Tarasha - Season 1 - Episode 4

5 years ago

Tarasha - Season 1 - Episode 4

James untied his necktie as he dropped into his
office seat, he had been out all morning with
members of his team. Earlier that day, he
received a call informing him about the discovery
of a dead body just by the gate of a house winch
was only few metres from the warehouse. The
body was later identified to be Mr Felix, the
manager of the warehouse.
After hours of roaming the estate and
interrogating people; especially those who stayed
in the house whose gate the body was found,
James and his team returned to the office with
no substantial clue about how the body was
dropped there.
‘Do you care for juice?’ Sandra asked as she
walked into the office with a glass cup and a
juice pack.
‘No, thanks’ James replied, adjusting himself on
the seat properly.
Just then Segun, the third occupant of the large
office walked in, he curtsied to James and
Sandra who were already seated before he
walked to his own table.
Segun and Sandra were the top officers in the
team headed by Inspector James and worked
closely with him at all times. Segun was the
officer who visited the injured man in the
hospital with James and was also the one who
called that morning to inform him about the body
that was found.
‘Sir’ Segun spoke up after watching hos boss for
sometime, he took a look at Sandra who was
busy with other things and looked less worried.
‘It’s a pity that the security cameras around that
street aren’t working anymore, I think the
government has to do something quick about it, it
would have provided us with more information’
‘Yea, the government has to do something about
it’ James replied, wiping his face with an
handkerchief. ‘But I don’t think we would have
gotten much from it’
‘Why do you say that sir?’
‘I believe the body was la!d there late in the
night; that’s why nobody saw them. The cameras
wouldn’t be able to show us clear images even if
it was recorded’ James answered
‘Hmm, that means they don’t just have to make
sure it’s working, they also have to improve the
quality of the cameras’ Sandra joined.
‘This is 2030 for God’s sake, how can these
things not be working properly? And they expect
the police to perform magic’ Segun complained
bitterly. ‘Everything is just messed up in third
country, the government, it’s officials; nothing to
write home about’
‘It is high time we stopped laying blames on the
government for our personal inefficiencies and
take responsibility for ourselves; our jobs’ James
said, looking at Sandra and Segun’s faces one
after the other. ‘Fifteen years ago, Nigeria was
not like this; it was far worse, so we should be
grateful to God that we have a better
environment’
‘But look at other countries sir’ Segun argued.
‘They use better technology to aid their security
systems, but here in Nigeria; the government
keeps misusing, funds and fabricating stories for
the public’
‘No, you’re wrong Segun; things are far better
than they used to be’ James maintained his
position. ‘Now we are living up to the name
“Giant of Africa”, we are the best in Africa in
terms of technology and development and we
are doing better than several other non African
countries that used to be ahead of us’
‘But we as the police needs some very vital
things for… ‘Segun was arguing when James
interrupted again.
‘No Segun, we don’t have any excuse not to do
our job well. In years past, several criminal cases
like the ones we have now have been solved by
the police with very little level of technology or
even no technology at all. I believe if everyone
would play his part properly then we wouldn’t
have problems with our work’ James said with
seriousness in his voice, totally silencing Segun
and Sandra as they pondered deeply on his
words.
The office was silent for some minutes; the
threeofficers got deeply engrossed with the
computers on their table.
‘Boss’ Segun called to James, he scratched his
head as he seemed to remember something. ‘I
think we need to look into this matter of the
guys on patrol that met those guys in the
midnight’
‘We’re already doing that’ James replied, ending
his typing on the keyboard. He looked towards
Sandra who was already looking at him too.
‘Sandra, I told you to handle it’
‘Yes sir, i checked the records just after we
came in this afternoon’ Sandra answered. ‘There
was no record of any statement taken, I don’t
even think those driving the van were brought to
the station’
‘What? But they said they were found laying
unconscious on the road’ James questioned
‘Yes,I think we have to take disciplinary action on
our men’ Sandra suggested. ‘I believe they were
bribed, that’s why they didn’t do the right thing’
‘Oh! You ask them to see me when they return
today’ James ordered as he stood up from his
seat and walked towards the door. ‘We won’t
take it lightly with them if they were truly bribed,
they’ll be punished severely’

