Twisted Obsession

Chapter 6

Hailey

I let out a breath before turning back to face Arfan. "You owe me one, kiddo," I said. 

He nodded frantically.

"Listen, I know you think it's hilarious to prank him, but trust me, one day he will snap like a twig and I won't be there to bail you out. So unless you want to end up as his next prank, I suggest you ease up on the mischief!" I glared at him.

"Will think about that," his smile widened. 

Prankster.

He had a distinctly Asian appearance with smooth, saddle-brown skin. His dark brown eyes were deep and piercing, and his silky black hair.

"So, would you mind introducing yourself to me?" he questioned. "Hailey Deveraux and... you must be Arfan, right?" I raised an eyebrow. 

His expression shifted in seconds, leaving him speechless.

"How do you know my name?" he whispered. "Well, I heard Rylan shouting your name like a maniac half an hour ago at Mr Bryson's office, so I figured it must be you," I replied and shrugged it off. 

He nodded slowly while running his fingers through his hair.

I only had a brief interaction with him, but even in those few minutes, I could sense that he exuded a warm and welcoming demeanour. 

"We should head to the meeting room now, everyone might be waiting," he reminded me, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah."

We both strode through the hallway and descended the stairs. 

****

Arfan poked his head through the door before stepping inside and I followed him. The very first thing I noticed after entering was the sleek, futuristic design of the room, with metallic surfaces and minimalist furnishings. The room's centrepiece is a large, circular table of polished black marble, surrounded by comfortable ergonomic chairs. Each chair had a small touchscreen panel, presumably for accessing classified information or controlling the room's various systems. At the head of the table, a massive display screen spanned the entire wall, displaying a constantly updating stream of data and surveillance footage. I marvelled at the clarity and detail of the images, realizing that the agency must have access to some of the most advanced surveillance technology available.

Sitting on the executive chair was our head, Mr Bryson. He pointed his finger at an empty chair next to Arfan's. I made my way towards the empty chair, my eyes scanned the room and I realized that there were several new faces present. The agents I had never met before were scattered around the room, and I was surprised at just how many of them were present for a single case.

 We were a group of seven, including myself. 

"Before commencing the meeting, I would like to take this opportunity to formally introduce our newest team member, Hailey Deveraux." Mr Bryson said, glancing at me.

I managed to give a smile and...it was awkward. 

"I thought we were enough to handle this case," a guy with honey-blonde hair scoffed across the table.

 I frowned. 

Lucky for him, It just so happened to be my very first day at the agency, or else I would have totally gone off on this guy.