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| FLEXSTORIES.COM |
the attention of Sean and Eva with his unique
plan. He told them about his history with the
General and brought to light secrets they never
knew. He explained how his son was killed
and how he had been on the trail of the
Ghosts Corporation. He made his speech quick
and straight to the point, with no emotions.
He spoke as a matter of fact and did not hide
his intentions. He wanted the General dead
which also meant taking down GhostCorp.
They were either with him on this or against
him.
He explained that he had killed Tawo in self-
defense when he was ambushed in his hotel
room. In return Ahmed was killed. The Colonel
wanted retribution. And he would not stop till
he got it.
“It was so easy to get to you two. If I wanted
you dead, you would be dead. Taking you
down along with Marcus would be silly when I
know I can have you on my side. Think about
it.” The Colonel said.
He handed them a little chip attached to a
small paper. Sean looked at the note.
“This whole room is bugged. Get to a safe
place and use this chip on a brand new phone.
Make sure you are alone.”
Sean looked up at the Colonel and nodded.
“One more thing. I have relocated your
parents. I have released both your mums from
the men who were keeping them hostage.
They are currently on a plane out of the
country as we speak. You are not required to
act under duress anymore.” The Colonel
finished.
Sean could not believe his ears. He had tried
to locate his mum but all his efforts were
futile. He knew his mother was safe. He spoke
to her regularly. He knew she was in Mushin
but he did not know where exactly she was.
She was moved around a lot and she was not
allowed to disclose her location.
He had called her one night and she had
broken down in tears. She was scared. One of
the goons that the Corporation had protecting
her had just shot and killed someone in front
of her. She was scared and was begging Sean
to return home as soon as possible.
Sean reassured his mother that all that was
happening was for her own good and that he
would be home soon. Now this man had taken
his mother from under his nose and relocated
her. He was beginning to take this man
seriously.
“How do I know you are not leading me on?
How can I trust you?” Sean asked.
“For one, you are still alive. Second, no matter
what you decide, I will hand your mother to
you. I just want you to read up everything you
have on that chip. Then make your decision.
We’ll go on from there.” The Colonel replied.
“How do I get in touch with you?” Sean asked.
“You don’t find me. I find you. I will establish
contact at 18:00hrs.” The Colonel replied.
He turned and looked at his daughter.
Emotions welled up in his heart. He wanted to
reach out to her. Hug her. Listen to her and
catch up on all the years they had been apart.
But he couldn’t. At least not yet. Before now
no one new that he had a daughter. The
people closest to him were all dead. Ahmed
was dead. Abbey his son was dead. His wife
died during a complication while giving birth
to his son. Involving Eva in an emotional
triangle would not be good for any of them.
“Eva, I know about all your take outs. I have
passed some fake information to the police
and it has taken them off your trail. I am
aware of every move you have made thus far.
You were pretty careless.” The Colonel said.
He brought out a tiny mini disc from his hip
pocket and handed it to her.
“Here is all you need to do to take the agency
off your trail. Marcus had been so blinded by
his desire for revenge that he forgot to cover
his loopholes. I have done that for him.
However, when you finish cleaning up the
mess, you need to get out. Lay low. By the
time I am done, you will be a free woman. And
if I am still alive, we will talk.” The Colonel
finished.
Eva made to get up, but the Colonel gave her
a very stern look. Eva remembered the infra-
red target marker and relaxed again.
“I am done here. I will contact you in nine
hours Sean. Or is it Agent Bravo? I think this
would be a good time to call your Sidekick,
Bruno. I intercepted his email too. He is
waiting for your contact. There’s a full chicken
in the oven in the kitchen. It would be
completely cooked in ten minutes. When you
hear the sound, then you can get up. Not
before.” The Colonel finished.
He picked the cartridges on the floor and
inserted them back into the guns. He put
them back in the double gun hostler he had
strapped on. As he walked towards the door,
he looked back at Eva. They were still rooted
to the spot their bums on the chair.
He shut the door after him without another
word.
Immediately they heard the sound of the Oven
that the chicken was done, Eva and Sean got
off the chair with light speed in opposite
directions. Eva turned the table in the sitting
room and hid behind it. Sean crouched behind
the couch, using it as a shield. Both were
expecting a barrage of gun fire. They stood
still for seconds expecting the windows to
shatter any moment. Nothing happened.
After two minutes of waiting, Sean got up and
courageously walked towards the window. He
kept to the dark side of the room, avoiding
getting into the line of fire. He stood by the
side of the glass windows and bent slowly, his
eyes trying to catch a glimpse of the sniper
who was aimed at them. As a trained sniper
himself, one of the trainings he had undergone
was how to locate a sniper in the tallest of
buildings. His eyes had been carefully
adjusted and perfected to single out snipers at
whatever distance they were shooting from.
He was careful at first taking care to make
sure only his left eye was visible from the
window. He quickly pulled his head back.
Nothing happened. He repeated this again.
Still nothing happened. He got bolder, put out
his whole head and pulled back in one swift
motion. No gun shot. He relaxed by the
window and breathed hard. Eva was watching
him and was scared to death. She worried that
Sean might get himself killed trying to dare
the sniper who was somewhere outside the
hotel. She shook her head at Sean. She knew
he was about to do something crazy and she
feared the outcome. Hiding behind the table,
she shook her head vigorously at Sean,
communicating with him not to try what he
was thinking of doing. Sean winked at her and
smiled. He nodded.
Sean put out his right hand expecting it to be
shot at. Eva closed her eyes. Nothing
happened. Sean waved it a few times. Still
nothing happened. He noticed the infra-red
target marker on his palm as he waved.
“What in hell?” Sean said as he came to a
sudden realization.
He left the side of the window and stood in
the line of fire, arms akimbo. The target
marker was on his neck. He moved sideways
to his right and stretched his left arm. The
marker was on his shoulder.
“Come on out Eva. There’s no sniper out
there. It’s a decoy.” Sean said, standing again
directly in the line of fire.
Eva got up and came to where Sean was. She
stood beside him, and waved her hands
around the target marker. Nothing happened.
She turned and hugged Sean very tight. Seeing
her father had brought back memories and
emotions that she had buried for three years.
She cried on his shoulder. Sean held her tight
and didn’t say a word. He let her express
herself.
Five minutes later he whispered to her ears.
“Your father is right. He would not have come
all this way for nothing. Let’s get out of here.”
Sean said.
On the roof of an insurance building 100
meters north of Sean’s window, The Colonel
lay flat on his stomach. He knew Sean had an
eye for spotting snipers, so he had already
painted his sniper rifle blue. He painted his
face blue as he drove to the building and wore
a blue face cap.
He watched the drama in the pent house and
smiled as Sean stood in the line of fire. He
was tempted to take him out. When Eva
hugged Sean tight and cried, The Colonel’s
already weakened heart gave way. A tear fell
from his left eye, while his right was glued in
the scope attached to the rifle. He pressed a
hand to his right ear. He had dropped a bug
in the room immediately he barged in.
He heard Sean say they had to leave and how
he was right. The Colonel silently prayed that
he had done the right thing by bringing Sean
and his daughter in. He had no choice. He
needed every one he could get on his side. He
packed his weapons and left the rooftop.
**********************************
Ambrose was walking towards a parked car
when he got the message from Sophia. There
was nothing he could do. He was walking with
Special Agent Ken. He had no doubt in his
mind that once he got into that waiting car he
was going to be history. He had about thirteen
more steps till the door opened. Ambrose
looked around the terminal. He picked out
about 6 cops in strategic positions. They were
watching him but were hiding it very perfectly.
He smiled as he remembered the story that
Agent Ken had cooked up. He was good.
Agent Ken was supposed to kill him but when
that did not work he had quickly concocted a
backup story and was now leading him to his
end.
Six steps more.
Ambrose needed to take a decision. He needed
to act.
As they got to the car, Ambrose hit Ken in the
ribs with his elbow and broke into a run. Two
cops got out of the car and screamed at
Ambrose.
“Stop!” pointing their pistols at him.
He was already twelve meters away,
zigzagging through the crowd. The cops could
not risk taking a shot as innocent civilians
might be harmed.
Half a dozen cops pursued him threatening to
shoot and shouting at civilians to give way.
The whole train terminal was in commotion as
Ambrose pushed bystanders aside and ran
through the crowded station. People dived
away from the path of the ensuing fracas as
the cops gradually closed the gap between
them and Ambrose.
Just then the train began to move. It started
to move slowly and gradually picked up.
Ambrose moved to his right and ran after the
train. The train gained momentum and was
picking up pace. Ambrose tried to get in
through the last door but it closed shut before
he could put his hand in between the doors to
close it. There was a tunnel approaching. The
cops were eight meters behind him. The crowd
was thinning. He had no choice.
He took one last bold step and plunged
forwards. His right hand caught a panel at the
back of the train while his boots grazed the
rail track. He managed to pull himself up and
hold on to the panel that saved his life. The
cops paused and shot into the darkness at the
train. Ambrose was already on the roof of the
train.
