Letters from Lagos
253 Words
By morning, the storm had passed, but unease lingered like smoke.
Lila sat by the fire, sorting through papers Ethan had pulled from the warehouse before they fled. Most were damaged, but one envelope remained sealed, marked Confidential: Lagos Operations.
Inside were printouts of encrypted emails. Lila scanned them, frowning.
Her father’s name appeared in the headers—Dr. Samuel Hart—alongside messages from Vale Industries.
Subject: Humanitarian Supply Shipment – Urgent Revision
Sender: Victor Halden
The words blurred as she read: “Cargo rerouted through Port Harcourt to conceal defective materials. Hart suspects. Handle quietly.”
Her throat tightened. “My father wasn’t killed by accident. He found out the shipments were toxic.”
Ethan crouched beside her. “That means my father’s company—”
“Was part of it,” she finished, her voice breaking.
He closed his eyes. “Then I’ll help you expose them. Even if it destroys everything my name stands for.”
Lila looked at him for a long time, searching his face for deception. She found only guilt—and something that felt like truth.
“Why are you doing this?” she whispered.
“Because if I don’t, I’m no better than them.”
She nodded slowly. “Then we start in Lagos. That’s where it began.”
Outside, the wind rustled through the pines like a warning.
*** In the distance, a phone rang inside the abandoned sedan. A voice answered softly:
“They’re heading to Nigeria. Prepare the team.”
- Writer
