Mr. Okoye, and like
I’ve already proven to you, I do have the necessary connections. As
an ex-Military Intelligence operative you will, of course, be able
to testify to the legitimacy of any military document you receive.
I will pay you thirty million naira, half up front and the other
half after the operation. If all goes well and according to my
wishes, you will get a one hundred percent bonus, bringing your
total take to sixty million cash. And, of course, your military
files too”
Alex was stunned. His brain made the quick
conversion. The money was like a quarter of a million dollars!
“You don’t have to give me an answer right
now” said the Alhaji quickly, holding up his hands and getting to
his feet. “Think about it and sleep on it, but you only have
twenty-four hours to give the reply because the deadline I was
given by the terrorists expires eight days from today. I will be
flying back to Abuja first thing tomorrow morning to make some
final arrangements. If I get a consenting phone call from you
within the time frame, arrangements will be made at once for you to
come to Abuja. If I don’t get the phone call, then I will assume
your answer is still a ‘no’ and pick my second opinion to replace
you”
The man in the suit had already gotten to his
feet too. He dropped a white calling card on the low furniture
table in the center of the room before them.
“You have a good night, lieutenant” said the
Alhaji curtly and walked off for the door.
The man in the suit nodded once to Alex and
followed his boss. He hurried ahead to get the door open for
him.
Alex stayed put in his seat. The door would
automatically come unlocked once the knob-like handle was turned
from within
Mr. suit got the door open easily and held it
open for his boss. Both men walked out and the door closed
soundlessly after them.
Alex got up at once and went over to relock
the door. He replaced the gun in the wall clock and hung it back up
against the wall then went and sat down in the armchair again to
think.
Alex had joined the army five years ago,
right after completing his one-year National Youth Service Course
which was mandatory for all university graduate in Nigeria. He had
scaled through Army cadet school with flying colors, and then,
right after that, been one of the few soldiers selected for
advanced training to become part a new special commando unit being
formed to counter the growing insurgency problems facing the county
in the north-east. When the training was competed, he had been
posted directly to Adamawa state, another north-eastern state being
affected by serious insurgency problem. There in Adamawa state, he
had formed part of an elite commando unit that did battle with the
insurgents’ day and night for nearly a year until he was selected
for even more special trainings which turned him into something
else entirely…Special Forces. Once the new trainings were completed
he had promptly been sent back to Adamawa state, but this time as
part of an elite unit of Special Forces commandos that ran covert
operations under Military Intelligence against the Boko Haram
insurgents, and this went on for nearly six months until the
‘insurgency problem’ became a full blown war. Alex’s unit had been
transferred swiftly to neighboring Bornu state, the forefront of
the war, and there he had served his country with all his strength,
his might and his blood. Even when the bloody politician wouldn’t
provide adequate weapons for them to effectively counter the
increasing firepower of the insurgents, he had still continued with
the fight, went on for nearly two years until all the senseless
killings and sufferings of thousands and thousands of helpless
innocent souls finally got to him. The whole thing suddenly just
became too much for him to bear. It started eating away at his mind
and brain in a way he couldn’t quite understand or control. He had
handled most of the physical kick-backs of the problem well enough,
he
Learning to Kill: Stories