“Set up a blockade at the Maitama
intersection. I need eyes in the sky! I want him
dead or alive! I prefer the former. Somebody,
get me that bastarrd!” Special Agent Ken
shouted to no one in particular.
The cops around him scrambled away, making
calls and walking away.
The Agent did not move. He continued to
stare surprisingly into the darkness of the
tunnel.
FLEXSTORIES.COM
“Why did Shina have to die?” – Sean
“Shina was compromised. He made contact
with the other side” – Sophia
“Serves him right anyway. I have to go now.
I’m already behind schedule.” – Sean
“Here Lies The Remains of Tawo Marcus
Kushim. Brother, Friend, Son.”
“You had it coming, didn’t you T? But guess
what? Our code still remains. A life for a life”
– The General
“Have you been interviewed?” – HOPS
“I did everything that was presented to me
sir.” – Ambrose
“When you are in the Capitol, call me directly.
Congratulations Peter.” – HOPS
“Shhhhhhhh….It is me. Don’t do anything rash
Eva.” – Sean
“That was for leaving me in a Male Toilet for
hours. Couldn’t you think of somewhere else?”
– Eva
“You are getting desperate sir.” – Sophia
“You underestimate me girl. I don’t do
desperation. Never. I made a mistake with
Giwa once. I never make the same mistake
twice. Let’s just say, I am going to have my
pound of flesh.” – The General
“I thought you said you do not do
desperation. If you kill the boy, is that not
exactly what it is? A desperate act at
revenge?” – Sophia
“I lied.” – The General
“What…wha.. what.. am…i..doing…here. Wh…
who…who…are…you…people?” – Ahmed
“Shhhhhhh. Quiet. The General hates noise.” –
Ope
“Frankenstein. It’s Da Vinci.” – The Colonel
“I am going to deliver the Chip to you tonight.
Here is your passkey.” – Frank
“Thanks Frank. Now we are even.” – The
Colonel
“If you contact me again Da Vinci, the next
time you wake up will be in hell.” – Frank
“Dad? Is this really you?” – Eva
“Stay where you are Eva. We don’t want to
have ourselves a blood bath. I said don’t
fucckking move girl!” – The Colonel
“What do you want?” – Sean
“I will contact you in nine hours Sean. Or is it
Agent Bravo? I think this would be a good
time to call your Sidekick, Bruno. I intercepted
his email.” – The Colonel
“Your father is right. He would not have come
all this way for nothing. Let’s get out of here.”
– Sean
“My name is Special Agent Ken. You just
passed your interview. Time to go.” – Agent
Ken.
“What have I gotten myself into?” – Ambrose
“Code Red. Abort Mission.” – Sophia
“Set up a blockade at the Maitama
intersection. I need eyes in the sky! I want him
dead or alive! I prefer the former. Somebody,
get me that bastarrd!” – Special Agent Ken
“Shina was compromised. He made contact
with the other side” – Sophia
“Serves him right anyway. I have to go now.
I’m already behind schedule.” – Sean
“Here Lies The Remains of Tawo Marcus
Kushim. Brother, Friend, Son.”
“You had it coming, didn’t you T? But guess
what? Our code still remains. A life for a life”
– The General
“Have you been interviewed?” – HOPS
“I did everything that was presented to me
sir.” – Ambrose
“When you are in the Capitol, call me directly.
Congratulations Peter.” – HOPS
“Shhhhhhhh….It is me. Don’t do anything rash
Eva.” – Sean
“That was for leaving me in a Male Toilet for
hours. Couldn’t you think of somewhere else?”
– Eva
“You are getting desperate sir.” – Sophia
“You underestimate me girl. I don’t do
desperation. Never. I made a mistake with
Giwa once. I never make the same mistake
twice. Let’s just say, I am going to have my
pound of flesh.” – The General
“I thought you said you do not do
desperation. If you kill the boy, is that not
exactly what it is? A desperate act at
revenge?” – Sophia
“I lied.” – The General
“What…wha.. what.. am…i..doing…here. Wh…
who…who…are…you…people?” – Ahmed
“Shhhhhhh. Quiet. The General hates noise.” –
Ope
“Frankenstein. It’s Da Vinci.” – The Colonel
“I am going to deliver the Chip to you tonight.
Here is your passkey.” – Frank
“Thanks Frank. Now we are even.” – The
Colonel
“If you contact me again Da Vinci, the next
time you wake up will be in hell.” – Frank
“Dad? Is this really you?” – Eva
“Stay where you are Eva. We don’t want to
have ourselves a blood bath. I said don’t
fucckking move girl!” – The Colonel
“What do you want?” – Sean
“I will contact you in nine hours Sean. Or is it
Agent Bravo? I think this would be a good
time to call your Sidekick, Bruno. I intercepted
his email.” – The Colonel
“Your father is right. He would not have come
all this way for nothing. Let’s get out of here.”
– Sean
“My name is Special Agent Ken. You just
passed your interview. Time to go.” – Agent
Ken.
“What have I gotten myself into?” – Ambrose
“Code Red. Abort Mission.” – Sophia
“Set up a blockade at the Maitama
intersection. I need eyes in the sky! I want him
dead or alive! I prefer the former. Somebody,
get me that bastarrd!” – Special Agent Ken
AND NOW. . .Episode44
The General paced the huge sitting area in the
mansion. He was furious. His face contorted
with rage. He looked at Sophia for the
umpteenth time.
“How the hell was he uncovered?” The General
asked.
Sophia was surprisingly calm. She sat on the
single sofa and crossed her legs, with a glass
of champagne in her left hand. She had gotten
used to the General now. He had stayed with
her for days now and the enigma which she
saw him as had gradually worn off. She had
huge respect for him. She still saw him as a
father figure. Even though she no longer
cowered or trembled at his every bark.
She sipped the alcohol slowly and dropped the
glass back on the table beside her.
“It was The Colonel.” Sophia replied after a
few minutes looking straight into the
General’s eyes.
“Giwa Haruna?” The General asked surprised
and continued
“I thought Ambrose’s cover was 100 per cent
fail safe. I need a d--n explanation!” The
General screamed hitting the glass center
table with his right fist.
The table broke in pieces with some pieces of
glass lodging in between the General’s
knuckles. He showed no sign of hurt or pain.
He stood straight and carefully picked out the
tiny shreds of glass that his knuckles had
embraced.
“Tell me how it happened” He said, taking out
the last two visible shreds of glass.
Sophia was unmoved by his sudden burst of
anger. She knew he was losing it. She had
only seen him this uncontrollable once, when
he was denied autonomy over the South West
Region of the African Conglomerate of
Undercover Operations. Sophia was able to
calm him and help him re-strategize. He later
went on to win the appeal and was the head
of the Conglomerate till date. That was seven
years ago.
She was not ready for all that at the moment.
She had her own demons to take care of,
which included finding Eva and Sean.
“The Colonel left clues. He wanted us to know
he did it. He was able to crack the server
codes and bypass the rigid firewalls. He had
help from a certain Frankenstein. Bee Hive is
finding a hard time tracking Frank. The
Colonel has not made any demands yet but I
am sure he will soon.” Sophia said.
“I should have killed him when I had the
chance!” The General retorted.
“It is not your style. You bit the tiger’s tail
when you smoked Ahmed. You know how
much he cared for the detective. I wonder how
you got desperate and lost control of the calm
and demeanor that made you the most feared
person in all quarters.” Sophia replied.
She had long dropped addressing him as sir.
They had returned to the way they were years
ago when she lived under his roof. He
preferred it that way.
“I needed to stamp my authority! Killing
Ahmed was the only way to send that
message S. Don’t you see?” The General
replied, sitting on a chair opposite his ward.
Sophia felt sorry for him. His hand was
bleeding slowly.
“You need to take care of that.” Sophia said.
“I’ll be fine. What else do I need to know?” The
General asked
“Bee Hive deployed a smoke screen and they
now have the coordinates of The Colonel’s
location. We are looking at a very wide area
and it will take about fifteen agents to flush
him out. It’s too risky and a long shot. I
would not advice it. Besides, something tells
me he would be expecting a barrage of
agents. He has most probably set up b---m
traps and little diversions.” Sophia advised.
“What’s our best course of action?” The
General asked. He took out a handkerchief
from his shirt pocket and bandaged his
bloody knuckles.
“Wait him out. If we rush, we would be playing
directly into his hands. He is on his turf. We
need to draw him into our terrain. We need to
look unconcerned. Act nonchalant. But we
would be vigilant. He is currently out for
blood. He wants to avenge Ahmed as soon as
he can. And he knows he has an advantage.
When he sees that we are not acting, he may
feel that we did not get his message. He
would want to strike again. This time, a little
deeper and harder. And he can’t do that in
hiding or on his turf. He has to come out. And
then, we’ll have him.” Sophia said.
The General pretended to think for a while.
