1 PART • 1

"Finally, I get a free day. You wanna join?" I spoke to Natalie on the phone. I was leaving on my motorbike with a cup of Starbucks coffee in my hand. The weather was nice and I had just returned from my mission. It was tiring.

"I'm sorry dude, I just got another account to hack. Let's wait for next time." disappointment was evident in her voice. After all, I rarely get a day off.

Since Natalie couldn't accompany me, I figured out my own company was greater. So I drove to the city mall for a so-called 'me' time. I rarely went to malls for a fun time. Every time I visited a mall, it was either to chase someone or to gather evidence. I guess life as a secret government agent isn't that amazing in the end.

While walking inside the mall, I saw my reflection quite a few times.

'Heck, I need to invest time for myself."

So, my first destination was the salon to get a nice massage and spa. After the refreshing session, I got a new haircut. I loved the change in my look even though I'm not a big fan of changes.

The woman who assisted me throughout the salon was fascinated to see my tattoos and scars. The scars I got from fighting criminals. I lived kind of an undercover life so no one really knew my real identity. I bet the woman thought I was some thug.

Later, I went to various shops and bought many outfits for myself. Most of them were of the colour black. My co-workers say that black is my religion. That's because I am a secret agent and the best way to lay low is to wear black. What they don't know is that my favourite colour is red. But never mind, today, I'll focus only on myself.

My next stop was the arcade. I played all the games, whether childish or not and that definitely cost a fortune. But that didn't bother me because here's the thing; the government pays me a wholesome amount for every mission. Thus, money came last in my list of concerns.

Now that I had had tons of fun, it was time to go home. Outside the city mall, I saw a crowd pacifying a lady. She was crying bitterly. It was weird but I proceeded towards the crowd. The view became clearer with every step I took.

By the time I reached the spot, the crowd and the lady weren't the only ones I saw. There was a lifeless man lying on the cold road. The shirt he wore was stained by blood and he lay on his stomach. It seemed like he was shot from behind.

As a secret agent, scenes like this made my curiosity bore into my skin and that was exactly what had happened. I pushed people out of my way and walked to the lady. She looked like a mess. Her washed mascara tinted her under-eyes black and her lipstick was smudged. She looked so devastated, I was sympathetic for her. She kept saying something while sobbing. I could roughly figure out, it was, 'We list the kids and now I lost you too.' Unable to wait anymore, I knelt down in front of her and asked what's wrong.

"We were just about to cross the road when someone shot him." I guessed he was her husband.

"He's dead, isn't he?" I asked the people as I put my hand on her shoulder in an attempt to console her. I felt bad. Genuinely.

"Yes!" she burst out, crying loudly. Her sobs that were feeble when I first came near her were now like a ringing alarm. I held her hands firmly and squeezed them tightly.

"We should report this to the police and get justice instead of mourning, shouldn't we?" she looked at me blankly as if she didn't get a thing I said. "C'mon, my friend works in the police department. Let's call her."

I got up and informed the nearest police station. Slowly, one by one, people started leaving as they had stuff to do. They made excuses. To not seem rude. But I knew better. They were just a bunch of mundanes driven there by curiosity. Just like me. But, they didn't care about the lady. They didn't want to help. This is why there is no trace of humanity left today. Everything one cares about is the list of 'cool' things they have seen, known or done. To step up their game in popularity, you know. I comforted the lady grieving her loss.

Soon, a forensic can and some police officers arrived. I spoke to them. They examined the body's position and they took the corpse to the forensic lab. The officers led the lady to their car and I tagged along on my bike. Further interrogation was necessary so I went with them. No one stopped me because they knew who I was due to work.

After so long, I finally got to know the lady's name. It was Jade. During the questioning session, one answer caught my attention. When the interrogator asked where Jade and her husband were heading towards, she replied, "Our older son went to a stall to buy something and he took his brother with him. But he never returned. So we were going to cross the road to search for them."

The plot of events ticked me off so much that I stopped the interrogation right away and called my special investigation team. Jade was perplexed but didn't react.

It was too suspicious that the man was shot right after his kids disappeared. My gut said that there was something big going on. Something much bigger than just one family. It felt like it wasn't a coincidence that I saw the commotion outside the mall.