The moment I arrived at the office I was greeted with the most beautiful sight I could have ever hoped for. A new desk and a neatly stacked pile of papers on top. Thinking I was dreaming I had to pinch my arm to rule it out, but it got better. The papers weren't forms to fill for the mistakes I made, though I wondered who ended up filling them in my stead, they were data compiled in the forms of lists, graphs and statistics.
"My favorite!" I sat and breathed in the smell of freshly printed paper I like so much, then got settled on the brand new chair that creaked a welcome.
It wasn't a single missing person case file but around ten different cases. It's precisely the kind of work I like and contrary to what it may seem, it doesn't involve any field activity whatsoever. Field agents are the ones in charge of interviewing people, collecting evidence and gathering data. Still, everyone knows people lie and evidence can be planted, but numbers don't lie. It sounds cliche and maybe it is a little, but following the money really does pay out during investigations.
In less than an hour I had already ruled out two alleged missing person case files by just looking at bank statements and bills. One had ran away with her affair partner and the other was laying low after perpetrating a pyramid scheme disguised as a multi level marketing business. Pyramid schemes and multi level marketing are the same if you ask me, but one is a crime while the other is somehow a 'valid' business model according to law and that is all that matters to desk agents.
"Am I still a desk agent?" I ask myself as I realize that despite the little time that passed in here, I just spent a week in another world. I took a peek at the next folders, but something nagged at the back of my head and I wasn't sure if it was because of my sudden realization that I was no longer a desk agent or if it was something else.
Moments like these are the perfect opportunities for coffee at the break room. It also gives me some time to think about what I just read and order my thoughts. There's something reassuring in knowing that after I finish drinking the so called 'coffee' they give us, the stack of papers would still be waiting for me in the office just as I left it.
"How is it going in your new position?" Ericssen came in loudly like usual.
"It's quiet." I nod.
"Don't act so cool, I bet you're missing us already." Ericssen poured himself a mug of coffee. I never particularly liked Ericssen, but now that I think about it I really missed the white noise in the background.
"I didn't mean it like that. It's quiet, but I really missed you guys." My admittance seemed to go well with Ericssen who leaned on the counter adopting the universal posture of incoming office gossip.
"Word in the office is there will be a new position available soon. Me and Thompson are thinking on applying, poor guy doesn't know he doesn't stand a chance. I hear the test is going to be physical and that guy runs out of breath by walking up the stairs. Hey, maybe once I get promoted I could recommend you to assist me in the new office."
"Really!? You would do that for me?" I don't try to hide it, that quiet morning reminded me what I loved most about my job and his offer is precisely what I wanted. I wouldn't even mind having Ericssen as my supervisor as long as I get back to a nice cozy desk.
"Sure..." He says before leaving the place like a wet wick that couldn't trigger the bomb.
This time I didn't have an epiphany about the files and I quietly finish my cup of coffee. I'm not upset or anything like that. Contrary to what TV shows where detectives find the answers in the least expected places, in real life the answers usually topped long hours of menial yet thorough work.
Back in the blank space I call an office, I had my hand fulls with the third case. It was proving to be quite the challenge and I decided to skim over the other folders just to see if I could close any other case before lunch break. The fourth and fifth cases were just as difficult, but the ones that followed were even more so. There were so many holes in the statements and so many information missing it was impossible to make even a standard graph with the data. It got me thinking and I realized the papers weren't stacked randomly, but rather consciously placed in order of difficulty.
"Is this a test?" I wonder as scratch my hair with the pencil I use to take notes on the side of sheets. Whatever the answer is, I just have to do my job. I try to keep going through the folders and then it hit me. There really was something bothering me about the third case file.
The missing person was Andrew Hensley, 33 years old. He lived an honest unremarkable life. He was single and lived far from his family due to work which is why it took so long for anyone to notice his disappearance. Usually, for a missing person case to be flagged as a possible other world affair there would need to be unexplained circumstances such as people disappearing leaving their most valued possessions behind which was not true for this case. The subject's phone was never found which meant he took it with him wherever he went. Missing person cases where teenagers are involved are also always flagged and the same happens when someone with a remarkable and specific skill set disappeared, both of those were also not true for this case.
"Why did they flag this file?" What bothered me was the fact that there was absolutely nothing of note about this file, but it somehow made its way to my department.
Following bank statements took me nowhere and the same happened with the usual procedure. Texts were clean and he didn't have any enemies either. It was getting increasingly frustrating. Then came lunch break, because lunch is important. Never skip a meal because of work, work will always be there, but the cafeteria runs out of fresh sandwiches if you're late.
It was getting dangerously close to clocking out time when I took a pause and let all the information I read seep in, then I pictured what the subject's routine was like. He liked to grab coffee before work from a small coffee shop on his way, but everyday he took a detour that lasted around half an hour. The location logs pinpointed him into a library.
It was such a small detail that would have gone over my head had I not read the other files before digging deep into the third file. Four of the other folders, the ones with incomplete data, showed some overlapping in the same location. The disappearances took place in different days and at different times, but all my work had paid off. One or two could be disregarded as a coincidence, but four is a well established pattern.
I highlighted the locations and the time stamps with a yellow marker and then somehow managed to finish the report and hand it over to the director in person before clocking out. Working from a desk always feels great, but finding something this big and closing so many cases in a single day made it even better.
I deserve a treat. Nothing fancy, but a good day deserves to end with something sweet. I opened the door and was about to scold Patrick for always lounging at my place when I noticed the place was empty. Everything was in place and the one who greeted me instead of my friend was my fish who said my name over and over without a sound. I heaved a sigh and placed the apple pie that was too large for me alone and realized no matter how much I complained I always brought a little extra for him.
"I'm alone..." I managed to say before the door was slammed open as Patrick stormed the kitchen and helped himself to a slice of pie.
"Dude, Maggie is amazing! Thank you so much for coming along yesterday. You're the best! Hey, did you keep in touch with Tasha?"
"No." I shake my head.
"Why not? She's hot! For a minute there I almost thought I picked wrong. Ha, ha!"
Patrick's life is so fast paced it makes my head spin. I don't know how I managed to keep sane up until this moment, yet I refrain myself from spitting any venom. A good day can only be so if you share it with the people you care about.
"I didn't ask for her number." I say as I mindlessly water my succulent. That succulent, the one that just pops into everybody's house and no one remember how it got there. Just when Patrick was about to scold me for being clueless something incredible happened. A system alert popped up despite me being home.
[Green Thumb skill has leveled up!]