Sophia’s intelligence had always astounded
him. He had initially been thinking about
storming the coordinates Bee Hive had given
and take out The Colonel with brute force. He
had done that before. Three years back, he
had stormed the Gulf Coast south of the
Bakassi when he got intel that Drago was
hiding there. Drago had cloned Bee Hive and
was negotiating with the British to sell the
information. The General had been searching
for Drago for months and when he had finally
gotten his location, he stormed the hideout
and took down Drago, assault style.
He was thinking of taking similar action
against The Colonel but he had doubts. The
Colonel was very smart. He had taught The
Colonel many of the things he now knew and
could use them against him. The Colonel
could predict his moves. He had to do
something he would not normally do under the
circumstances. Sophia had given him the
perfect alternative.
“Where are we with Bee Hive?” The General
asked.
“All data files have been rewritten and coded
with Radeon encryption. All agents’ history
have been wiped and replaced with forged
identities. All missions have been changed.
Our database is safe. If The Colonel were to
present his hacked evidence anywhere, he
would be running a wild goose chase.” Sophia
replied.
“Hmmmm…” The General snorted.
There was a moment of silence between the
two veterans.
After a few minutes, the door to sitting room
opened. Austin came in, supporting Ambrose
on his shoulder. Ambrose was holding his
stomach. His once white starched shirt was
now stained blood red. Sophia got up
instinctively and helped put Ambrose on the
long couch. The General just sat on his chair
looking. He showed no sign of emotion, care
or feeling. He just stared coldly at the events
unfolding in front of him.
“How is he doing?” Sophia asked Bruno,
putting two fingers on his neck to feel his
pulse. She got a weak pulse.
“He’s lost a lot of blood. I tracked his distress
call to a toilet in a mall in the outskirts of
Lokoja. I could not take him to a hospital. It’s
a miracle he is still alive.” Austin replied.
Just then Ambrose groaned. He opened his
mouth but no words came out. The General
got up and walked to where Ambrose lay.
“Lieutenant, how are you feeling? What really
happened?” The General asked.
“He needs to rest sir. I think he’ll come
around. Can I have some time alone with him
sir?” Sophia said, looking at the General and
then Austin. The General folded his arms while
his right arm came up to his jaw. He
scratched his hairless jaw for a few seconds
as if in deep thought. He needed to know what
exactly happened. He needed to be there when
Ambrose came to. However he needed him
alive. He put his hands in his pant pockets.
He felt the tiny but powerful voice transmitter
in the depths of his right pocket.
“Okay. I will be in the Visitor’s lounge. I
demand that he be made available to me
immediately he comes to. And that is an
order.” The General said, walking towards the
door.
“Roger that sir.” Sophia replied.
Austin also got up from the arm of the four-
seat long cushion settee. He looked at
Ambrose, shook his head and went after The
General who was already ahead of him
heading towards the door. The General
brought his right hand from his pocket to
open the door. As he turned the knob, he
released the tiny bean sized bug that was in
his hand, blocking the bug’s landing with his
legs so no one would see. It landed softly on
the Persian rug that filled the wide room.
The General opened the door and stepped out,
turning right towards the visitor’s lounge.
Austin wasn’t any wiser. He had no idea what
had just happened he went out after the
General and turned left heading to the guest
bedroom.
As Austin shut the door behind her, Sophia
smiled.
She had seen the little stunt the General
pulled. Her trained eyes had caught the fall of
the transmitter. He was hiding something and
she had since had her doubts about him. If he
trusted her, why did he want to eavesdrop on
her? She walked to the door and squatted by
the tiny bug. She did not touch it. She
examined it carefully. It was an ultra-powerful
listening device. The NODE-01 Jaguar. It had
the capacity to relay sounds clearly up to 100
meters. She got up, leaving the bug where it
was.
She went back to Ambrose and whispered in
his ears.
“Coast is clear. Meet me in the bathroom
now!”
Ambrose opened one eye. Then the other. He
looked around. Sophia was already headed
towards the bathroom. He got up from the
chair and grimaced. He actually hurt himself
when he jumped on the train. But it was not
as bad as he made it seem to Austin and The
General. He had contacted Sophia when he got
off the train and thanked her for saving his
life. She had asked him how bad the situation
was and he had told her everything he knew.
She advised him to fake being hurt, get some
more blood on himself and contact Austin.
Ambrose had had a tricky moment when
Austin tried to take off his clothes to access
the extent of injury to his stomach area.
Ambrose knew that he could not afford to
have his fake injury found. He had groaned
and screamed terribly and Austin backed off.
Austin felt sorry for him and promised to get
him to the mansion so Sophia could look at
him. He did not attempt to check Ambrose’s
injury again.
When Ambrose got to the bathroom, the tap
attached to the hand wash sink was rushing
at full capacity. The shower was also running.
The sound of rushing water would interfere
with the transmitter’s reception, blocking the
bug from detecting their voices. Sophia sat on
the closed toilet seat and beckoned him to
come close to her. He got in front of her and
sat on the ground, leaning his back on the
bath tub.
She got out her phone and typed a message:
“Did you bring the chip?”
She handed the phone to Austin and he read
it. He cleared the message Sophia typed and
replaced it with his.
“Yes I did.” Ambrose typed.
Ambrose handed the phone back to Sophia.
He got up and walked to the hand washing
sink and bent low before it. He put his ‘peace’
fingers in his mouth, gagged on it, and
vomited in the sink. He put his hand in the
disgusting goo and fished out a black
rectangular micro sim.
He opened the tap, flushing the goo down the
sink and rinsed the micro sim. He walked back
to Sophia and handed it to her.
“How did you get it?” Sophia asked curiously
in a barely audible whisper.
“As we approached the police car that was
supposed to take me to the Capitol, your
message came in. I freed myself from the
agent by hitting him just below the ribs. I
used the opportunity to grab his smartphone
from his side pocket. When I got on the train,
I realized that I was being tracked with the
phone that I had stolen. I took out the sim
and left the phone on in the train. It would be
a while before they realize that they have been
barking up the wrong tree.” Ambrose replied.
“Good job Ambrose. Are you sure you don’t
want anyone to check you out?” Sophia asked,
getting up from the toilet seat and heading for
the door.
“I think I am fine.” Ambrose replied.
“Good. You need to keep up the act a little
while longer. Maybe until after tomorrow.”
Sophia said with a tone of finality.
“Can I get some sugar in my room? It would
really speed up my recovery.” Ambrose asked
with a mischievous smile on his face.
Sophia smiled, turned and walked up to him.
She kissed him deeply and fully on his lips,
sucking his lower lips, her tongues flicking in
and out, teasing the palates of his mouth.
Ambrose squeezed her br3asts as his essence
stood at attention, raging like a wild bull.
After what seemed like forever, Sophia
detached herself from him, eyeing him
seductively and stepping two steps back.
Ambrose tried to come forwards, attempting to
continue the action.
“Hey tiger. That was just to say thank you.
Will send a hottie into your room in ten
minutes.” Sophia said, putting a hand on his
chest to stop him from coming any closer.
She licked her lips, bit her lower lip and looked
at his gr0in area. His body went up in flames
of desire. She turned her back on him and
wiggled her hips as she shut the door behind
her. Ambrose unbuckled his belt and looked
into his pants. His desire needed to be
satiated. He walked out of the bathroom and
went to his room.
****************************************
It was a very hot afternoon. The sun was
scorching hot and people were sweating as
they walked along the streets. Sean walked
along the busy Obalende road, heading for the
lonely street North of the small roundabout.
He got to a very tiny busy street. He heard
screams of “Yaba!!! Yaba going bus!!!” from
the scores of commercial buses that lined the
streets. As he took a left turn, someone
bumped into him hitting him by the shoulders.
Sean did not look back. He just smiled and
continued moving. The person who hit him
wore a hood which covered his entire head.
He already knew who it was.
He put his hand inside the side pocket of his
blazers and felt the tiny piece of paper that
was not there a few minutes ago. He kept
moving forwards, not knowing exactly where
he was going. When he saw an empty tricycle,
he quickly sat in it. He took out the paper and
read the content:
MEET ME IN IKD TONIGHT.
Tearing the paper to tiny shreds, Sean got out
of the tricycle and tracked back the same way
he came. He walked for a while, turning
corners abruptly, stopping suddenly and
sometimes just turning and heading back the
same way he came. He continued to move
around in circles, making sure that whoever it
was that was tailing him got lost along the
way.
When he was certain that he had lost any
trackers, he moved beside buses, crossed the
road a few times back and forth, and
zigzagged his way until he got to the Barracks
and opened the back seat of a grey G-wagon.
“How did it go?” Eva asked as Sean settled in
beside her in the back seat.
He just looked at her and smiled.
He looked at the rear view mirror and met the
gaze of his driver
“DRIVE!” Sean commanded.
mansion. He was furious. His face contorted
with rage. He looked at Sophia for the
umpteenth time.
