Shadow Contract: The Bodyguard’s War

Ghost Protocol

Damien decided not to show Sophia the message. Not just yet.

She was still trying to process the sniper attack, the unexpected chaos, and him. If he dropped the word "leak" now, it would send her over the edgeand he needed her to stay focused.

He paced around the apartment, hands clasped behind his back. This place was off the grid, with no Wi-Fi, thick concrete walls, and blackout shutters on every window. It was one of the few spots left where he could escape the memories of his days in uniform.

Sophia sat on the couch, hugging her knees and staring blankly at the floor.

“Is this really where you plan to keep me? A bunker in the middle of nowhere?” she finally asked.

“It’s just temporary,” he replied.

“What happens next?” 

“We move again. Soon.”

“You mean I'm moving again. You're not going anywhere, are you?”

Damien shot her a glance. “My job is to keep you alive. If that means sitting in a cave for six months, then I’m not going anywhere.”

She looked at him, a mix of anger and confusion on her face. Instead of shouting, she whispered, “Who the hell are you?”

He paused. It wasn’t that he didn’t know the answer; it was just that the real one was classified, buried under layers of fake identities and erased military records.

Finally, he said, “I’m the guy who’s going to make sure you survive this.”

She scoffed. “Great. That makes me feel so much better.”

The silence stretched between them. Damien moved to the kitchen, poured himself another glass of water, and set it down near her elbow.

“No poison,” he said, trying to lighten the mood.

She didn’t laugh.

Then, his burner phone buzzed again. A second message—this one wasn’t from Vale, but from Reed, the analyst back at base ops.

“You need to see this. Call in.”

Damien stepped into a secure side room, sealed the door, and activated the encrypted signal on the laptop embedded in the wall.

Reed popped up on the screenyoung, jittery, and looking like he’d just chugged way too much coffee.

“I pulled up the sniper’s gear,” Reed launched in without a greeting. “Got it before your sweep team torched the site. The scope was Valeissue. Military-grade. Serial tag says internal stock.”

Damien clenched his jaw. “Internal?”

“Yeah. That means someone inside signed it out. This wasn’t random. Someone from Vale Industries tried to take Sophia out.”

Damien went silent.

“There’s more,” Reed continued. “Her name… It’s linked to something called Eclipse. Top-secret stuff. Buried deeper than I’ve ever seen. Redacted clearance.”

Damien frowned. “A project?”

Reed nodded. “I traced it back six years. There was a test project for Eclipse. AI surveillance. Predictive security modeling. Way beyond what’s legal. It went dark after a field test failure.”

“Failure?”

“Three civilian deaths. One survivor. Name sealed.”

Damien’s voice dropped. “Was that survivor Sophia Reed?”

“I don’t know. But someone doesn’t want her alive.”

Damien leaned back, taking deep breaths. The pieces were starting to come together it wasn’t looking good.

He ended the call.

Back in the living room, Sophia stood by the blackout-shuttered window, arms crossed, tension radiating from her.

“I want answers,” she demanded as he walked back in. “Real ones.”

“You don’t want the real ones,” Damien replied.

She turned to him, eyes blazing. “Try me.”

He looked at her, not just the confused civilian, but the woman who stood her ground while bullets shattered her store. The woman who hadn’t cried, screamed, or broken down. Not yet.

Damien made a decision.

“There’s a project,” he said slowly. “Something buried deep. It’s called Eclipse. You’re connected to it.”

Her brows knitted in confusion. “I’ve never heard of it.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s not in you.”

“What does that even mean?” 

“I don’t know. But someone thinks you’re dangerous enough to put a bullet in your head. And someone inside the company that sent me… helped them.”

Sophia looked like he’d just slapped her. “You think Adrian Vale betrayed me?”

“I think this stopped being about corporate protection a long time ago.”

She stepped back, gripping the edge of the table. “I didn’t sign up for any of this.”

Damien locked eyes with her. “No one ever does.”

That night, Damien barely slept. 

He sat in the dark, his mind racing...