Tarasha took a sip of juice after she pasted a
copied text from the internet to a word
document titled “Nnamdi Okafor”. The first page
of the document served as the title page which
had the name “Nnamdi Okafor” boldly typed in
the middle of the page. “Minister of Health” was
typed below the name but not in a font as bold
as that of the name.
The information sent to her by the Chief for the
job only contained the address of the man’s
house, office and some of his family members.
It also contained a brief history of the man, his
companies, assets, his business associates and
high profile friends.
She felt the data provided wasn’t enough for
her to work with as she would be stupid to ust
attack and kill the man in Abuja, the country’s
capital where the man’s businesses and main
house was located; she had to start seeking for
more information.
The internet provided her with so much in just
few hours, she had learnt that the man would
be coming to Lagos State for a conference in
ten days time. She also discovered that the
Hosts of the conference was Derl
Pharmaceutical Industry; largest medicine
producing company in the country and that they
were also inviting other popular health
practitioners from outside the country. The
conference was scheduled to take place in
Eriental Conference hall, Ikeja Lagos.
Since the organizers of the conference were
Derl pharmaceutical company, Tarasha
concluded that they would also be in charge of
the welfare of their guest speakers of which the
minister was one. She decided to visit the
company’s headquarters in Lagos the next day,
Thursday.
Àws11à
Her phone rang just as she saved and closed
the document, a look at the phone’s screen
showed that it was Chief calling.
‘Hello Chief, where have you been?’ She asked
as she answered the call.
‘Hi, I went out to meet someone. I just saw your
missed call now’ Chief replied.
‘Okay, I wanted to discuss something with you
on Skype’
‘What’s it about? Can we discuss now?’
‘Just, I’ll log on immediately’ Tarasha ended the
call.
The first thing she did was to put on her mask,
then she opened the Skype software on the
laptop; the Chief already sent a connection
request.
‘Hi Chief, you’re looking very happy today’ She
commented cheerfully immediately the video
came on.
‘Thank you Tarasha, I met with some old friends
this morning and we had a very nice discussion’
the Chief replied with a smile.
‘That’s cool Chief, let me go straight to the
point now’ Tarasha said and faced the webcam
directly. ‘I’ll be moving into the house you
prepared for me very soon, precisely next
tomorrow’
‘Wow!’ Chief Gab exclaimed happily. ‘Wow! Wow!
What made you reconsider your decision?’
‘I didn’t reconsider my decision, it was my plan
all along to move in there later’
‘Oh! Well, so what plans do we have to make for
you now? The place is well decorated already,
I’m sure you’ll like it’
‘I believe that the kind of place I would like to
stay was already communicated to you before I
came to Nigeria’
‘Yes, we have five large empty rooms in the
house, two sitting rooms, two rooms rooms
already designed for sleeping and we have a
work room there also with three computers’
‘Okay Chief, what I need there now is a
laboratory; I’ll send you a list of equipment,
gases and the chemicals I need there’ Tarasha
explained. ‘It has to be set tomorrow so that I
can start the job’
‘Tomorrow? What kind of lab do you want?’
Chief was surprised at the request. ‘Hope you
don’t need so many things because I don’t think
it will be possible to set up a standard lab
before Friday’
‘That’s why I’m telling you right now; once you
get the list in your email, start working on
getting them’ Tarasha replied calmly. ‘And also
remove every camera you may have installed in
any part of the house, I’ll reinstall them myself’
‘Tarasha, I can’t assure you that the lab is ..
‘I’m not negotiating Chief, the lab must be ready
unfailingly by 12am on Friday morning’ She
interrupted. ‘I’ll also need some of your men to
start working with me now, so select two of
your men; they must be intelligent,fast drivers,
with good IT knowledge and also very good gun
users’
‘Selecting men for you is not a problem, I can
give you twenty if you want but…’
‘Chief, I need two guys not twenty; I’ll tell you if
I need more’ she said, standing up from the
seat. ‘You’ll have to excuse me now, please
make sure everything is set up by Saturday.
Have a pleasant day’