“How the hell was he uncovered?” The General
asked.
Sophia was surprisingly calm. She sat on the
single sofa and crossed her legs, with a glass
of champagne in her left hand. She had gotten
used to the General now. He had stayed with
her for days now and the enigma which she
saw him as had gradually worn off. She had
huge respect for him. She still saw him as a
father figure. Even though she no longer
cowered or trembled at his every bark.
She sipped the alcohol slowly and dropped the
glass back on the table beside her.
“It was The Colonel.” Sophia replied after a
few minutes looking straight into the
General’s eyes.
“Giwa Haruna?” The General asked surprised
and continued
“I thought Ambrose’s cover was 100 per cent
fail safe. I need a d--n explanation!” The
General screamed hitting the glass center
table with his right fist.
The table broke in pieces with some pieces of
glass lodging in between the General’s
knuckles. He showed no sign of hurt or pain.
He stood straight and carefully picked out the
tiny shreds of glass that his knuckles had
embraced.
“Tell me how it happened” He said, taking out
the last two visible shreds of glass.
Sophia was unmoved by his sudden burst of
anger. She knew he was losing it. She had
only seen him this uncontrollable once, when
he was denied autonomy over the South West
Region of the African Conglomerate of
Undercover Operations. Sophia was able to
calm him and help him re-strategize. He later
went on to win the appeal and was the head
of the Conglomerate till date. That was seven
years ago.
She was not ready for all that at the moment.
She had her own demons to take care of,
which included finding Eva and Sean.
“The Colonel left clues. He wanted us to know
he did it. He was able to crack the server
codes and bypass the rigid firewalls. He had
help from a certain Frankenstein. Bee Hive is
finding a hard time tracking Frank. The
Colonel has not made any demands yet but I
am sure he will soon.” Sophia said.
“I should have killed him when I had the
chance!” The General retorted.
“It is not your style. You bit the tiger’s tail
when you smoked Ahmed. You know how
much he cared for the detective. I wonder how
you got desperate and lost control of the calm
and demeanor that made you the most feared
person in all quarters.” Sophia replied.
She had long dropped addressing him as sir.
They had returned to the way they were years
ago when she lived under his roof. He
preferred it that way.
“I needed to stamp my authority! Killing
Ahmed was the only way to send that
message S. Don’t you see?” The General
replied, sitting on a chair opposite his ward.
Sophia felt sorry for him. His hand was
bleeding slowly.
“You need to take care of that.” Sophia said.
“I’ll be fine. What else do I need to know?” The
General asked
“Bee Hive deployed a smoke screen and they
now have the coordinates of The Colonel’s
location. We are looking at a very wide area
and it will take about fifteen agents to flush
him out. It’s too risky and a long shot. I
would not advice it. Besides, something tells
me he would be expecting a barrage of
agents. He has most probably set up b---m
traps and little diversions.” Sophia advised.
“What’s our best course of action?” The
General asked. He took out a handkerchief
from his shirt pocket and bandaged his
bloody knuckles.
“Wait him out. If we rush, we would be playing
directly into his hands. He is on his turf. We
need to draw him into our terrain. We need to
look unconcerned. Act nonchalant. But we
would be vigilant. He is currently out for
blood. He wants to avenge Ahmed as soon as
he can. And he knows he has an advantage.
When he sees that we are not acting, he may
feel that we did not get his message. He
would want to strike again. This time, a little
deeper and harder. And he can’t do that in
hiding or on his turf. He has to come out. And
then, we’ll have him.” Sophia said.
The General pretended to think for a while.
Sophia’s intelligence had always astounded
him. He had initially been thinking about
storming the coordinates Bee Hive had given
and take out The Colonel with brute force. He
had done that before. Three years back, he
had stormed the Gulf Coast south of the
Bakassi when he got intel that Drago was
hiding there. Drago had cloned Bee Hive and
was negotiating with the British to sell the
information. The General had been searching
for Drago for months and when he had finally
gotten his location, he stormed the hideout
and took down Drago, assault style.
He was thinking of taking similar action
against The Colonel but he had doubts. The
Colonel was very smart. He had taught The
Colonel many of the things he now knew and
could use them against him. The Colonel
could predict his moves. He had to do
something he would not normally do under the
circumstances. Sophia had given him the
perfect alternative.
“Where are we with Bee Hive?” The General
asked.
“All data files have been rewritten and coded
with Radeon encryption. All agents’ history
have been wiped and replaced with forged
identities. All missions have been changed.
Our database is safe. If The Colonel were to
present his hacked evidence anywhere, he
would be running a wild goose chase.” Sophia
replied.
“Hmmmm…” The General snorted.
There was a moment of silence between the
two veterans.
After a few minutes, the door to sitting room
opened. Austin came in, supporting Ambrose
on his shoulder. Ambrose was holding his
stomach. His once white starched shirt was
now stained blood red. Sophia got up
instinctively and helped put Ambrose on the
long couch. The General just sat on his chair
looking. He showed no sign of emotion, care
or feeling. He just stared coldly at the events
unfolding in front of him.
“How is he doing?” Sophia asked Bruno,
putting two fingers on his neck to feel his
pulse. She got a weak pulse.
“He’s lost a lot of blood. I tracked his distress
call to a toilet in a mall in the outskirts of
Lokoja. I could not take him to a hospital. It’s
a miracle he is still alive.” Austin replied.
Just then Ambrose groaned. He opened his
mouth but no words came out. The General
got up and walked to where Ambrose lay.
“Lieutenant, how are you feeling? What really
happened?” The General asked.
“He needs to rest sir. I think he’ll come
around. Can I have some time alone with him
sir?” Sophia said, looking at the General and
then Austin. The General folded his arms while
his right arm came up to his jaw. He
scratched his hairless jaw for a few seconds
as if in deep thought. He needed to know what
exactly happened. He needed to be there when
Ambrose came to. However he needed him
alive. He put his hands in his pant pockets.
He felt the tiny but powerful voice transmitter
in the depths of his right pocket.
“Okay. I will be in the Visitor’s lounge. I
demand that he be made available to me
immediately he comes to. And that is an
order.” The General said, walking towards the
door.
“Roger that sir.” Sophia replied.
Austin also got up from the arm of the four-
seat long cushion settee. He looked at
Ambrose, shook his head and went after The
General who was already ahead of him
heading towards the door. The General
brought his right hand from his pocket to
open the door. As he turned the knob, he
released the tiny bean sized bug that was in
his hand, blocking the bug’s landing with his
legs so no one would see. It landed softly on
the Persian rug that filled the wide room.
The General opened the door and stepped out,
turning right towards the visitor’s lounge.
Austin wasn’t any wiser. He had no idea what
had just happened he went out after the
General and turned left heading to the guest
bedroom.
As Austin shut the door behind her, Sophia
smiled.
She had seen the little stunt the General
pulled. Her trained eyes had caught the fall of
the transmitter. He was hiding something and
she had since had her doubts about him. If he
trusted her, why did he want to eavesdrop on
her? She walked to the door and squatted by
the tiny bug. She did not touch it. She
examined it carefully. It was an ultra-powerful
listening device. The NODE-01 Jaguar. It had
the capacity to relay sounds clearly up to 100
meters. She got up, leaving the bug where it
was.
She went back to Ambrose and whispered in
his ears.
“Coast is clear. Meet me in the bathroom
now!”
Ambrose opened one eye. Then the other. He
looked around. Sophia was already headed
towards the bathroom. He got up from the
chair and grimaced. He actually hurt himself
when he jumped on the train. But it was not
as bad as he made it seem to Austin and The
General. He had contacted Sophia when he got
off the train and thanked her for saving his
life. She had asked him how bad the situation
was and he had told her everything he knew.
She advised him to fake being hurt, get some
more blood on himself and contact Austin.
Ambrose had had a tricky moment when
Austin tried to take off his clothes to access
the extent of injury to his stomach area.
Ambrose knew that he could not afford to
have his fake injury found. He had groaned
and screamed terribly and Austin backed off.
Austin felt sorry for him and promised to get
him to the mansion so Sophia could look at
him. He did not attempt to check Ambrose’s
injury again.
When Ambrose got to the bathroom, the tap
attached to the hand wash sink was rushing
at full capacity. The shower was also running.
The sound of rushing water would interfere
with the transmitter’s reception, blocking the
bug from detecting their voices. Sophia sat on
the closed toilet seat and beckoned him to
come close to her. He got in front of her and
sat on the ground, leaning his back on the
bath tub.
She got out her phone and typed a message:
“Did you bring the chip?”
She handed the phone to Austin and he read
it. He cleared the message Sophia typed and
replaced it with his.
“Yes I did.” Ambrose typed.
Ambrose handed the phone back to Sophia.
He got up and walked to the hand washing
sink and bent low before it. He put his ‘peace’
fingers in his mouth, gagged on it, and
vomited in the sink. He put his hand in the
disgusting goo and fished out a black
rectangular micro sim.
