HIS DISAPPEARING LOVERS

Kiya stood in front of the mirror, admiring her image. She was dressed up in a black suit with matching pants. She had on a white earring to match her white low heels. She intended to look perfect and fit for her new role. She has worked so hard for this position, and she has sacrificed so much of her time and even relationships to get here, and she plans to enjoy every moment of it. Agent Akiyarah Thomas, she whispered to herself, relishing every word of it. It seemed to have a good ring to it.

Rising to this position hasn't been an easy journey, considering the fact that she is one of the few women in this predominantly male-dominated field. It absolutely didn't help that she was what people would describe as beautiful and attractive. She has to put in double the efforts a man would put in to get recognised while avoiding being objectified, and despite it all, she still had to endure some form of objectification.

The journey was truly a tough and long one, but she made it. She crushed it, and now she stands there, so proud of herself and all she has achieved in that very moment.

As she left her apartment and headed to her office, she was greeted with a ton of congratulations from the people at work; the news had spread fast of her promotion, and everyone sent a congratulations her way, yet amidst all the congratulations, there was some gossip. Apparently, some people think she only made it this far because of her physical appearance, in simple words, her pretty privilege.

Honestly, gossip doesn't really get to her that easily. She has had to deal with things like that for a long time, so she was used to it. It just made her a little sad that people would turn a blind eye to all the sleepless nights, hard work, and sacrifices she put in to get to this stage just because their egos can't take it, and they'd rather assume it's all because she is a beautiful woman.

As she settled into her new office, enjoying the fact that she now gets one to herself and doesn't have to work in the same space as other staff, she decided to just ignore all the gossip and focus on her work, giving it all the efforts she had never once deprived it of. She started working on all the files that were already stacked on her table.

Despite the newness of her promotion, she already had a number of case files waiting for her. They were low-profile cases as opposed to high-profile ones, which she'd rather prefer, but she knew she had to start from somewhere after all. Just as she was making some form of progress, Agent Rick, one of the fellow agents at her workplace, interrupted her with a knock.

"We're needed in the conference room; our supervisor wants to see us," he said. Then he shoved in a quick congratulations amidst the information.

She quickly tidied up all the papers already scattered all over her desk and headed to the conference room, wondering what this impromptu meeting was all about. They never have impromptu meetings; all meetings are preplanned and emailed to all the staff involved so they can be prepared for it, so this impromptu one is a first.

In the conference room, a whiteboard was in front, and on it was the photograph of a stunningly handsome young man with the name Asher Christopher Smith attached to the bottom. Also beneath that were the pictures of five beautiful young women with their different names also attached underneath. The supervisor gestured to the pictures with a sombre look on his face.

"Asher Smith," he began, "had it all: wealth, looks, and charm. And all these beautiful ladies, notice their similar features: brunette hair, brown eyes, and typically just beautiful women".

He then paused for a moment before going on to ask, "Do you know what connects them all to Asher?" Akiyarah rolled her eyes at how dramatic the supervisor was being, and she wished he'd just get straight to the point of the meeting so she could return to working on the cases on her desk.

And without waiting for a response, he gave the answer to his own question, "They all dated him at some point, and now they are all missing."

Akiyarah looked around the room carefully, noticing that every agent's attention was intently fixated on the contents of the board as though they were already solving the case. I bet their minds are already strategizing how to handle the case if they got it, she thought to herself. She, on the other hand, couldn't care less. She had her eyes set on a high-profile drug cartel case, and she wished that would be given to her as her first major case following her promotion.

The supervisor continued, "The disappearances are rather suspicious because, despite the apparent connection to Asher, we can't seem to find any evidence that links him to the disappearances. It's as though he carefully covers his tracks." Akiyarah's ears perked up at that as she wondered if a case of kidnapping is a big deal, but she shook her head; unless the person involved is a high-profile individual, cases like these are not usually that big of a deal.

The supervisor scanned the room very slowly before throwing out a direct question: "Who's willing to lead this investigation?" Akiyarah decided to keep down her hand and feigned activity so she wouldn't be noticed. She didn't want the case; any other person could have it; she didn't care.

At that point, a lot of hands went up, and she wasn't surprised.

However, the supervisor looked straight at her and practically shouted, "Agent Akiyarah, you'll lead this investigation."

Her eyes widened in disbelief, her jaw dropped, and almost immediately, she protested, "But I didn't volunteer, sir."

He smiled as he calmly replied, "I know; I just think you bear a similar resemblance to these women; hence, it'll make you the perfect candidate for an undercover operation." He now had a stern look on his face, and she knew that he had made up his mind, and there was almost nothing she could say to change it.

Her confusion deepened, and she wasn't ready to back down just yet. "Sir, I don't understand."

"What's there to understand, Agent Akiyarah? he said, obviously starting to get exasperated. It's simple, Agent Akiyarah; all you need to do is get close to Asher Smith, make him trust you, and make him fall in love with you like he was with those women."

At that, her mouth dropped open again, so shocked at the audacity of this request.