Description

A Model Mystery (Evergreen Agency Series, Book 1)

Fifteen-year-old Marta Reyes has two extraordinary gifts: a photographic memory that captures every detail, and synesthesia that lets her literally taste lies and smell danger. When she documents Milan Fashion Week as an aspiring photographer, these abilities seem like creative advantages—until her best friend Zoe Chen vanishes after booking a mysterious midnight photo shoot.

The official story is a family emergency, but Marta’s synesthesia screams deception. Zoe’s suitcase remains unpacked, her passport sits in their shared apartment, and no airline has record of her departure. When Marta investigates the prestigious Evergreen Agency that arranged Zoe’s final booking, she discovers a conspiracy that turns the glamorous fashion world into a hunting ground for human predators.

Behind Milan’s glittering runways lies a sophisticated trafficking network using legitimate modeling agencies as recruitment fronts. Beautiful young women disappear after exclusive bookings, their families receiving carefully crafted explanations about career opportunities in distant cities. But Marta’s unique perceptual abilities reveal the truth: a systematic operation that processes vulnerable teenagers like luxury commodities for wealthy international buyers.

Partnering with Rico Santos, a former male model turned undercover investigator, Marta infiltrates the network’s inner circle. Her synesthetic talents—reading emotional states, detecting deception, noticing patterns others miss—make her both an invaluable detective and a prime target for recruitment. The traffickers don’t just want to silence her; they want to use her abilities to improve their operations.

From Milan’s underground auction houses to Monaco’s exclusive masquerade balls, Marta navigates a world where fashion shows mask modern slavery and designer clothes conceal crimes against humanity. Every clue brings her closer to Zoe—and deeper into danger from people who have perfected the art of making inconvenient witnesses disappear.

But Marta possesses something the criminals don’t expect: an unwavering determination fueled by friendship and a synesthetic gift for seeing through beautiful lies. As she races to save Zoe before her friend becomes another “delivered” asset, she uncovers an international conspiracy that reaches into the highest levels of fashion, government, and law enforcement.

A Model Mystery combines the high-stakes tension of contemporary thriller fiction with an insider’s view of the fashion industry’s hidden vulnerabilities. Marta’s synesthesia creates a unique investigative perspective, while her age and circumstances ground the story in authentic teenage experience despite its sophisticated criminal conspiracy.

This is noir fiction for a new generation—a story that exposes how predators exploit the dreams of young people while celebrating the power of friendship, determination, and the courage to see truth even when it’s hidden behind the most beautiful facades.