He opened the tap, flushing the goo down the
sink and rinsed the micro sim. He walked back
to Sophia and handed it to her.
“How did you get it?” Sophia asked curiously
in a barely audible whisper.
“As we approached the police car that was
supposed to take me to the Capitol, your
message came in. I freed myself from the
agent by hitting him just below the ribs. I
used the opportunity to grab his smartphone
from his side pocket. When I got on the train,
I realized that I was being tracked with the
phone that I had stolen. I took out the sim
and left the phone on in the train. It would be
a while before they realize that they have been
barking up the wrong tree.” Ambrose replied.
“Good job Ambrose. Are you sure you don’t
want anyone to check you out?” Sophia asked,
getting up from the toilet seat and heading for
the door.
“I think I am fine.” Ambrose replied.
“Good. You need to keep up the act a little
while longer. Maybe until after tomorrow.”
Sophia said with a tone of finality.
“Can I get some sugar in my room? It would
really speed up my recovery.” Ambrose asked
with a mischievous smile on his face.
Sophia smiled, turned and walked up to him.
She kissed him deeply and fully on his lips,
sucking his lower lips, her tongues flicking in
and out, teasing the palates of his mouth.
Ambrose squeezed her br3asts as his essence
stood at attention, raging like a wild bull.
After what seemed like forever, Sophia
detached herself from him, eyeing him
seductively and stepping two steps back.
Ambrose tried to come forwards, attempting to
continue the action.
“Hey tiger. That was just to say thank you.
Will send a hottie into your room in ten
minutes.” Sophia said, putting a hand on his
chest to stop him from coming any closer.
She licked her lips, bit her lower lip and looked
at his gr0in area. His body went up in flames
of desire. She turned her back on him and
wiggled her hips as she shut the door behind
her. Ambrose unbuckled his belt and looked
into his pants. His desire needed to be
satiated. He walked out of the bathroom and
went to his room.
****************************************
It was a very hot afternoon. The sun was
scorching hot and people were sweating as
they walked along the streets. Sean walked
along the busy Obalende road, heading for the
lonely street North of the small roundabout.
He got to a very tiny busy street. He heard
screams of “Yaba!!! Yaba going bus!!!” from
the scores of commercial buses that lined the
streets. As he took a left turn, someone
bumped into him hitting him by the shoulders.
Sean did not look back. He just smiled and
continued moving. The person who hit him
wore a hood which covered his entire head.
He already knew who it was.
He put his hand inside the side pocket of his
blazers and felt the tiny piece of paper that
was not there a few minutes ago. He kept
moving forwards, not knowing exactly where
he was going. When he saw an empty tricycle,
he quickly sat in it. He took out the paper and
read the content:
MEET ME IN IKD TONIGHT.
Tearing the paper to tiny shreds, Sean got out
of the tricycle and tracked back the same way
he came. He walked for a while, turning
corners abruptly, stopping suddenly and
sometimes just turning and heading back the
same way he came. He continued to move
around in circles, making sure that whoever it
was that was tailing him got lost along the
way.
When he was certain that he had lost any
trackers, he moved beside buses, crossed the
road a few times back and forth, and
zigzagged his way until he got to the Barracks
and opened the back seat of a grey G-wagon.
“How did it go?” Eva asked as Sean settled in
beside her in the back seat.
He just looked at her and smiled.
He looked at the rear view mirror and met the
gaze of his driver
“DRIVE!” Sean commanded.
The Colonel laughed gently as he sat on the
roof of the UBA building in Obalende. When he
hit Sean a few minutes before, he had dropped
a tiny note in his pocket. The note had a bug
on it. There was no way Sean would handle
the tiny paper that he would not get the
transmitter onto himself. It was a tracking
device which would allow The Colonel monitor
Sean’s movement. He knew he had won Sean
over to his side, but he was not completely
certain that it would remain that way. He just
had this gut feeling that just as Sean agreed
to work with him, he could easily decide to
switch sides again.
However, he knew Sean was very smart. Even
though he did not know the exact degree of
Sean’s intelligence, putting the bug on the
tiny note was the perfect test. And to his
chagrin, Sean passed perfectly. That was the
reason for The Colonel’s laugh. The Colonel
had been looking at his hybrid wristwatch
which was configured to act as a monitor for
the tracking device. For five minutes, the red
dot on his wrist watch was static, unmoving.
It was just blinking a few meters from the
location he had hit Sean. Sean definitely did
not have the bug on him.
The Colonel had half expected this. He had
concluded that if Sean failed to detect the
bug, he would not be involved in the bust to
take down GhostCorp. But now not only did
Sean detect the bug, he had suddenly
disappeared from view. He was nowhere to be
found. The Colonel searched the whole of the
Obalende axis with his powerful custom made
binoculars, looking for Sean at every angle.
This was his backup plan. He had thought he
would be able to catch a glimpse of Sean if
the tracking stunt failed.
As he looked behind him, peering down
through his binoculars 45 degrees South East,
he saw Sean slowly snaking his way behind
the red BRT buses that were parked and
waiting for passengers.
“Gotchya!” The Colonel said to himself.
He pressed a button on the right panel of his
binoculars to activate X-ray Detection Mode.
The view changed, wiping every other element
off and displaying just the image of Sean. He
was coming back the same way he just went
and was now crossing over to the other side of
the road.
“You can run friend, but you can’t hide.” The
Colonel said softly again.
Sean crossed the road and waited. The
Colonel wondered what was keeping Sean.
Could he be waiting for someone? He
activated Face Detection and zoomed in on
Sean’s face. Sean looked completely
indifferent. Totally unreadable. He did not look
anxious, scared or worried. He just looked
sideways a few times as if he was waiting to
cross the road. The Colonel had tracked down
a lot of very good spies. He was very good at
it. But at one point or the other, they always
gave themselves away especially when he
used his binoculars and gauged their facial
expression. No one had ever escaped him. But
now, he could not read Sean’s countenance.
“What is on your mind boy? What are you
trying to do?” The Colonel asked himself.
A commercial bus was calling for passengers
and stopped just where Sean stood. Sean
waited a while and then entered just as the
bus began to move. The Colonel saw this. He
took the registration plates of the bus and
typed it into his palm sized satellite computer.
As the bus moved just about 100 meters, a
truck carrying fuel crossed the road causing
traffic to build up. Sean got down from the
bus with other passengers and mixed himself
with the crowd. He went to the side of the
truck and entered through the passenger door.
People were looking at Sean. The Colonel was
watching everything with keen interest. His
view of Sean was blocked by the rising number
of people that were now trying to move the
truck away from the road. He could only see a
little part of Sean’s body in the truck. Another
man entered the driver’s seat of the truck and
attempted to start the truck. It refused to
move.
The man got down from the truck and opened
the front compartment of the truck’s engine
chamber. Sean was no longer in the truck. It
was just a few seconds. How did Sean get out
of his sight? He quickly scanned the whole
area, imprinting faces and looking for Sean.
The results were negative. Sean was not in the
vicinity. Two minutes later while the
binoculars was still scanning, the driver of the
truck got back into the truck and started the
engine. It revved to life, emitting thick black
smoke from the exhaust pipe. The truck
reversed and gradually got off the road,
parking on a safe part of the busy commercial
axis. Still, Sean was no longer in view.
When the truck driver got out and got out his
phone, The Colonel had a sudden brainwave.
Zooming his powerful binoculars on the
driver’s phone, he took several pictures of the
phone’s screen until the driver put it back into
his pocket and began to walk away from the
truck.
The Colonel transferred the pictures onto his
Ipad 7 Unlimited and zoomed in on the
pictures. The first picture showed the menu of
the truck driver’s phone. He continued his
scrutiny of the pictures till he got to the
seventh one. It was a message from an
unknown number.
“Thank you.”
The Colonel continued to scroll. The remaining
pictures showed the truck driver deleting the
message and exiting the screen to the main
menu. A truck came out of nowhere, blocked
the road, granted Sean entrance and allowed
him disappear. The truck which had seemed
totally bad suddenly got working and was able
to leave the road. And barely a minute after
Sean’s disappearance off the radar, the truck
driver got a text showing appreciation.
The coincidence was too true to be ignored.
The truck driver had been Sean’s diversion
and means of escape. The Colonel nodded his
head and smiled. He was impressed. Sean had
outwitted him and totally knocked him off his
trail. Nobody had ever done that. He shut
down his devices and packed them in a small
briefcase. He headed for the fire escape and
proceeded to exit the UBA building. He had
made up his mind. Sean was definitely going
to be his right hand man.
***********************************************
The General got into the Visitors lounge,
shutting the door behind him. He scanned the
walls and corners, looking for any form of
surveillance or hidden bugs. After less than a
minute of scrutiny, he brought out two
wireless ear plugs and inserted them in his
ears. Once they were in his ears, they started
blinking purple – a sign that they were
activated.
