This Story Is Written By Josh Olanrewaju (LordJoshWritesย )
The night was cold and windy, it was a good night to kill. He had watched her for two weeks and he knew she was coming, she always did. The road was straight and clear, he would see her long before she came close. He held his palms against his cheeks, holding his trembling lips with his thumbs. He was standing under a tree just after the bridge he was sure she was going to cross. He smiled, it was very clichรฉ; the boogie man always came from behind a tree in the dark. No cars were passing, he did not expect any to, he could not afford any witnesses and he would have none.
A shadow crept into the horizon, his heart skipped a beat; she was coming. The cold was gone and he began to sweat. His lips still trembled and now his teeth were joining in the freak-out party. Calm down, sheโs just a woman โ a girl. He pulled his hood lower, he could not make any mistakes, it had to be that night, he had waited long enough.
She was getting closer. He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep them from falling off, he could not scare her away. She was getting closer. He inhaled deeply as the wind blew the scent of her cheap perfume on him. She was very close now, her heels clicked as she moved towards him.
She was four feet away when he stepped out from behind the tree.
โHello babe.โ He whispered trying his best to hide the tremor in his voice.
She jumped when she saw him. โHey, why na? You scare me, wetin you want?โ
โYou know what I want, the question, do you have it?โ He answered, moving closer to her. His heart was racing. It is happening!
โSee you, do I have it?โ She staggered backwards, he could smell the alcohol. It did not matter, she would do. โIf you get the money, you fit get anything you want.โ
He brought out a wad of cash and waved it, she stumbled forward to take it but he pulled back.
โNope, not until your job is done. Letโs go.โ He held her by the arm and led her to the bus he had packed not far away from his pick up point. She climbed into the bus and slumped into the seat. He closed the door behind her and locked it. He went round the vehicle and climbed into his seat.
It had taken many years, but the night had come; Diana would have her sacrifice.
The light stung his eyes as he opened them, Adam Ademola shielded his eyes with his right hand and pulled himself up from the sofa with his left. He rubbed his temples, they banged in a way he had never experienced before. He was used to waking up with headaches, but the pain he felt at the moment threatened to split his head. He reached for the televisionโs remote control, the sound coming from the television was going straight into his head. He put the television off and threw the remote on the table.
He stood up and knocked over an empty bottle as he staggered towards the refrigerator. There were a number of empty bottles around the sofa, the splintering head was not a surprise. He reached for the top of the refrigerator, grabbed a bottle of aspirin and popped three tablets into his mouth. He picked a bottle of water from the refrigerator and gulped the whole bottle.
He had promised himself he would not wake up like this anymore, but he had kept the promise for all of three days before he picked up the bottle neatly tucked away in his car. Idiot! He had no idea what time it was but it did not matter, he was going to bed.
His phone rang and he jumped, stumping his toe against the table. He cursed and snatched his phone from the table.
โWhat?โ he screamed into the phone.
โSir, you need to come to the office now!โ Who is this fool?
โI donโt need to do anything. Who is this? Whoever you are, know that you have lost your job.โ
โSir, this is serious, you need to be here.โ
โLook here, nothing serious happens in that office. Whatever it is, it will have to wait.โ He ended the call.
He sat heavily on the chair making it squeak. He placed a finger on a vein that was threatening to pop on his neck, it was probably a foolish idea but he needed some scotch.
His phone rang again.
โWhy are you disturbing me so early in the morning?โ he said in a barely audible whisper.
โAdam Ademola, it is Eleven A.M.โ What! โAre you hung-over again? Anyway, you need to be in the office. You have any doubt, well turn on your TV. Your girlfriend is on.โ
He threw away the phone, picked the remote and switched on the television.
โThis is the first murder of this kind that this city has seen.โ She was still pretty even when she was reporting a murder. She was not his girlfriend, they had had a brief relationship but it had ended for years. โIt looks like a ritual killing but the police are yet to comment on the murder.ย We will come back with an official police statement in a few minutes.โ The reporter said and her pretty face gave way for a bank commercial.
He switched off the television and headed for the bathroom, he really needed to be in the office.
