Location: Obadore
Time: 9:12PM
‘I’m going to drop at LASU gate,’ Mr Matthew said to the driver of the Sienna.
The driver gave no reply, he was too busy checking his side mirrors and the rearview mirror.
‘Did you hear me? I would stop at University Gate,’ Mr Matthew repeated.
‘I hear you Oga oo,’ the driver said. ‘It is this car I’m looking at, it appears as if it has been following us.’
Mr Matthew turned to look back. There was a vehicle behind them but to him it did not seem to him like it was following them. The person in it was an elderly man.
‘It’s not the one directly behind us, it’s the one after it.’
Mr Matthew tried to look again but he turned back almost immediately and sighed. ‘Just don’t take me past the gate.’
The driver relaxed on seeing that Mr Matthew was less worried himself. They soon got to the University gate and the driver parked off the road to let the man step out.
*
Tomi and Henry had been following closely but waiting for the right opportunity to stop the car and take the man. They slowed down and allowed two other cars overtake when they saw the indicator of the Sienna turned on, a sign that it was about to turn or change direction. They increased their speed again when they saw their target step out of the car.
Henry put on his face cap and still covered his head with the hood of the jacket he was putting on.
*
‘Hey!’ he heard someone shout and he glanced back to look but quickly turned back again, thinking he was not the one being called.
A guy stepped out of the car and jammed it hurriedly. Mr Matthew turned back again to look, a gun was already pointed at his chest.
‘Get into the car,’ Henry said to the man pointing to the car behind him.
_______
There seemed to be a cease in the flying of the bullets for a while. Tarasha picked the bag which she hung on the window before jumping down. She strapped it to her back while taking out her two revolvers from her pocket.
There was silence for a moment and Tarasha used the seemingly silence to listen to ‘noiseless’ movements around her. She positioned her revolvers well in both hands. Slowly, she moved to the left and took a quick peep. She could see another vehicle turn into the road from the entrance far behind and the reflection from the front light of the vehicle made it uneasy to locate the men shooting the gun.
She peeped for a second time and she could see clearer, she located two of the men standing at the right. She also located a concrete electric pole at the opposite direction from where she stood. She cocked her two guns and took in a breath before stepping out of her hiding place. She pointed her guns towards the two men and released shots as she ran towards the pole. The bullet hit one of the men in his chest and missed the other one narrowly giving him the chance to respond to her shots with several shots which he missed.
She stopped behind the pole and hid with her side entering the space in between the two edges of the pole. She peeped from there and could see more from where she was now. Three of the men were standing at different positions around the car and pointing their guns in her direction. She quickly hid herself back as a shot flew past her face. She tightened her grips on the guns as she pondered on what to do. She was still thinking when she heard the name ‘Samantha’ being called and someone talking to her. She peeped and saw one of the guys coming in her direction from the car, he had his hands raised as he stepped closer slowly.
‘Can we talk?’ Eric asked. He stopped close to the back of the truck and kept a careful gaze on her.
She stepped out from behind the concrete pole with the guns in her hands but lowered and pointing to the ground.
___
Location: Tarasha’s New Base, Lagos.
Stephanie stared down at his face in shock, she never expected he would wake up. His eyes were now opened and he was staring at her face.
‘Stephanie,’ he called softly. He raised his hand up as much as he could and tried to make a signal to her but she didn’t understand. She held his palm and wrapped her fingers around his.
There was a moment of silence between them and it seemed each of them did not have words to say to each other.
‘What are you doing here Steph?’ Dave finally spoke.
She remained silent and kept staring at him, not knowing what response to give.
‘Are you comfortable living with Samantha Osman?’ Dave spoke again.
She tried to open her mouth but found it difficult to pronounce any word.
‘Steph, you don’t fight evil with evil. Why did you let your desperation to get back at the Vice President make you work with an assassin?’ Dave asked.
‘Samantha Osman is not evil as you think, she’s not.’ Stephanie said with a teary eyes.