He listened intently, hoping to hear whispers
or any form of activity in the room. He only
heard the sound of rushing water. He waited
for seven minutes. He was beginning to get
worried. The shower or whatever it was had
begun to take too long. Besides, seven
minutes was too long a period to wash off
Ambrose’s wounds and bring him back to the
sitting room. Even at that, there still had to be
some form of communication or small talk. So
far he had not gotten anything and that
worried him. He pressed the earpiece deeper
into his ears. Still nothing.
Just as he was about to leave the lounge, he
heard voices.
“How do you feel now?” The General heard
Sophia say.
“Much better. Thanks a lot for the injection.”
Ambrose replied.
“So what really happened back there?” Sophia
asked
“It all happened so fast. I do not even recall
all right now. Still looks hazy at the moment.
But I think I need to rest.” Ambrose said.
“Okay then. A room has been prepared
upstairs for you. I will ask someone to lead
you there. What do I tell the General? He
would need information.” Sophia asked
“The General scares me. I fear he may shoot
me himself if he doesn’t get anything out of
me.” Ambrose replied.
When the General heard that, he smiled. He
was glad he had not lost the fear factor he
had on his lieutenants. Sophia inclusive. He
had heard enough. He walked out of the
lounge, taking out the buds in his ears as he
approached the sitting room. He opened the
door as a steward was leading Ambrose
upstairs to the room that had been prepared
for him.
“Where is he going?” The General asked Sophia
who didn’t seem the least startled at his
intrusion.
He was beginning to lose his power on Sophia
and they both knew it. But he had no choice.
He had lost his most intelligent Lieutenants.
He had only Sophia now. She was the calmest
and the most calculating. She worked best
under pressure. She always delivered. She was
his only hope if he was to come out of his
brewing war with The Colonel. He had no
doubts whatsoever that Sophia knew that she
was his only powerhouse in this ensuing
battle. He also knew she was cunning and
could snake him. Tawo and Shina were dead.
Ambrose was temporarily out and he had only
Sophia. So he would stick with her till this
was over and take her out. He had thought
about rendering her inactive, deploying her to
a remote island or taking her away to a
different section of GhostCorp. But with every
thought he always came to the same
conclusion: She had become too comfortable
and it was not healthy for him. She had to die.
He preferred his enigma status and if Sophia
did not feel threatened by him, she could
influence others to feel the same. And then, he
would no longer be The General that everyone
really feared and got trembled at.
“He is going to his room. He needs to rest.”
Sophia replied.
“Has he said anything?” The General asked.
“Nothing yet. His thoughts seem unclear at
the moment, nothing a good rest will not
solve.” Sophia replied.
“Where are we with Sean and Eva?” The
General asked.
Sophia was shocked. She hadn’t expected that
the General would have known so soon. It had
been barely 48 hours and she was hoping she
would get concrete information by the end of
day. She had no idea where they were.
“I have everything under control. They are
ready for their part. We just need to get a way
to blend them into the new scheme now that
Ambrose has been compromised.” Sophia
replied.
“Where are they?” The General asked, walking
to the water dispenser and helping himself
with a cup of cold water. He drank the water,
keeping his gaze on Sophia as he waited for
her reply.
Sophia was quiet.
“Ahhhhhhhhh. Refreshing!” The General
exclaimed as he set the cup down and licked
his lips.
“I asked a question S. Where is the location of
Sean and Eva?”
“My best guess is that they are now working
with the Colonel. They were visited by the
Colonel in their hotel suite and have gone
rogue since then. We got know this from the
surveillance footage in the hotel. He
intentionally let himself get captured by the
cameras. They have been spotted around the
city but successfully shaken off all our best
trackers. I have taken over supervision of
finding them and I will get something soon. I
think they will let themselves be found when
they are ready. We trained them too well.”
Sophia explained.
“Are you giving me excuses lieutenant?” The
General said raising his voice angrily.
Sophia was unmoved.
“I would never give excuses sir. I am just
saying that we have studied the Colonel. He
wants revenge. He is blinded by his current
bloodlust. We can use it to our advantage. If
we wait him out, pretend to be unaware of him
and his vices, he would be forced to act. Then
we would nail him. We have the upper hand
sir. We need to gather our resources, stock
pile our strategies and expect an attack. Then
we’ll counter in such a way he never saw
coming.” Sophia explained sitting down and
crossing her legs, staring straight into her
Guardian’s eyes.
“Let me know when Ambrose comes to. If he
has nothing concrete to present, you will have
to kill him. Use him as bait, smoke him,
anything. He is now a liability. You have
twenty hours to find the missing love birds.”
The General said and walked out of the room.
He did not wait for a reply. Sophia had none
to give. She had plans of her own.
As the General shut the door behind him, she
got up and headed fTwo weeks had passed. Sophia had been
keeping tabs on the activities of GhostCorp.roof of the UBA building in Obalende. When he
hit Sean a few minutes before, he had dropped
a tiny note in his pocket. The note had a bug
on it. There was no way Sean would handle
the tiny paper that he would not get the
transmitter onto himself. It was a tracking
device which would allow The Colonel monitor
Sean’s movement. He knew he had won Sean
over to his side, but he was not completely
certain that it would remain that way. He just
had this gut feeling that just as Sean agreed
to work with him, he could easily decide to
switch sides again.
However, he knew Sean was very smart. Even
though he did not know the exact degree of
Sean’s intelligence, putting the bug on the
tiny note was the perfect test. And to his
chagrin, Sean passed perfectly. That was the
reason for The Colonel’s laugh. The Colonel
had been looking at his hybrid wristwatch
which was configured to act as a monitor for
the tracking device. For five minutes, the red
dot on his wrist watch was static, unmoving.
It was just blinking a few meters from the
location he had hit Sean. Sean definitely did
not have the bug on him.
The Colonel had half expected this. He had
concluded that if Sean failed to detect the
bug, he would not be involved in the bust to
take down GhostCorp. But now not only did
Sean detect the bug, he had suddenly
disappeared from view. He was nowhere to be
found. The Colonel searched the whole of the
Obalende axis with his powerful custom made
binoculars, looking for Sean at every angle.
This was his backup plan. He had thought he
would be able to catch a glimpse of Sean if
the tracking stunt failed.
As he looked behind him, peering down
through his binoculars 45 degrees South East,
he saw Sean slowly snaking his way behind
the red BRT buses that were parked and
waiting for passengers.
“Gotchya!” The Colonel said to himself.
He pressed a button on the right panel of his
binoculars to activate X-ray Detection Mode.
The view changed, wiping every other element
off and displaying just the image of Sean. He
was coming back the same way he just went
and was now crossing over to the other side of
the road.
“You can run friend, but you can’t hide.” The
Colonel said softly again.
Sean crossed the road and waited. The
Colonel wondered what was keeping Sean.
Could he be waiting for someone? He
activated Face Detection and zoomed in on
Sean’s face. Sean looked completely
indifferent. Totally unreadable. He did not look
anxious, scared or worried. He just looked
sideways a few times as if he was waiting to
cross the road. The Colonel had tracked down
a lot of very good spies. He was very good at
it. But at one point or the other, they always
gave themselves away especially when he
used his binoculars and gauged their facial
expression. No one had ever escaped him. But
now, he could not read Sean’s countenance.
“What is on your mind boy? What are you
trying to do?” The Colonel asked himself.
A commercial bus was calling for passengers
and stopped just where Sean stood. Sean
waited a while and then entered just as the
bus began to move. The Colonel saw this. He
took the registration plates of the bus and
typed it into his palm sized satellite computer.
As the bus moved just about 100 meters, a
truck carrying fuel crossed the road causing
traffic to build up. Sean got down from the
bus with other passengers and mixed himself
with the crowd. He went to the side of the
truck and entered through the passenger door.
People were looking at Sean. The Colonel was
watching everything with keen interest. His
view of Sean was blocked by the rising number
of people that were now trying to move the
truck away from the road. He could only see a
little part of Sean’s body in the truck. Another
man entered the driver’s seat of the truck and
attempted to start the truck. It refused to
move.
The man got down from the truck and opened
the front compartment of the truck’s engine
chamber. Sean was no longer in the truck. It
was just a few seconds. How did Sean get out
of his sight? He quickly scanned the whole
area, imprinting faces and looking for Sean.
The results were negative. Sean was not in the
vicinity. Two minutes later while the
binoculars was still scanning, the driver of the
truck got back into the truck and started the
engine. It revved to life, emitting thick black
smoke from the exhaust pipe. The truck
reversed and gradually got off the road,
parking on a safe part of the busy commercial
axis. Still, Sean was no longer in view.
When the truck driver got out and got out his
phone, The Colonel had a sudden brainwave.
Zooming his powerful binoculars on the
driver’s phone, he took several pictures of the
phone’s screen until the driver put it back into
his pocket and began to walk away from the
truck.
The Colonel transferred the pictures onto his
Ipad 7 Unlimited and zoomed in on the
pictures. The first picture showed the menu of
the truck driver’s phone. He continued his
scrutiny of the pictures till he got to the
seventh one. It was a message from an
unknown number.