‘Don Don’ Chief Nonso spoke at last, after
staring at the man seated behind his table for
some seconds. ‘This joke you’re telling now is
not funny at all, maybe you should try another’
‘I’m serious Chief; I’m very sorry, we’ll try to
recover your goods as soon as possible’ Don
replied, his face showing remorsefulness.
‘Are you kidding me? How can you tell me a girl
outsmarted your boys?’ Chief Nonso replied him
in an angry tone. ‘Why did you send learners to
carry out a job for me?’
‘No Chief, the guys weren’t learners. I don’t just
know what happened to them’
‘What the hell are you talking about? You should
have told me you weren’t capable’
‘You know I’m very capable Chief, this is not the
first time I’m working for you’ Don answered
back, anger was gradually welling up in him.
‘Why are you talking like this?’
‘What kind of question is that? And do you know
how much it costs? And you know how much
the country frowns at Vinil? Apart from that, it
is a very dangerous and Illegal substance, if the
police finds it, I’ll be in serious trouble’
‘We’ll get it back for you Chief or we’ll refund
the money’ Don said calmly, trying to keep his
anger under control.
‘Well…’ The Chief replied in a calmer tone now,
as he relaxed and swerved playfully in his swivel
chair. ‘Thank God I didn’t rely on your bunch of
lazy men, I’ve gotten the substance kept
somewhere safe’
‘Huh?’ Don looked straight at him, his eyes
widened in shock. ‘You have it with you?’
‘Yes, we only tested your ability and you failed’
‘Chief! You sent us an errand and you also
came to attack us too?’
‘Yes, it was a test to know how capable you are
and if you’ll be able to handle the other jobs.
But I see you can’t, since just a Lady can defeat
your guys’
‘No Chief, it’s not like that. I’m capable and I’ve
got a lot of other capable guys; you know that
I’ve never failed you. It’s just that those guys
messed up that day and they paid for it already’
‘It’s okay Don, you should be more careful next
time’ Chief said, using his biro to give a caution
signal as he rested his hands on the table. ‘And
you even went too far, how come you dropped
everybody at the warehouse? ‘
‘Chief, don’t mind me . I was just mad at the
guys, I thought they played tricks on me’
‘It’s okay’
‘Thank you Chief’ Don replied, a bit relaxed now.
‘But you’ve not said anything about that Lady
you sent to them’
‘She’s Tarasha, I don’t know her as much as my
friend Gab, but he says she’s a specially trained
professional from Russia and she’s very deadly’
‘Come on, the fact that she outsmarted those
two stupid guys doesn’t make her deadly like
you’re describing’ Don said mockingly. ‘And I’ll
also like to remind you that I was trained in
Russia too’
‘Well, I’ve not forgotten that but I still think
she’s really deadly’
‘Anything you say Chief; maybe you should even
bring her to work with us since you say she’s
quite good’ Don suggested.
‘She’s not quite good, she’s more than good’
Chief Nonso corrected with a serious look on his
face to buttress his point. ‘And she can’t work
with you; that’s even part of the reason I called
you here this afternoon. I need you and to
provide two of your strongest, most intelligent
men that would work with her’
‘Work with her? What assignment did you give
her?’ Don questioned, with a look of
disappointment on his face. ‘You don’t believe in
me anymore?’
‘No, It’s not like that. I didn’t give her any job of
mine, Gab did. I have another assignment for
you already’
‘Well, there’s no problem. How soon do you need
the men?’
‘Let them report to me today so I can tell them
what to do’
‘Alright, I’ll send them immediately I get back to
my domain’

‘Hey guys, there’s a new project for us’ James
stated as he walked into the office, while the
two other occupants worked on their computers.
‘Welcome sir, what’s it about?’ Segun replied,
stopping his work to pay full attention this Boss.
‘Welcome sir’ Sandra joined
‘Thank you’ James continued as he took off his
suit jacket and hung it on his chair. ‘There’s a
conference coming up on the thirtieth of this
November and we’re in charge of the security
for the whole event’
‘What kind of conference is it sir?’ Segun asked,
showing great interest.
‘It’s an health conference organized by Derl
Pharmaceutical Industry in conjunction with the
Ministry of Health and it would take place in the
Eriental Conference Hall’ James explained.
‘Some dignitaries from other countries would be
attending the conference to give speeches, so
our job begins two days before the conference
because most of the foreign guests would arrive
in Lagos that evening’
‘Wow! That’s some work, we’ve not handled a
big conference as this before’ Sandra
commented.
‘Yea, but we’ve handled some other big ones;
so we would do well with this also’ Segun
responded to Sandra’s statement before he
turned to his Boss again. ‘So who exactly is
coming for the conference?’
‘Well, Ken Benson and Lee Yung Cho are the
only foreign speakers and the Federal
government already made special security and
welfare plans for them, so our main job is to
provide security for the African guests’ James
expatiated. ‘That includes Ghana’s Minister of
Health, The Nigerian Minister of Health, Lagos
State Commissioner of Health and some others’
‘So many high profile people amongst them, why
didn’t they inform is earlier?’ Segun queried,
with a frown on his face.
‘The job had been given out before, it was just
transferred to us; so all the men that had been
trained for it would also report to us this
evening’ James answered.
‘Thank God’ Sandra added, as she heaved a sigh
of relief. ‘I thought we’ll just have to start
preparing our men’
‘No, all that has been done already’ James
replied work an assuring smile. ‘The job is a
easy one for us’
‘Great’ Segun face beamed with smiles. ‘So
what’s the next action, when will we meet the
guys?’
‘This evening, they should be on their way to the
barracks now’ James answered, glancing at his
wristwatch.
‘Okay ‘
‘Yea, now this is how we are going about it’
James said with more seriousness in his voice
now, he made sure that he was being paid
attention before he continued. ‘I’ll handle all
that pertains to Ghana’s Minister of Health and
the other Nigerian guests while Segun would
handle the Nigerian Minister of health and
Sandra, the Lagos State Commissioner; that
shouldn’t be a hard job, the commissioner is still
in his state’
He paused and looked at their faces to confirm
again if they were giving him attention. ‘We are
not expecting any causality but we have to be
on guard and do this properly; if we make any
little mistake, it can make the IG and the
government loose trust in our team. Hope you
know that?’
‘Yes sir’ they replied in unison.
‘Good, details would be forwarded to you in
some minutes and would always be updated as
soon as necessary. So get ready for this’ James
concluded with a smile and rested his back on
the chair.
…