Dogs Among Withered Roses - Chapter 3

Michele and Andre, who had been pretending not to care, pretending not to hear, and keeping their eyes fixed ahead, suddenly pricked up their ears. As if it couldn’t have come at a better time, since they couldn’t ask anyone and their curiosity had only been growing.

“You’re not a Picciotto who needs a guarantee from another member. I’ve heard even the Consigliere and Capos trust you quite a bit. At this point, guarding me seems like a waste of time and manpower.”

“The boss personally asked if I’d take the job, and I accepted.”

“…You did? Why?”

She couldn’t understand it. Berenice shot back briefly, but Erkin didn’t retract his words. He simply stared at her, expressionless, as if what he said was the most natural thing in the world. Berenice’s lips slowly parted.

“Fine, Ricardo I can understand. But you? Why?”

“….”

“What makes you think you can guard me? You’re….”

She trailed off, swallowed by the sudden wave of confusion, and even when she asked again, no answer came. A quiet, exasperated breath filled the car.

“So you’re not going to talk.”

“….”

“So you’re saying I’m the one you’re guarding, but Ricardo’s the one you answer to. Is that it?”

Meeting his unreadable gaze for a moment, Berenice stretched and released the muscles around her narrowed eyes.

“Stop the car.”

Michele, unable to stop immediately at the sudden command, glanced at the rearview mirror to confirm the order.

“Michele, you heard me. Stop the car.”

He hadn’t misheard. Michele quickly changed lanes and pulled over behind a taxi stop. Still sitting upright with her arms crossed, Berenice gave another order.

“You, get out.”

“…?”

“I said get out. You think I stopped the car to admire the trees?”

Michele exchanged a quick glance with Andre beside him. You? Me? Us? Andre, equally flustered, grabbed his seat belt, and Michele hurriedly reached for his gear shift.

“Michele, you’re driving.”

“Huh? Then who—”

“Erkin, I meant you. Get out.”

Startled, Michele and Andre both glanced instinctively toward the back seat, then quickly looked forward again. Tilting her head slightly toward Erkin, Berenice smiled sweetly, her earlier sternness vanishing as if it had never been there.

“Your protection was perfect. You must’ve been nervous on your first day, but you did well. Go ahead and rest now. I still have work left to do.”

“….”

“You know where the new quarters are, right?”

It was an expulsion so sudden and commanding that both Michele and Andre broke into a cold sweat. Erkin, equally surprised by the unexpected order, stayed silent. While he hesitated, Berenice looked over her manicured nails and murmured as if to herself.

“Guess you’re not great at picking up on hints.”

Her proud, downward gaze softened slightly as her eyes glided toward Erkin’s face to gauge his reaction. Scanning him quickly, almost like speed reading, she heard his low voice.

“My duty is to stay close and protect you until you return home after completing all your scheduled activities.”

So stiff. As if anyone didn’t already know that. Even reading a newspaper out loud would sound less rigid than that.

“Yeah, I know. Ricardo must’ve ordered it that way. But whatever my brother said isn’t my concern.”

“….”

“Do I need to explain further?”

Her tone was soft and calm, even friendly at a glance, but her expression said clearly that this meaningless back-and-forth was already unbearable.

“I’m busy and don’t have time to argue with you. If you really want to work, then walk to the office and learn the area while you’re at it. That’s basic for a bodyguard. If you don’t like that, you can go report back to Ricardo instead.”

“….”

“If you don’t get out, I’ll get out and walk. Choose.”

With the ultimatum that one of them had to move first, Erkin had no choice but to get out of the car.

Once Michele confirmed that Erkin had started walking toward the office, he quickly pulled the car back onto the road. Passing by Erkin, who was walking ahead at an even pace, Michele waited until the man was no longer visible in the mirror before speaking.

“What was that about? That was petty, even for you. I’ve never seen you act like this.”

“I know. So what? Did I take it out on you or something?”

Berenice snapped sharply, as if daring him to argue. Michele gave her an annoying look through the rearview mirror, and Andre, who had been silent the whole time, carefully spoke up.

“I think it’s because of Russo Gucci.”

Russo Gucci was the ex-boyfriend Berenice had broken up with a month ago.

“I thought the same thing. Our Miss Berenice was already seeing Brian Lockwood even before breaking up with Russo. To be exact, that Russo—”

Andre shot Michele a look that said, ‘Do you really think I didn’t know that?’ And as expected, Berenice’s face twisted as she kicked the back of the driver’s seat hard.