“Thank you.”
The Colonel continued to scroll. The remaining
pictures showed the truck driver deleting the
message and exiting the screen to the main
menu. A truck came out of nowhere, blocked
the road, granted Sean entrance and allowed
him disappear. The truck which had seemed
totally bad suddenly got working and was able
to leave the road. And barely a minute after
Sean’s disappearance off the radar, the truck
driver got a text showing appreciation.
The coincidence was too true to be ignored.
The truck driver had been Sean’s diversion
and means of escape. The Colonel nodded his
head and smiled. He was impressed. Sean had
outwitted him and totally knocked him off his
trail. Nobody had ever done that. He shut
down his devices and packed them in a small
briefcase. He headed for the fire escape and
proceeded to exit the UBA building. He had
made up his mind. Sean was definitely going
to be his right hand man.
***********************************************
The General got into the Visitors lounge,
shutting the door behind him. He scanned the
walls and corners, looking for any form of
surveillance or hidden bugs. After less than a
minute of scrutiny, he brought out two
wireless ear plugs and inserted them in his
ears. Once they were in his ears, they started
blinking purple – a sign that they were
activated.
He listened intently, hoping to hear whispers
or any form of activity in the room. He only
heard the sound of rushing water. He waited
for seven minutes. He was beginning to get
worried. The shower or whatever it was had
begun to take too long. Besides, seven
minutes was too long a period to wash off
Ambrose’s wounds and bring him back to the
sitting room. Even at that, there still had to be
some form of communication or small talk. So
far he had not gotten anything and that
worried him. He pressed the earpiece deeper
into his ears. Still nothing.
Just as he was about to leave the lounge, he
heard voices.
“How do you feel now?” The General heard
Sophia say.
“Much better. Thanks a lot for the injection.”
Ambrose replied.
“So what really happened back there?” Sophia
asked
“It all happened so fast. I do not even recall
all right now. Still looks hazy at the moment.
But I think I need to rest.” Ambrose said.
“Okay then. A room has been prepared
upstairs for you. I will ask someone to lead
you there. What do I tell the General? He
would need information.” Sophia asked
“The General scares me. I fear he may shoot
me himself if he doesn’t get anything out of
me.” Ambrose replied.
When the General heard that, he smiled. He
was glad he had not lost the fear factor he
had on his lieutenants. Sophia inclusive. He
had heard enough. He walked out of the
lounge, taking out the buds in his ears as he
approached the sitting room. He opened the
door as a steward was leading Ambrose
upstairs to the room that had been prepared
for him.
“Where is he going?” The General asked Sophia
who didn’t seem the least startled at his
intrusion.
He was beginning to lose his power on Sophia
and they both knew it. But he had no choice.
He had lost his most intelligent Lieutenants.
He had only Sophia now. She was the calmest
and the most calculating. She worked best
under pressure. She always delivered. She was
his only hope if he was to come out of his
brewing war with The Colonel. He had no
doubts whatsoever that Sophia knew that she
was his only powerhouse in this ensuing
battle. He also knew she was cunning and
could snake him. Tawo and Shina were dead.
Ambrose was temporarily out and he had only
Sophia. So he would stick with her till this
was over and take her out. He had thought
about rendering her inactive, deploying her to
a remote island or taking her away to a
different section of GhostCorp. But with every
thought he always came to the same
conclusion: She had become too comfortable
and it was not healthy for him. She had to die.
He preferred his enigma status and if Sophia
did not feel threatened by him, she could
influence others to feel the same. And then, he
would no longer be The General that everyone
really feared and got trembled at.
“He is going to his room. He needs to rest.”
Sophia replied.
“Has he said anything?” The General asked.
“Nothing yet. His thoughts seem unclear at
the moment, nothing a good rest will not
solve.” Sophia replied.
“Where are we with Sean and Eva?” The
General asked.
Sophia was shocked. She hadn’t expected that
the General would have known so soon. It had
been barely 48 hours and she was hoping she
would get concrete information by the end of
day. She had no idea where they were.
“I have everything under control. They are
ready for their part. We just need to get a way
to blend them into the new scheme now that
Ambrose has been compromised.” Sophia
replied.
“Where are they?” The General asked, walking
to the water dispenser and helping himself
with a cup of cold water. He drank the water,
keeping his gaze on Sophia as he waited for
her reply.
Sophia was quiet.
“Ahhhhhhhhh. Refreshing!” The General
exclaimed as he set the cup down and licked
his lips.
“I asked a question S. Where is the location of
Sean and Eva?”
“My best guess is that they are now working
with the Colonel. They were visited by the
Colonel in their hotel suite and have gone
rogue since then. We got know this from the
surveillance footage in the hotel. He
intentionally let himself get captured by the
cameras. They have been spotted around the
city but successfully shaken off all our best
trackers. I have taken over supervision of
finding them and I will get something soon. I
think they will let themselves be found when
they are ready. We trained them too well.”
Sophia explained.
“Are you giving me excuses lieutenant?” The
General said raising his voice angrily.
Sophia was unmoved.
“I would never give excuses sir. I am just
saying that we have studied the Colonel. He
wants revenge. He is blinded by his current
bloodlust. We can use it to our advantage. If
we wait him out, pretend to be unaware of him
and his vices, he would be forced to act. Then
we would nail him. We have the upper hand
sir. We need to gather our resources, stock
pile our strategies and expect an attack. Then
we’ll counter in such a way he never saw
coming.” Sophia explained sitting down and
crossing her legs, staring straight into her
Guardian’s eyes.
“Let me know when Ambrose comes to. If he
has nothing concrete to present, you will have
to kill him. Use him as bait, smoke him,
anything. He is now a liability. You have
twenty hours to find the missing love birds.”
The General said and walked out of the room.
He did not wait for a reply. Sophia had none
to give. She had plans of her own.
As the General shut the door behind him, she
got up and headed fTwo weeks had passed. Sophia had been
The General had ordered her to oversee affairs
till he got back from sabbatical. She worked
tirelessly, looking for clues and tracking every
bit of intel she got from BeeHive. The Colonel
seemed to be in no hurry. It had been sixteen
days and he had not made a move yet. He
had not left his supposed hideout. She could
wait him out. She had all the time in the
world. It was Sean and Eva that concerned
her. They had been highly trained. They had
risen through the ranks faster than anyone in
the history of the Corporation. They most
disturbing issue was the fact that they already
knew too much.
Sophia stepped into her room after spending
the whole day in the fortress, tightening the
security, updating the firewalls and creating
new anonymous drifters. Exhausted after a
tedious day, she didn’t bother with the usual
routine bath and Jacuzzi. She just kicked off
her loafers and lay on the bed face down. Just
then her phone rang. She grudgingly went to
her bag that was on the bedside table and
took out the phone. She opened the message
that came in. It was from Bee Hive.
“Targets found.”
The location of Sean and Eva had been
identified. That was the best news she had
heard in a while. She got up at the speed of
light and went back to the fortress. She
entered the mission room and waited for the
door to shut behind her. The room was very
dark. She brought her palm to her face. She
could not see a thing. She waited a few
seconds, straining her sharp ears and listening
for any foreign sounds. At this time her eyes
had acclimatized to the darkness and she
could now see the outline of her fingers. When
she was satisfied that she was alone, she
snapped her fingers and said audibly:
“It’s a lovely day.”
“Password accepted. Welcome Agent S.” An
electronic voice replied.
The huge room came to life. The previously
dimmed lights gradually came on. There were
three huge 60-inch touch screen computers on
each wall.
Sophia folded her arms across her chest and
moved to the screen to her left.
“What do we have Ope?” Sophia asked.
A small box appeared at the top corner of the
screen showing a video of Ope in his tiny
office. There were cans of soda scattered
across his table. The remaining part of the
screen changed, now showing a map.
“Good evening ma’am. Sorry to drag you out
at this time.” Ope replied smiling.
“Save the pleasantries Ope and cut to the
chase. What do you have for me?” Sophia said
curtly.
“Eva got careless. We intercepted an online
payment she made for a ticket to the premier
of a movie at the Galleria. She used her
mother’s maiden name during the transaction
and a Master Card that she had not used in
four years. Our Saturn-Extreme 145 satellite
got the hit and intercepted the server,
declining her request. She tried several times
giving us the needed time to scrutinize details
and complete tracking. On the fifth try, we
were able to get her location.” Ope replied.
“Where is she?” Sophia asked.
“Our coordinates indicate that she is on the
outskirts of the state. Abule Egba to be
precise. However, I have a strong feeling that
she is not alone.” Ope replied.
“Leave the feeling to me agent. Anything else I
need to know?” Sophia asked.
“Asides the information on the movie
premiere, I have nothing new to tell ma’am”
Ope answered.
“Tell me about the Premiere.” Sophia said.
“Please look to the screen behind you.” Ope
answered.
