9

The next day, I woke up early to prepare to go to the station. The station is already used to seeing me, and the police officer I got into an argument with is relatively friendly.

"Zamira! Good morning!" the people in the station greeted me. Ah, yes, they call me Zamira here in the station. They were hoping that the sound of my name would trigger my memories.

I greeted them back with enthusiasm before I got into Kevin's office.

"Yo~" I greeted gleefully.

"Hey," he responded before giving a heavy sigh.

"What happened? You look like you got dumped." I asked teasingly.

"I really hope that was the case," he chuckled and gave a small smile.

"So, the girl's married?" I jokingly asked. He smiled and laughed at my silly joke.

"No. I don't think so, but I'm not sure if this girl feels the same for me. BUT that's not the reason I'm feeling gloomy today." He said and looked at me with all seriousness.

Wait...is he talking about me? Should I ask? Nah...I'm probably reading into it too much.

"Good morning, Captain Evans." a familiar voice spoke behind me. I slowly turned my head towards the door.

|

|

ANDREW?!

My eyeballs almost popped out with surprise. Luckily, Kevin was already standing, so he didn't see my reaction.

THIS IS HIS SURPRISE?!

"Detective Hayes. It's an honor to finally meet you." Kevin said and gave him a firm handshake.

"Zamira. This is Detective Hayes. He's from the IIO in Singapore." Kevin introduced me to Andrew.

I looked at Andrew. There's a certain glint in his eye.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Zamira... you can call me Mari." I said and shook his hand as well.

"I should leave. I'm sure you have to talk about confidential matters." I said. I was almost at the door when Andrew spoke.

"Actually, can you stay?" he said. I stopped on my tack and turned to face them. I looked at Andrew, then at Kevin.

"What's this about?" I asked...although I have an idea. I have to pretend that I have zero clues.

"Mari... you might be involved in the case..." Kevin said in a deep tone.

"What?! How?! Why?!" I asked, my brows furrowed. Kevin then asked me to sit down. I sat down opposite Andrew.

"Mari. Do you know why you are here?" Kevin asked as he leaned on his table facing me.

"Uhm? Here in town?" I asked. Wow...my acting skills are so overused right now. Kevin nodded and looked at me sternly. I've never seen him this serious.

"If I knew, I would have told you already," I said and looked at Andrew. He seemed amused by my reaction.

"Well. Miss Zamira Yamada. Let me give you a hint. You are from Singapore. And you... work under the analysis division of the IIO." Andrew said as I looked at him wide-eyed. He then passed a folder to me. Kevin sat down next to me and looked at the folder as well.

What the hell is he planning? I have read my own file already. The files he handed me are part of who I really am. I did work as an Analyst before transferring to the Crime Division.

I shot an eyebrow and looked at him.

"Zamira... you are not supposed to be in the field. When the department found out that you went missing, they seized your computer and found that you were investigating SOLO. You're not even allowed to do that." Andrew scolded me.

For a minute, I thought he's gonna rat me out. But then again, what if I'm not the real Zamira? What if it's all fabricated?

"S-sorry...I don't even know." I muttered as I looked for my words.

"The chief wants you back in Singapore as soon as possible," Andrew added and looked at me intently.

What the hell is he doing?

"Can I at least know what exactly did I do?" I asked.

"I just told you... rogue agents are certainly a pain in my neck. Did you know how much a problem it cost to track you down?" Andrew said and tapped the folders on the table.

"So let me get this straight. I am an analyst in IIO. I went here to investigate something without proper clearance and certainly without training. What case am I looking at exactly?" I asked again. Andrew was acting like I'm getting into his nerves, but I saw a ghost of a smile.

"Well, Miss Yamada, you were definitely on to something big," Andrew said and opened the missing cases folder that he's holding. "This is what you were doing. We were able to retrieve the files, but most of them were damaged thanks to your firewall," he added.

"Huh... I guess Zamira is paranoid if she placed a firewall," I said, talking about myself in the third person.

"And I must say I'm impressed. But Miss Yamada, you have to understand that you broke dozens of protocols just by being here," he said and leaned forward to intimidate me.

Ugh. Like that's even going to work.

"Well, apologies, Mr. Hayes, but I can't go back just yet," I said. Both the boys looked at me with furrowed brows.

"Mari..." Kevin whispered... I looked at him and gave him a small smile.

"I'm willing to bet my position as an analyst and solve whatever this case is. Whoever this person cost me to lose my memory and might have killed someone. I'm not going back until I get my memories back and see this case through. Do you have any objections, Mr. Hayes?" I said confidently.

Andrew smiled and clapped his hands.

"If that's the case, I would have to talk to the chief and explain the situation. You may not have a job afterward. Are you willing to risk it?" Andrew asked.

"What's the point of going back if I know nothing from my past? No one looked for me until you didn't see me at work. That just clearly states that I won't be missed there. I'm a mere analyst, Mr. Hayes... I'm pretty sure a job is the least of my worries right now." I said. He furrowed his eyebrows... Is my acting too much?

"Well... I'll make a phone call then. If this is really the case Miss Yamada, then I'd have no choice but to help in this investigation you have started." Andrew replied. I smiled at him as he went out to make a call. I then looked at Kevin, who was now confused and concerned at the same time.

"You're an analyst... that may be the reason why you can argue so fast with Chance and me," he chuckled and tousled my hair.

"Well, let me see if my brain still has some juice in it. May I?" I asked Kevin, who gave me a go signal to look at the files in front of me. I have already seen them a dozen times before but working on it officially with Kevin and Andrew seems...surreal.

|

After going through the files, I realized the boys were quiet. I looked up and saw them looking at me like, I'm a specimen under a microscope.

"What?" I asked.

"Are you that focused you're not even hungry?" Kevin asked. I looked at my watch, and I was surprised that it's already half-past two.

"You could have told me." I just replied and looked at them again. "Wanna go to the cafe? It's Purple Day. Chance might have something new." I suggested. The two looked at each other then nodded. At least they're not awkward or something.

The cafe was bustling as usual, and Chance greeted us with enthusiasm. Kevin introduced Andrew, and we all sat together near the window.

"Mari... Zamira... you're an analyst? That's amazing! No wonder you piece together things. And you also have a sharp tongue." Chance said and looked at me like a proud dad.

"Oh, susshhh!" I replied and looked at him with narrow eyes.

"Anyway, if that's the case... are you going to solve your case as well? There are no leads yet right?" Chance said and I nodded.

"We'll find something," Kevin replied and just ate quietly.

"Zamira. Please be reminded that I am now your immediate supervisor. Don't do anything rash. Do you understand?" Andrew said and looked at me teasingly. I nodded and just drank my coffee.

Shoot... I still have to meet my anonymous caller at 8pm? Can I ditch these three?

|

The day carried on as usual. I'm now stuck at the station with Kevin and Andrew working on the case. I looked at my watch... 7:45.

"Hey, I need to drop by the convenience store. Can I go ahead?" I asked them both. They both gave me a nod and I went out.

The alleyway. I'm pretty sure my caller is talking about the place where I was found.

I casually walked and reached the alleyway... It's dim but it's good enough to see shadows lurking.

8PM

I waited for a while and looked around. Am I being paranoid? Maybe he won't come? I waited for ten more minutes... Should I just go?

As I turned to leave... I heard some noise on the side of the trash bin. I hesitated to look but... curiosity got the best of me.