open the door from the inside.

Slowly a part of the bookshelf came forward before it slid to the side, revealing the panic room along with the worried faces of Laila and Maria. When they stepped forward, approaching the shadow, they noticed the some features that revealed that the shadow was indeed a woman. Though it was hidden well by the clothes she was wearing, some things are hard to hide from up close. But this was not of importance in the current situation. Instead they thanked her and asked, "Are you the bodyguard that was sent over to protect us?" The masked person nodded and said, "Yes, I am. I am sorry that I can't introduce myself or show my face. I need to protect my identity as I am part of the secret service and revealing my identity can put me and any future missions in danger."

Unlike her husband, Laila easily accepted the answer the bodyguard gave and asked her about Noah and Steve and about how she knew they were in danger. This is when she replied, "I was in the house when your friend came to visit and I heard the message Harold Richardson had sent to him. When this lunatic came to the door, I knew that he wasn't bluffing. So, when your friend Jake decided to call Harold, I figured I should listen in on the conversation in case he revealed how he planned on getting even with your significant others. That is when I heard him mention something about 'sending them off with a bang'. That can only mean one thing. So, I quickly informed my colleague who is protecting your partners before rushing over to deal with this mad man."

As the shadow tied the last knot to immobilize the crazed man, Laila and Maria were in complete shock from what they had just heard. Their hands were covering their mouths as they had responded to the news with a gasp. With a quivering voice Laila asked, "W-with a b-bang? As in, an explosion?" That is when the shadow nodded. Her eyes looking empathetic and a bit anxious as well.

She said, "Yes. I am sorry for spying on you all like that. But I feel like I work best when I am not seen. That is when I can observe people as they usually are and find out what I need to know much faster than when I am visibly guarding someone." But Maria and Laila didn't care about this at all. In fact, it was the last thing they cared about after hearing about the danger their partners were facing. Neither of them hesitated to search for their phones in order to call Noah and Steve in hopes of getting some answers, a sign of life, anything that could set their mind at ease. But this is when the shadow reminded them that time was of the essence and they needed to leave.

So, with as much strength as they could muster up, they followed the shadow to the car parked out front and stepped inside as she began to drive off. Once they were in the car, Laila attempted to call Noah once again. This time using the car phone to call Noah's cell phone as she didn't manage to find her own. Fortunately she had remembered his number by heart a long time ago and Noah had never changed that number. He had simply gotten a different number when he went into business. Keeping this number for his private life.

Maria wasn't as lucky to know Steve's number yet. So, she had to make due with hearing his voice over the call with Noah. Since they were together anyways, they could use one call to end both of their worries.