One hour later he drove into office of the Crime Investigation Bureau of the newly formed Kwara State Police Department. The guards saluted as he drove past the gate, he ignored them and pulled into the carport. Reporters had gathered and were waiting for him, they identified his car and were now rushing towards him. He had taken a couple more of aspirin pills before he left his house. His head still throbbed and he had difficulty looking at anything for more than five seconds before he felt dizzy. His sunglasses covered his sunken red eyes, he had to hide them, the journalists would have a field day if they knew he was hungover.
He stepped out of his car, supporting himself with the door of the car. Immediately microphones were shoved in his face.
โMister Ademolaโฆโ a journalist started
โDetective please, Detective Ademola.โ He corrected the reporter.
She smiled and continued. โDetective Ademola, do you think this is a ritual killing? Should the people of the city be worried about this?โ
โI would normally not comment before full investigation has been conducted but I would like to say this, the fine people of this city have nothing to worry about. Whoever did this will be found very soon and heโฆ or she will be brought to justice. We donโt care if it is a ritual killing, we will put an end to this soon. Thank you very much.โ
He turned, picked his I-pad from the car and closed the door.
A ritual killing? He had not had a serious case of murder since he became head of the CIB. He would take his old job back with a huge โthank youโ but no one was offering it to him. His head still ached, he had planned to drop in, make his appearance for the sake of the press and pass the case to the nearest deputy. It did not look like he could walk so easily.
He entered into the office building feeling like a stranger. People were huddled in offices, the murder was making the CIB agents go bonkers. Adam smiled, at least they were going to work for their pay. He removed his sunglasses as he entered his office, followed immediately by his assistant. He had reassignedย four assistants before he had found the perfect combination of angel and devil he wanted in Tola Dosumu
โAre you crazy Ademola? A murder like this happens and you decide to sleep in?โ She put her balled fists on her waist like a mother scolding her ten year old.
โDosumu, you do realize Iโm your boss right? I can fire you anytime I want.โ He answered. He set his I-pad on the table and sat on the edge of the table. โWho got killed? Why is everybody going crazy?โ
โYou know what Ademola? Maybe you should fire me, I canโt put up with this. You realize I am not your secretary, I am a cop who is unfortunate to be your assistant. You are the head of the CIB, yet you come to work anytime you want, usually drunk.โ
โIโm not drunk.โ He replied looking away from her. His head still pounded, the sooner he was done with the murder nonsense, the sooner he could return to his house and his sofa. And my bottle. โOkay, I had a few drinks yesterday, Iโm sorry Mom. Can we move on now?โ
โYes, we can. That fileโฆโ she pointed to the blue file on his table. โis a summary of all we know about the murder. Iโll be in myโฆโ
โDosumu I said Iโm sorry.โ He jumped from the table and grabbed her hand. โCome on, why are you so angry this morning?โ They had a weird relationship, he knew they did but he was content with it. She had saved his butt more than once, while he had done all that was humanly possible to drive her crazy. โYou know itโll take all day to read that file, just give me the main points.โ
โOkay, I donโt know why I do it but I forgive you. First, you need to take something for the terrible headache Iโm sure you have right now.โ She said, walking towards his refrigerator. She opened it and brought out a bottle containing some kind of green liquid. She poured some into a small cup. โDrink this and letโs go meet the pathologist.โ
He squeezed his face as he drank the liquid. He had no idea what it was but he knew Tola would not poison him. God knows he deserved it, but she would not hurt a fly.
โAlright, letโs go see the pathologist, hopefully he has something to tell us. You need to see the body also, some crime scene pictures too would help you understand what everyone is freaking out about.โ
Okay, ten minutes at the pathologistโs then Iโll go home.
He had never been in the coronerโs office, it was new, one of the last additions to the CIB building. It was very unlikely that he would be visiting the office or the lab very often, he was the boss, he could read all their findings in a file โ or have Tola read them to him.
He sneezed; the smell of fresh paint irritated him.
โBless you sir.โ The coroner said. He was a queer one, the coroner. He had learnt a few things about the man a few minutes after meeting him. He was young โ too young, eager to please and knew his stuff.
โThank you Doctor. How about we move to the lab? I prefer if you showed me instead of telling me all these stuff. I have a tendency to forget, something Dosumu is always eager to remind me.โ The coroner smiled nervously, Tola just rolled her eyes and looked away. She definitely has respect issues.
โAlright sir.โ
Five minutes later, Adam was standing in the lab waiting for the body to be rolled in. Tola had bailed, he was on his own she had told him. From what he had been told, he knew the body was cut up really bad.
