Chapter 6 : "The Raid"
1131 Words
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> “Ye! Ye!!”
Ajoke’s scream tore through the air like a siren.
Ada hit the ground beside her, knees buckling, palms flat against the cold tile. Her eyes were swollen with fear, lips trembling like a child waking from a nightmare.
> “Please… don’t shoot us,” she begged, voice already breaking.
The lead gunman stepped forward.
Tall.
Broad shoulders.
AK slung across his chest like a second spine.
His voice was thunder wrapped in rage.
> “Where is he?!”
Ajoke’s mouth moved but no words came.
Then—
> “W-Who…?” she managed.
BOOM!!
The television exploded.
Sparks rained over the carpet.
The sound slammed into them like a car crash.
Glass and smoke filled the air.
> “Yeeeeeehh!!” Ada cried, throwing her arms over her head.
> “You wan make I burst your head?!” the gunman roared, stepping in—gun raised.
Ajoke shook violently.
Ada sobbed behind her, lips barely able to form words.
> “We’ll do anything,” Ada whimpered. “Please… just spare us…”
The man’s voice dropped, deeper now. Dangerous.
> “Where. Is. Taye?”
Ada blinked, frantic. “Taye? No, no—you’ve got the wrong house. We don’t know any—”
> “Search the house!”
Boots thundered up the stairs. Doors slammed open. Cabinets were thrown to the floor.
Upstairs turned into chaos.
In seconds—
> “Clear!” a voice called from above. “He’s not here!”
The lead gunman snapped.
PAH!
Ajoke’s head twisted sideways.
Blood bloomed from her lip.
> “I say where is he?! Abi you wan die today?!”
Ajoke sobbed, gripping her cheek, shaking.
> “I swear! I swear we don’t know who you’re talking about!”
Another man stepped forward. Rough, impatient.
> “Our informant said he was brought here last night!”
Ada shouted through tears, “He left! This morning! He left before sunrise!”
And then—
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
Precise. Surgical. Sudden.
Three masked men dropped—blood spraying across the white walls.
The room froze.
Ada screamed.
Ajoke ducked instinctively.
The remaining intruders spun, guns raised—
Behind them stood Taye.
In the hallway.
Gun drawn.
Breathing slow.
Expression stone.
> “Move,” he said.
His voice carried a weight they couldn’t understand.
But it wasn’t a request.
Ajoke grabbed Ada. They ran.
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EXT. Outside – 8:19 a.m.
Rain slammed the ground.
Thunder cracked.
Water spilled from rooftops as the sky wept in warning.
Ajoke and Ada bolted toward the car, slippers slapping the soaked ground. Ajoke fumbled with her key, hands trembling so hard they barely worked.
> “Oh God… oh God…”
Taye checked the street behind them. His eyes sharpened.
> “Start the car,” he barked.
Ajoke turned the key.
Krrrrk
.
Nothing.
Tried again.
KrrrrK! VROOOOM!
The engine came alive.
But then—
ZOOOOOOMMMM!!!
Motorcycles.
Two… no, three headlights flared down the road, slicing through the rain like demons from the dark.
Taye dove into the backseat.
> “Go! Fast!”
Ajoke yanked the gear.
They took off.
BOOM! BOOM!
Gunshots rang out.
Bullets punched the air.
> “Aaaaaahhh!!!” both women screamed as glass shattered.
Taye twisted, firing from the backseat.
BANG! ZUP! ZOOOOOM!!
One biker went down—bike tumbling into a gutter.
Another swerved, kept chasing.
Ajoke gritted her teeth, face wet from both rain and fear.
Ada screamed, “They’re gaining!!”
> “Hold the wheel steady!” Taye shouted.
He aimed again—
BANG!
Second biker clipped.
He flew sideways—rolling into the median.
Only one remained.
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Moments Later – A Side Street
Ajoke turned sharply, tires screeching as they slipped into a narrow alley.
The engine coughed… once… twice…
OFF.
Darkness.
No more chasing lights.
No more gunfire.
Just rain.
And silence.
All three sat frozen, gasping.
Listening.
Nothing.
Ajoke covered her mouth, shaking.
Ada gripped the dashboard.
Taye didn’t blink—still watching the mirrors.
Far away, on the main road—
The final biker skidded to a stop.
He yanked off his helmet slowly.
Scanned the dark street.
Eyes narrowed beneath the rain.
> “Tch…”
His voice was a whisper of frustration.
> “We lost him again.”
He turned the bike around—
And rode back into the storm.
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>
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> In one morning, their world shattered.
Their home invaded.
Their names now marked.
> The city had swallowed them into the game.
.
Location: Undisclosed DSS Facility – 3:42 AM
> “Aaaaaaarghhh!”
His clothes? Nothing more than blood-soaked rags, hanging in shreds from his scarred skin. His face was swollen. Fresh lashes marked his chest. A violent mural painted in pain.
And yet…
> He was silent now.
His arms were stretched, chained above his head to a rusted pole, the metal biting into his wrists. Fire burned beneath him, licking the soles of his bruised feet. His body sagged, scorched, broken.
A DSS officer leaned lazily against the wall, chewing something sour and spitting occasionally, eyes fixed on Tola.
> “This one no dey break? Spirit dey hold am, abi?”
He chuckled, cruelly.
“Make we test that spirit.”
!! Swissss!!
The whip cracked again, drawing blood.
Tola didn’t even flinch.
Then—
Footsteps.
Firm. Sharp. Authority-laced.
From the shadows stepped a tall man in a trench coat, shoulders broad, face unreadable. At his side, a short, round man in a clean black agbada, flanked by armed guards in plain suits.
Everyone froze. Even the DSS officer straightened.
The two men walked toward Tola slowly. Talking in hushed tones.
Tola blinked through blood. Barely awake. But he heard them.
He knew the sound of illegal dealings. Of political silence bought in blood.
He didn’t know what they were saying—but he knew this wasn’t a rescue.
This was a transaction.
> “This is the boy,” the tall man confirmed.
The short man walked closer, his eyes studying Tola like a buyer inspecting worn merchandise.
> “Poor child,” he said with a faint smile. “He’s seen too much.”
He took one step forward.
> “Tola.”
The name rolled off his tongue like a command.
Tola’s blood-crusted eyes twitched.
> “Let him go.”
CLINK—CLANK—SHHRRAKK!
Chains dropped.
Tola’s arms fell limp.
His knees gave way—but hands caught him.
It was over.
> Or so he thought.
As his vision faded, he caught one last whisper…
Something about being “cleaned up.”
Something about keeping him “quiet.”
Then—darkness.
- Writer
