"Ryan, will John never return?" Natalie asked after a mont.
"He won’t," Ryan replied without hesitation.
Natalie fell silent. Since John was one of Justin’s people, she had no choice but to accept his decision.
Ryan glanced at her through the rearview mirror and said, "Ms. Natalie, more than anyone else, Mr. Harper must be upset with John would no longer be by his side. John was his most trusted and cherished man—sotis more like a brother. But there are things even Mr. Harper can’t change. I hope you won’t hold it against him."
Natalie stayed quiet.
Ryan continued, "Mr. Harper may not show it, and he has to keep his kindness in check, but he cares about all of us. Please don’t judge him just because of the situation with John. Even John would never bla him. If I were in John’s place, I’d do the sa and accept my punishnt without any word asked."
"I wonder if you people are working for businessman or a underworld Don to have such rules," Natalie mumbled to herself.
Ryan kept quiet, focussed on the driving.
After inspecting the ho, she sent a ssage to the owner, confirming the house was ready for move-in, and then returned to her office.
As she stepped into the lobby on her office floor, soone was waiting there.
"Ms. Natalie."
A familiar voice caught her attention, and she turned quickly toward the source. Stunned, she froze in place, unable to believe her eyes.
John.
He stood there, alive and well, looking just as she rembered.
He approached her and bowed his head slightly. "I ca to visit you one last ti. I hope you don’t mind."
Natalie snapped back to her senses, feeling as if the heavy weight that had been suffocating her had finally been lifted, allowing her to breathe freely again.
"John... you’re alright?" she asked, still struggling to find the right words. All this ti, she had thought the worst—that he had been killed—based on the way Justin and Ryan had spoken about him.
"I am," he replied. But Natalie noticed that his face looked pale, his usual vitality faded. His aura felt weaker, and she could sense that whatever punishnt he had endured before being dismissed must have been severe.
"Co with ." She turned and led him to her office, John quietly following behind.
Natalie took a seat at her desk and gestured to him. "Have a seat."
"I’m fine, Ms. Natalie. I won’t take much of your ti," John said politely. "I only ca to apologize for failing in my duty to protect you. I believe Ryan will protect you better—he’s more capable than I ever was."
"Do you really believe you failed to protect ?" Natalie asked, her voice calm but probing.
Without hesitation, John nodded. "Yes, I failed."
Natalie understood—there was no room for mistakes in their world, even if they had been unintentional.
She sighed softly. "I was worried you were dead or worse. But I’m glad to see you alive."
John gave her a regretful smile. "It would have been easier if it were death. But... failure is a heavier burden." He paused, then straightened. "I’ll take my leave now. I wish for your safety always."
He bowed deeply, a farewell gesture, and turned to leave.
"John!" Natalie called after him.
He stopped and looked back at her. "Yes, Ms. Natalie?"
"Where will you go after this?" she asked.
"I haven’t decided yet," he answered.
"How about you work for then?" Natalie suggested.
John looked at her in surprise as she continued, "Be my personal bodyguard. I’ll pay you as much as your previous boss did."
"I’d like to, but Mr. Harper might not like it. I’ll have to decline your offer, Ms. Natalie."
"He’s not my husband for real, and he has no control over my decisions. He freed you from his service, which ans you’re free to do whatever you want."
"Even though I’m no longer working for him, my life still belongs to him. I’ll always do what he wants to do," John replied firmly.
Natalie studied him in silence and then mumbled, "I wonder what kind of weed he feeds you all to make you so loyal."
"When you understand the kind of person he is, you’d feel the sa, Ms. Natalie. We’re all willing to die for him, follow him blindly—even if it leads us off a cliff to fall down from it. Mr. Harper is everything to us."
Natalie realized there was no way to shake John’s loyalty. "Did he tell you that you’re not allowed to work for or warn you to stay away from ?"
"No, he didn’t," John answered.
Natalie picked up her phone, dialed a number, and put it on speaker. Soon, a deep, magnetic voice answered.
"Hmm?"
"John is here to apologize to . I’ve asked him to work for as my personal bodyguard. Do you mind?"
"He doesn’t work for anymore. What he does doesn’t concern ." Ca the reply from other side.
"Thank you."
Natalie hung up the call and looked at John. "Did you hear that?"
John nodded.
"Then?"
"I’ll do as you say, Ms. Natalie," he replied politely and thought, ’Though I can’t be with Mr Harper ever, I will protect the woman important to him. That way I can repay him for everything he did for .’
"First, rest and heal. Then co back here," Natalie instructed.
John looked at her in disbelief, wondering how she could tell he was injured when he hadn’t shown any signs of it.
"I’m fine," he insisted. "I’ll start once I settle a few things."
Natalie didn’t press the matter. Must be a man’s pride not to show when he’s hurt, she thought.
"Alright. I’ll wait for you to return."
John left, and she leaned back in her chair, feeling a sense of relief that he had co to her.
How could Justin let soone so loyal go over a small mistake? she wondered. But it’s good for . I have soone strong and loyal on my side now, soone who will follow only my orders. Having soone like John is definitely a plus.
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