Sophia obeyed and turned. On the screen there
were images of the Galleria and the Cinema
section of the building. Ope showed her the
exits, the viewing rooms, the reception and the
red carpet area. He suggested possible
vantage posts and also explained the possible
movement of people in the cinema. They went
through it a few times together. When Sophia
had memorized it all, she asked Ope about the
possibility of an assault while she’s mobile.
“I had thought about that option too but it is
too complicated. We do not know how much
help she has and how many people she would
be with. I strongly suggest we move cautiously
and approach with tact.” Ope advised.
Sophia thought about what Ope had said for a
few minutes and agreed with him. It would be
foolish to act hastily without knowing what
the odds were. She nodded.
“Thank you Ope. Good Job. I will contact you
with the details as soon as I am done.” She
said.
Ope’s image disappeared and the screen went
white. Sophia tapped the screen twice and a
touchpad appeared. She had to reconfigure
and change the codes, passwords and settings
as she had just used them. She made sure
that there was always a different code for
each day and always tweaked the settings.
When she was done, she shut down the
computers manually and left the mission
room.
*****************************************
The Colonel was seriously studying a tracking
device he held on his left hand while Eva sat
beside him, trying to get tickets for the movie
premiere. Sean sat across the room, checking
the .45 automatic pistol he loved to carry
around. He cleaned the cartridges with a white
rag, watching the Colonel closely.
“The card is not working. The portal is
rejecting it.” Eva said to the Colonel
complaining.
“The portal is not rejecting it. Someone from
GhostCorp has intercepted the signal and is
now tracking your card.” The Colonel said.
“D--n! I need to stop now!” Eva panicked.
“No girl. Don’t stop. That is the plan. We need
to let them think we have been careless. Let
them track you. I am monitoring the
intercepting signals from here too. If they get
to you, we get to them. Keep going Eva.” The
Colonel said with authority.
Eva looked back at Sean seeking for
reassurance. Sean laughed and nodded at her.
She tried again and again until she was
allowed to get it.
Just then the device in the Colonel’s hand
beeped.
“They’ve got us. But we got them first.” The
Colonel said.
***************************************************
It was a bit rowdy when they got to the
premier of the movie at the Cinemas in
Victoria Island. The parking lot was filled to
the brim and cars had begun to park on the
streets. The chauffer driving them found a
spot just adjacent the Galleria entrance and
parked the white Range Rover Autobiography
Exquisite Edition neatly. Sean and Eva were
attending as a couple and were all smiles as
they got off the jeep and walked to the red
carpet. For Sean it was an opportunity to get
out of the house and get some air after eleven
days of compulsory house arrest. He saw
nothing amusing about the whole charade. He
was not going to be in any sort of action. The
Colonel’s instruction was to be all smiles and
play nice. He itched for action. He had not
used the gym in close to two weeks. His
muscles already felt flabby. He wanted to feel
alive. He fought the temptation to break away
from Eva and snoop around. He knew he was
not going to get any chance to do that. Eva
was to make sure of that. He kept up the act,
smiling dryly at the cameras and posing
intermittently for the paparazzi.
For Eva it was another day to show off her
curves, to display her beauty and to be
naughty. The Colonel was on the thirteenth
floor of a bank, three hundred yards opposite
the Galleria. He had already set up his
devices, and was looking through the eyes of
his powerful binoculars, monitoring guests
and waiting for his golden fish to arrive. There
was a sniper rifle set up on a tripod to his left,
overlooking the street through an open
window. For the Colonel it was a night to
strike the predator. He was going to wait for
the perfect moment, and then he would attack.
Unseen. Unnoticed. As the Video Jockey
interviewed Eva who was holding on to Sean’s
arm, Sophia walked in to the Galleria. She was
dressed in a beautiful red short sleeved gown
which accentuated her curves. She wore light
make up and her beautiful face shined in the
illumination of the room. Sean saw her first.
His eyes met Sophia’s. They were locked in
that gaze for about 10 seconds until someone
accosted Sophia, asking that she take a
picture with him. Eva was busy replying the
questions from the VJ. However she had seen
Sophia too, but none of them noticed. Sean
scratched the middle of his head with his
forefinger
The Colonel saw the sign.
“Roger that papi. I see her.” The Colonel said.
Sean heard it through the wireless earpiece
that was carefully and strategically placed
inside his left ear. He brought his hand to his
moustache, rubbing it gently. It was a sign to
tell the Colonel that he had lost visual of
Sophia.
“Sir, you look really good. What are your
expectations for this movie?” The VJ asked
Sean
“I think it is going to be a great watch thank
you. We want front row seats so we have to
go now.” Sean replied, cutting him off and
leading Eva away from the red carpet and
towards the cinema room. As they walked,
Sean whispered to her ears,
“Is she alone?”
Eva did not turn or look sideways. She knew
the message was not for her but for the
Colonel.
“For now she looks alone. But I doubt that she
came here unaccompanied. Soon, I will be able
to sniff out her goons. They are doing a good
job of blending in right now but they will give
themselves away before long.” The Colonel
replied to Sean’s ears.
“Okay Davinci.” Sean finished.
They stood in a queue, waiting for the cinema
room to be opened so that they could go in
and watch the movie.
Sophia was still on the red carpet taking
pictures and signing autographs. She was
widely known for her varying range of designer
clothing called SophFactor and the
humanitarian works she was deeply engaged
in. She watched as Sean and Eva moved to
the waiting line and noticed how close he
whispered to Eva. She fought the desire to
grab Sean and kiss him softly on the lips. He
was looking very handsome and cool.
However, she was not alone.
premier of the movie at the Cinemas in
Victoria Island. The parking lot was filled to
the brim and cars had begun to park on the
streets. The chauffer driving them found a
spot just adjacent the Galleria entrance and
parked the white Range Rover Autobiography
Exquisite Edition neatly. Sean and Eva were
attending as a couple and were all smiles as
they got off the jeep and walked to the red
carpet. For Sean it was an opportunity to get
out of the house and get some air after eleven
days of compulsory house arrest. He saw
nothing amusing about the whole charade. He
was not going to be in any sort of action. The
Colonel’s instruction was to be all smiles and
play nice. He itched for action. He had not
used the gym in close to two weeks. His
muscles already felt flabby. He wanted to feel
alive. He fought the temptation to break away
from Eva and snoop around. He knew he was
not going to get any chance to do that. Eva
was to make sure of that. He kept up the act,
smiling dryly at the cameras and posing
intermittently for the paparazzi.
For Eva it was another day to show off her
curves, to display her beauty and to be
naughty. The Colonel was on the thirteenth
floor of a bank, three hundred yards opposite
the Galleria. He had already set up his
devices, and was looking through the eyes of
his powerful binoculars, monitoring guests
and waiting for his golden fish to arrive. There
was a sniper rifle set up on a tripod to his left,
overlooking the street through an open
window. For the Colonel it was a night to
strike the predator. He was going to wait for
the perfect moment, and then he would attack.
Unseen. Unnoticed. As the Video Jockey
interviewed Eva who was holding on to Sean’s
arm, Sophia walked in to the Galleria. She was
dressed in a beautiful red short sleeved gown
which accentuated her curves. She wore light
make up and her beautiful face shined in the
illumination of the room. Sean saw her first.
His eyes met Sophia’s. They were locked in
that gaze for about 10 seconds until someone
accosted Sophia, asking that she take a
picture with him. Eva was busy replying the
questions from the VJ. However she had seen
Sophia too, but none of them noticed. Sean
scratched the middle of his head with his
forefinger
The Colonel saw the sign.
“Roger that papi. I see her.” The Colonel said.
Sean heard it through the wireless earpiece
that was carefully and strategically placed
inside his left ear. He brought his hand to his
moustache, rubbing it gently. It was a sign to
tell the Colonel that he had lost visual of
Sophia.
“Sir, you look really good. What are your
expectations for this movie?” The VJ asked
Sean
“I think it is going to be a great watch thank
you. We want front row seats so we have to
go now.” Sean replied, cutting him off and
leading Eva away from the red carpet and
towards the cinema room. As they walked,
Sean whispered to her ears,
“Is she alone?”
Eva did not turn or look sideways. She knew
the message was not for her but for the
Colonel.
“For now she looks alone. But I doubt that she
came here unaccompanied. Soon, I will be able
to sniff out her goons. They are doing a good
job of blending in right now but they will give
themselves away before long.” The Colonel
replied to Sean’s ears.
“Okay Davinci.” Sean finished.
They stood in a queue, waiting for the cinema
room to be opened so that they could go in
and watch the movie.
Sophia was still on the red carpet taking
pictures and signing autographs. She was
widely known for her varying range of designer
clothing called SophFactor and the
humanitarian works she was deeply engaged
in. She watched as Sean and Eva moved to
the waiting line and noticed how close he
whispered to Eva. She fought the desire to
grab Sean and kiss him softly on the lips. He
was looking very handsome and cool.
However, she was not alone.
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