โHere goes sir.โ The coroner annouced as the body was rolled in. Adam stepped back and held his breath as the covering sheet was removed. He swallowed, even though the body had been cleaned, it looked worse than it did in print. The face had been untouched, the limbs had not been touched either but the torso had been cut. The cut started from the navel and ended in between the breasts. The flesh had been uncovered revealing the inner organs, according to the reports Tola had read to him as they moved to the lab, the liver was missing.
โWell, I have seen it nowโ He stilled his stomach, he was a detective now, he had to get used to mutilated bodies. He looked at his watch. โWhat can you tell me about this? Sick bastard cut her alive?โ
โThat was my first thought but then when I opened her up, I caught the distinct smell of almonds.โ
โAlmonds? Wait, thatโs cyanide right?โ The course in criminology might not be wasted after all.
โYes, very good sir, very good. The scent made me check for other signs of cyanide poisoning, it wasnโt difficult as the body was already open. Her blood โ what was left of it was bright red and her organs had a reddish hue. So my guess is, the killer poisoned her first and the cut is postmortem.โ
โWow, the killer is really a sick bastard. Have you seen this kind of stuff before?โ
โNo, definitely not. Iโm hoping this would be the last.โ Adam nodded and looked at his watch again, the dead body had not helped his headache. โWill you be running this investigation by yourself sir?โ
โThatโs a good question, I donโtโฆโ His phone rang cutting him off. It was State Chief of Police.โHello sir.โ
โAdemola, are you still at home? You cannot afford to maintain your old habits in times like this. You realize how important this case is, donโt you?โ
โSir, I am at the coronerโs office and I do realize how important this case is.โ The old man was just as freaked as everybody. The press no doubt would be on his neck.
โOkay then, you must realize with the attention this is getting from the press, you are the lead investigator. We need to assure the public we have our best people on it. You, Ademola are our best people.โ The old man sighed.โGod help us.โ
Adam looked at his phone, shook his head and slid it in his pocket.
โLooks like Iโm lead detective on the case after all. I hope this is just a stupid careless killer who can be caught easily. I have no intention of seeing you again, no offense.โ
โNone taken.โ The coroner answered and bowed his head, he looked hurt. Sorry, seeing dead bodies isnโt my idea of fun.
The sooner the case was closed, the better. If the criminology professors were to be believed, the crime scene was probably the next place to visit. But first he had to get Tola.
โWhat are you watching?โ Adam asked leaning into Tolaโs office through her open door.
โCome in if you want to know.โ She answered without taking her eyes off the television.
Adam walked into the office, pulled a chair and sat next to her.โWhat is this?โ He pointed at the television.
โRemember the accident involving the governorโs daughter? It happened about three months ago, well the press is digging it up again.โ
Adam looked away from the television, his throat felt dry, he needed a drink.
โAre you okay?โ Tola was looking at him with her penetrating look. He had seen the look more times than he could bother to count.
โYes I am. The chief just called me, Iโm lead detective on the case, that means we โ you and I have a lot of work to do. Work that is not fixing my life, actual police work.โ
โYou think Iโm trying to fix your life?โ She chuckled. โThatโs not even remotely true. I would love to, but itโs impossible. No mere mortal can fix your life.โ
โIโm going to pretend I didnโt hear that. Weโll be going to the crime scene, there might still be some clue left, something spectators have not destroyed. But letโs go over what we know already.
โOkay, we know that the victim is a young woman, probably early or mid twenties. We donโt know who she is yet, but she doesnโt look like a rich girl, she hasnโt been reported missing too, thatโs got to mean somethingโ
โI like the sound of serious Adam. Youโre right, sheโs not a rich girl โ well she might be but get this, she was a commercial sex worker.โ
โA prostitute?โ He groaned and held his head in between palms. โThatโll make this even more difficult. You know where she plies her trade?โ
โCoca-Cola road, thatโs where. You realize you are going to be speaking to a lot of hookers, right?โ She laughed.
He did not find it amusing, he had to forget about going home, he would be talking to hookers instead. He could postpone that though, the crime scene would be less depressing.
โWhere was the body found?โ He asked as he walked out of the office.
โSt Andrews Anglican Churchโ
โSay what?โ
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