Kicking it would only hurt her own foot anyway.

Unfazed by the seat shaking, Michele met Berenice’s glare through the mirror with a teasing smile. Ignoring him, Berenice turned back toward the window. Her reflection wavered on the glass, wearing the face of someone clearly annoyed by the hassle.

“…Looks like Ricardo found out.”

“Well, this is your first time two-timing. It’s no wonder he noticed. I doubt there’s a clause for cheating within the boundaries the boss allows.”

“How unfair. It’s not like I was torn between them, weighing which one I liked better. One of them just stopped being useful, that’s all. So I ended it.”

“…?”

What is she even saying? Michele’s eyes went wide. Does she not realize that’s still cheating? Figures. Leave it to a mafia to think in such a cold, amoral way.

Turning the wheel smoothly, Michele muttered like he had a headache coming on, “I wasn’t going to bring it up since it’s probably nothing, but… maybe we pulled surveillance off Russo too early?”

“No, it was a waste of manpower. Don’t overthink it.”

Berenice’s reply was firm, unlike Michele’s concern. Maybe that was for the best, but still… pressing lightly on the accelerator, Michele replayed the past month in his mind.

“Still, until we called off surveillance, his movements were obvious, and he didn’t do anything suspicious….”

“Yeah. Now that I think about it, he hasn’t called since the day before yesterday. Or maybe it’s been longer? Did something happen already?”

“Could the boss have done something?”

At Andre’s cautious words, Berenice nodded, muttering suspiciously, “Oh no, don’t tell me he’s dead….”

“If he was, we’d have heard by now.”

“How sad. Still, I hope he’s alive.”

“Maybe erase that smile first before you pretend to worry, Berenice.”

“What worry?”

Berenice, having momentarily erased Erkin’s presence from her mind, leaned back comfortably against the leather seat with a faint, subtle smile. Just like Michele’s jab suggested, she didn’t seem to care much about Erkin—or about Russo, the lover she’d dated for months.

Of course, Michele didn’t care about Russo either. Following Berenice’s lead, he pressed down on the gas pedal, erasing both Erkin and Russo from his mind as the car gradually picked up speed.

***

As Erkin walked slowly down the road just as Berenice had ordered, he stopped the moment the black car disappeared from sight.

Out of habit, he straightened his suit and slipped on the coat that had been hanging from his arm. Only then did he realize he’d left his fedora in the car, but it was already too late. Letting out a short, dry chuckle along with a puff of white breath, Erkin ran a hand through his hair.

Ridiculous. Almost laughably so.

He knew Berenice didn’t like him, but he hadn’t expected her to tell him to get out of the car on the spot. Nor had he expected her to notice the few times he’d accidentally smiled.

Her unexpected behavior was fresh enough to amuse him, but….

If her goal had been to hurt his pride, he wanted to tell her she’d failed miserably. Of course, he knew he had, unintentionally, rubbed her the wrong way, but he didn’t feel the need to explain himself.

As Erkin pulled a pair of black leather gloves from his coat pocket, a cold smirk spread across his face.

Fifteen years. Fifteen years.

Fifteen years since the day his parents and younger sister were murdered, and the precious home they’d built was burned to ashes.

Five years since he joined the Federal Bureau of Security, where he’d once handled the case himself, determined to uncover the hidden truth, the vanished evidence, and the true culprit who killed his family.

Two years since he’d infiltrated the Valentiera Family after beginning as an undercover investigator for unresolved cases, hiding his identity. Over a year spent crawling like a dog as a lowly Picciotto before finally earning his initiation and catching Ricardo’s eye as a Soldato for the past ten months….

Erkin gathered the scattered fragments of his memories like winding a film reel, calmly organizing them. His mind, revisiting the fifteen years he’d climbed step by step like ascending a staircase, sank into stillness, as tranquil as a windless sea.

The chilly air filled his lungs as he inhaled slowly and exhaled again. He pressed his reddened eyes, stung by the biting spring wind.

Fifteen years since losing his family.

One hour since becoming Berenice’s bodyguard.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that his two-year undercover mission truly began the moment he became her bodyguard an hour ago.

Erkin pulled a cheap cigarette from the inner pocket of his coat and placed it between his lips. The flame of the nearly empty lighter wavered in the cold wind, and as the smoke spread wide like a blank canvas, a pale, clear face began to form above it.