Dave took in a breath. He tried to adjust himself so he could place his head comfortably but the straps holding the different parts of his body to the bed did not permit. She didn’t understand what he was trying to do but just sat on the bed to get her body closer to him. She placed a palm on his forehead and began to use her fingers to play with his hair.
‘Okay,’ he said with his breath covering the voice. ‘First things first, how can you help me get out of here?’
She stood up from the bed immediately and released his fingers from hers. She shook her head and let out a breath.
‘I can’t do that, there’s no way it would work.’
She tried to move farther away from him but he was able to hold her hand and stop her.
‘Steph, you could at least try,’ he said with a convincing look on his face.
She shook her head, ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about Dave, Samantha has guarded this place heavily, you can’t get away even if I try to free you. It would get you into a deeper mess,’ Stephanie said.
‘What mess can be deeper than this which I am in already?’ Dave asked in a pitiful voice. ‘I would get killed soon if nothing is done to get me out of here.’
‘You won’t be killed, Samantha would not kill you.’ Stephanie said with a shaky voice, although still sounding confident.
‘Why are you so sure?’
‘I am.’
‘No, she would not let me go just like that,’ Dave argued.
‘I’ve been told you would be allowed to go when it’s time,’ Stephanie reiterated.
‘Steph,’ Dave called in a tired tone and let out a breath. ‘Even you do not believe that they would let me go, you’re forcing yourself hard to believe a lie.’
‘No Dave, I trust Samantha, she keeps to her words.’ Stephanie argued.
‘But what’s that look full of doubts I see on your face?’ Dave said and stared deeply into her eyes.
She was silent for a while and then she closed her eyes and turned away. She didn’t doubt initially, but Dave through his intelligent play of words had made her believe she wasn’t fully persuaded and it became as so.
That was the confirmation Dave needed, he was also now sure Stephanie was also afraid of what could be done to him.
Stephanie shook her head thoughtfully with her eyes closed. She wanted to trust the doctor’s words that Samantha had no plan to kill Dave but with the recent report about the Inspector General who developed an incurable sickness after the fluid from the drip bag mixed with his blood, she couldn’t tell if the mixture being prepared for Dave was going to be harmless.
‘Steph, even if they’re going to ever let me go, I’m sure they won’t let me go this same way. I’ll be turned into a dummy or an invalid being, someone who cannot tell his right from left because they would never want me to be a witness against them or problems. So what would be the difference between me and a dead person?’ Dave said, almost in tears.
Stephanie was in tears too but refused to look at his face. She sniffed in as she pondered on Dave’s words. She still felt like she could trust the Doctor who said he wouldn’t be hurt but Dave’s words that they wouldn’t want him to be a threat to them made her rethink.
A thought suddenly struck her mind. She sniffed in and wiped her eyes before she turned to look at his face. He expected her to say something but she didn’t speak. She took a step forward and turned her back to him. She turned towards the door and proceeded there.
‘Steph,’ Dave called as she took the fourth step.
She stopped without turning back and waited for him to speak on but he remained silent, without taking another look at him she walked out of the room.
_____
Location: Miami, FL USA.
Time: 04:22PM
Madam Henrietta drove into the car park by the side of the house and turned off the car engine. She stepped out of the car and locked the front door. She opened the door to the backseat and picked out the bags containing the items she had gotten from the grocery store. She closed the door and then locked it with the remote key.
She noticed some uniformed men standing outside the car park as she walked out of the place.
‘Good day Madam,’ one of the uniformed men greeted as she stepped out. He displayed his Identity card, ‘I’m Agent Wright from the CIA.’
‘Good day officer, how may I help you?’ she asked with a curious look.
‘You are under arrest for coming into the US with illegal travel documents and you’re also being wanted by the Nigerian police,’ the officer replied. The officer standing beside him unclipped a manacle from his belt and proceeded towards the woman.
