THE LAST MESSAGEChapter One: 2:13 A.M.At exactly 2:13 a.m., Dami's phone received a message from a number that didn't exist.He was almost asleep.The room was dark except for the pale light from his phone. Outside, Lagos traffic had finally quieted, leaving only distant generators and the occasional sound of a motorcycle passing through the stin.UNKNOWN NUMBERDami frowned.He opened the message.DON'T TRUST ANYONE IN YOUR HOUSE.He sat upright."What?"Another message arrived.2:14 A.M.THEY KNOW YOU FOUND IT.Dami's heart began pounding.Found what?He typed:Who is this?The message showed typing...Then disappeared.A second later, his phone displayed a photograph.Dami froze.It was a picture of his own house.Taken from across the street.The photograph couldn't have been more than a few minutes old.He stared at it.Then came another message.LOOK BEHIND YOU.Dami slowly turned.Nothing.His bedroom door was closed.His younger brother was asleep in the next room.Everything looked normal.He turned back toward his phone.Another message appeared.I SAID DON'T TURN AROUND AGAIN.Dami's blood ran cold.Someone was watching him.Right now.He switched off his phone and sat perfectly still.Five seconds passed.Ten.Then he heard it.Click.The sound came from downstairs.Someone had opened the front door.Dami's first thought was that his parents had returned.Then he remembered something.His parents were away for the weekend.He was home with his younger brother.Another sound followed.Footsteps.Slow.Careful.Someone was walking through the house.Dami reached for his phone.The screen lit up.One final message appeared.WHATEVER HAPPENS, DON'T LET THEM FIND THE FLASH DRIVE.Dami stared at the words.Flash drive?He had never seen a flash drive.At least...He thought he hadn't.Then he remembered the strange black object he'd found underneath his father's old desk that afternoon.He had picked it up.He had put it inside his schoolbag.His eyes widened.The footsteps stopped outside his bedroom.Dami didn't breathe.The door handle began turning.Slowly.His phone vibrated one more time.This time, there was no message.There was a video.He pressed play.The screen showed a man sitting inside a dark room.Dami recognized him immediately.His father.But the video had clearly been recorded before his father left town.His father looked frightened.He leaned toward the camera."Dami, if you're watching this..."He stopped.Someone shouted in the background.His father looked toward the door.Then back at the camera."Listen carefully."His voice dropped to a whisper."The people looking for that drive aren't criminals you can simply run from."A loud bang interrupted him.His father stood."Dami..."The video ended.At that exact moment, the bedroom door opened.Dami grabbed his schoolbag.A shadow appeared in the doorway.He ran.He jumped through the window onto the small roof outside.Behind him, the bedroom door slammed open."Dami!"He didn't look back.He climbed down the drainpipe and landed hard in the backyard.His phone vibrated.He looked at the screen.A new message.RUN TO THE OLD BUS TERMINAL. COME ALONE.Then another message appeared.AND Dami...He stopped.The next sentence made his stomach drop.YOUR FATHER ISN'T OUT OF TOWN.Dami stared at the screen.Behind him, the back door of his house opened.Someone stepped outside.Dami ran into the darkness.He had no idea who was chasing him.He didn't know who had sent the messages.And he didn't know what was inside the flash drive.But one thing was suddenly certain.His father's disappearance had never been an accident.And tonight...someone had finally come looking for him.END OF CHAPTER ONE

THE LAST MESSAGEChapter Two: The Old Bus TerminalDami ran until his lungs burned.He didn't know how long he'd been moving.The streets were almost empty, washed in the pale glow of streetlights. Every few seconds, he glanced over his shoulder.Nothing.But that didn't make him feel safe.His father's words kept repeating in his head.The people looking for that drive aren't criminals you can simply run from.Dami tightened his grip on his schoolbag.The flash drive was inside.Somewhere behind him, a motorcycle engine suddenly roared.Dami stopped.The motorcycle turned onto the road.Its headlight swept across the street.He ducked behind a parked vehicle and held his breath.The motorcycle slowed.For several seconds, the rider remained there.Then it accelerated away.Dami waited.Five seconds.Ten.He finally stepped out.His phone showed the time.2:47 A.M.The old bus terminal was still several streets away.He started walking instead of running.He needed to think.Who had sent the messages?How did they know about the flash drive?And most importantly...How did they know his father?A notification appeared.UNKNOWN NUMBERDami's heart jumped.YOU'RE ALMOST THERE.He typed quickly.WHO ARE YOU?The reply came immediately.SOMEONE YOUR FATHER TRUSTED.Dami stopped walking.IS MY FATHER ALIVE?The typing indicator appeared.Then disappeared.Then appeared again.Finally:YES.Dami stared at the screen.For the first time that night, he felt a tiny spark of hope.He typed:WHERE IS HE?No response.Instead, another message arrived.GET TO THE TERMINAL FIRST.Dami looked ahead.The old bus terminal appeared at the end of the road.It had been abandoned for years.Broken signs hung above empty ticket booths. Weeds had pushed through cracks in the concrete, and several old buses sat beneath a row of rusted metal shelters.Dami stepped through the entrance.The place was silent.Too silent.He checked his phone.2:56 A.M."Hello?"His voice echoed through the terminal.Nothing.He walked deeper inside.Then he noticed something.A small blue light was blinking beneath one of the benches.Dami crouched down.It was a phone.An old phone.He picked it up.The screen turned on by itself.There was only one video.Dami pressed play.His father appeared again.This time, he looked calmer."Dami, if you've made it here, then you found the drive."Dami swallowed.His father continued."Don't connect it to any computer. Don't open any files. And don't trust anyone who tells you they can protect you."Dami frowned."But you said someone would help me."His father looked directly into the camera."I said someone might contact you."The video suddenly glitched.His father's face disappeared.A black screen appeared.Then three words:THEY FOUND YOU.Dami's eyes widened.Behind him came a sound.Clang.He turned.A metal gate at the entrance had moved.Dami stepped backward.Another sound came from somewhere inside the terminal.Footsteps.He grabbed the old phone."Who's there?"No answer.The footsteps became louder.Dami looked around desperately.There were three possible exits.The main entrance.A narrow passage beside the ticket booths.And an old service door at the back.He chose the service door.He ran.The door wouldn't open.He pulled harder.Nothing.The footsteps were getting closer.Dami looked over his shoulder.A figure appeared at the end of the passage.Dark jacket.Cap pulled low.Face hidden in shadow.Dami stepped back."Who are you?"The figure stopped."I could ask you the same thing."Dami tightened his grip on the phone."You sent the messages."The stranger didn't answer.Instead, they pointed at Dami's schoolbag."The drive."Dami's stomach dropped."You know about it?""I know exactly what it contains."Dami took another step backward."Then tell me where my father is."The stranger hesitated."Your father is alive."Dami stared at them."You said that already.""I know.""Then where is he?"Before the stranger could answer, headlights suddenly flooded the terminal.A black SUV had stopped outside.The stranger's expression changed."They're here.""Who?"The stranger grabbed Dami's arm."Run."Dami pulled away."Why should I trust you?"The stranger looked at him."You shouldn't."A loud bang came from the entrance.The stranger pointed toward a narrow opening between two abandoned buses."But if you stay here, you won't get the chance to ask any more questions."Dami didn't need another warning.He ran.The stranger followed.They squeezed between the buses as voices echoed through the terminal."Check everywhere!"Dami's heart raced.He crouched behind one of the buses.The stranger crouched beside him.For a few seconds, neither spoke.Then Dami whispered:"Who are you?"The stranger reached into their jacket.Dami tens