Madam Henrietta’s mouth was left agape as the bags dropped from her hands. She had thought she was free from troubles but never knew she would have any course to still be reminded of her ordeal in Nigeria. She began to wonder how she was traced and she realized the mistake she had made. Samantha Osman had provided new card details and identity to be used by her for a specified period after she got there but in a bid to forget about her ordeal in Nigeria quickly, she had thrown off everything given to her by Samantha Osman and continued to use her personal details.
She let out a deep breath as she was beng handcuffed. Her housemate happened to drive in at that moment and quickly parked her car and stepped out.
‘What’s happening here?’ Henrietta’s housemate asked, looking baffled as she stared at the handcuffs on Henrietta’s wrists.
‘Your friend is being arrested for impersonation and traveling with fake documents,’ an officer replied her. ‘Please, give way,’ he quickly added as he directed madam Henrietta towards their vehicle.
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___
Tarasha stared closely at the remote control in the man’s hand which he raised up. She glanced again at the explosive at the top of the car. She knew the type of explosive device placed on the car. It would only take a tap on the remote control button and the car will go up in flames. The uniqueness of the explosive was in that it would cause very little vibration and it’s effect would be solely on the object it was placed upon and any other objects in contact with it.
‘What do you want?’ Tarasha asked.
‘You,’ Eric replied with a smirk.
Carl who stood beside the vehicle made a phone call to the guys coming in the vehicle behind and asked that they stopped the vehicle and step out.
‘Here I am, come get me,’ Tarasha offered, she said raising her hands up.
Eric kept his gaze on her and was silent for a moment. They had not planned for this moment and they wondered how Tarasha had been able to track them to that place. All he was trying to do there was impromptu.
‘Put down your weapons or we burn up your man,’ Eric threatened.
Tarasha glanced at the explosive at the top of the car again. She was about to say something when she heard Nicholas voice sound through the earpiece in her ear.
‘Boss, I’m about to turn into the new road, should I go ahead with the plan?’
She was silent for a moment. She kept her gaze on Eric but at the same time tried to look above the car parked some metres behind the car which Cole was in to check for signs of the Camry sports. She couldn’t raise her head well enough to avoid Eric from suspecting she was trying to check for something, but she decided to trust Nicholas’ word.
‘Yes,’ she replied Nicholas and continued with Eric. ‘Yes, I’ll put my weapons…’
She couldn’t complete her statement when they began to hear sounds of gunshots from behind. Tarasha quickly raised her gun and fired a shot at Eric as she zoomed back to behind the pole.
Eric was fast and was able to make Tarasha miss her target as he dashed to the back of the truck immediately he saw he raise her gun. But he still wasn’t able to escape the bullet totally as one scratched his shoulder and he got a minor injury. He positioned the remote control well in his palm and his thumb went in direction of the red button.
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*
All the while Cole had been watching them while carefully setting himself free. He couldn’t do it at a quick speed as Carl was standing beside the car and would have noticed his movement if he had done it in a hurry. He had unlocked the handcuffs already and was waiting for the perfect time to release the car doors from the front control and step out of the car. The new rain of gunshots offered him the opportunity he needed. He jumped to the front of the car as soon as he saw Carl distracted by the gunshots. He unlocked the door and quickly stepped out of the car. The car went up in flames at that moment.
_
Tarasha opened her eyes in shock as she saw the car go up in flames. She suddenly realized that Cole’s life was being ended in the flames and that gave her a new reason to act more drastically. She pulled out a long gun from her back pack and she began to release the shots in quick succession as she proceeded towards the burning vehicle.
_
From the back of the truck Eric could see Tarasha approaching. He had two revolvers with him but could not risk stepping out from behind to face her as the new gun which she now used had more energy and sent the bullets at a very high speed.
He stayed behind the truck for a while but as he sensed her presence closer, an idea came to his mind. He bent quickly and crept under the truck, hiding himself behind the back tyres at the right side of the vehicle. He watched carefully from there for Tarasha’s leg or her shadow formed on the floor.
*
Carl who had stepped some metres away turned back and saw the car in flames. The brightness of the light and the heat radiated did not make him quickly see that Cole was out and when he saw it, Cole was already running towards him. He raised his gun and tried to shoot but Cole grabbed him by the arm and redirected the bullet up to the sky. Cole quickly followed with his elbow into Carl’s belly still holding the arm with his left hand.
He gripped Carl’s wrist with his right hand and tried to twist it to collect the gun but Carl maintained a strong stamina and sent an unexpected kick into Cole’s belly.
Cole almost fell forward but held on to Carl’s hand and dragged him along with him. The gun in Carl’s hand eventually dropped and they both collided into each other in struggle to get the gun but missed it, it sank into a small hole filled with dirty stagnant water. Both Cole and Carl stared at the ground for a moment but couldn’t tell where the gun fell to instantly. Both traced the mark made on the wet sand beside the hole and realized at the same time that the gun had fallen into the hole.
Carl was the first to launch another attack on Cole. He sent a kick to the chest of Cole who was still trying to find his feet and got Cole crashing into muddy water behind him.
*
Nicholas pushed the door of the car open and stepped out quickly bowing his head as he ran to the back of the car. The front window of the car had already been shattered by bullets from the men he shot at. He got to the back of the car and quickly reloaded his gun, then he moved to the edge and peeped to see the positions of his attackers. He saw one of the men coming close to his car and also shooting at the car. The man also saw him and directed a shot towards him but Nicholas quickly hid himself back behind the boot. He saw something which looked like a stone in front of him and quickly picked it up. With a sharp movement he tossed the stone towards the man to cause a distraction and quickly followed with two gun shots. The second shot entered into the man’s chest and he fell to the floor.
*
Tarasha was careful as she got closer to the end of the truck. She constantly glanced back to see if Eric had gone round the truck to appear behind her but she really doubted if he would. There was a large stagnant and deep water at the left side of the road where she parked the truck and she knew there was no way he could pass through there on legs without struggling for minutes.
The shadow of the truck was already casted behind it so she could not tell if there was someone hiding behind. There were only two options, either Eric had tried to pass the other way and was struggling in the marshy hole covered by the stagnant water or he was hiding somewhere in the shadows.
She stood on the spot with her gun still ready in her hands and she ceased her breath for a moment to listen to the sounds being made around.
Eric peeped from behind the tyres and could now see her legs close to where he was hiding. He held his gun firmly in his hand and tried to put himself in a position where he could fire a shot at her. He gently moved his legs and directed his gun towards her knees.
*
Carl and Cole’s fight was hidden from Tarasha and Eric by the flames burning the car by the side. They could not also see what was going on at the other side.
Carl pulled Cole by the feet and dragged him out of the water. Cole tried to get up immediately he was dragged on to the sand but Carl gave him no opportunity to make moves as he delivered punches to his face sending him back to the ground. Carl then pulled him up by the collar of his shirt and turned him towards the burning car.
Cole held on to Carl’s shirt as the former tried dragging him. He tried to resist by giving Carl a headbutt in the chest but it had only little impact on Carl.
Carl released his grip on Cole’s collar for a moment and let him try to launch an attack. Cole decided to take the opportunity thinking that his headbutt had weakened Carl, he stepped forward quickly and launched a blow which Carl dodged easily and responded to him with an uppercut. Cole staggered back but quickly tried to stop himself, he was getting closer to the burning car and he could already feel the heat so strong on his back. He picked him a stick from the floor and rushed to strike Carl with it but Carl grabbed the stick easily with his palm and kicked Cole in the chest. Cole’s head flung back and he staggered but still tried not to go too close to the fire. Carl followed him with another kick in the chest intending to push him into the fire.
Cole staggered back again, he was now less than a metres close to the fire and could feel it already burning the skin on his back. Carl stepped closer to him, ready to finish him up with a heavier kick.
To be continued.
