Tarasha - Season 3 - Episode 5

4 years ago

Tarasha - Season 3 - Episode 5

Toheeb was still fast asleep in the bed with the explosive bag worn on his chest. He stirred and stretched when the door to his room was opened but still didn’t open his eyes, he continued his sleep and even began to make funny sounds.

‘Sir, why didn’t you call on us immediately?’ one of the men who entered the room with Garuba Ahmed asked. Another one walked past them to the bed to check what was on Toheeb’s body.

‘She warned us not to make any move until after forty five minutes and I didn’t want to take chances,’ Garuba replied.

‘Oh mehn! This is a real explosive,’ the man who was checking the bag in Toheeb’s chest announced to the others. The other man left Garuba and quickly joined his colleague. He climbed up the bed and knelt close to Toheeb.

‘Wow! We have to be careful.’
‘It’s switched off already,’ the other man who was already assessing the bag said. ‘But we have to take it off now, it could be switched on anytime again if the girl is not far away from here.’

It took them about 2 minutes to take the explosive off carefully without cutting the wrong wires, Toheeb continued to sleep all through. One of the men carefully disconnected the wires on the explosive and took it outside. They returned to meet Garuba Ahmed who had gone to sit in the living room sheet after they removed the bag.

‘Sir, we have to inform the police once it’s daybreak.’ one of the men suggested as he walked to the Garuba’s side.

Garuba remained silent and calm. He was still thinking on what to do, whether to follow the lady’s advice not to involve the police or do things his own way.

‘Sir…’ the man standing by his side called to get the man’s attention.
‘We won’t inform the police directly and none of you should talk to anyone about it, not even my wife. I’ll call Inspector Kehinde or probably go to his office this morning.’ the man replied. Inspector Kehinde was a police officer who he knew and could trust.
‘Sir, but don’t you think we should do something immediately before she goes too far?’ the second person suggested.
‘I do not have any problem with her since she did not hurt anyone but I will still have to get the Inspector informed in case anything else happens.’

11:53am
Challenge Road, Ilorin .
Garuba Ahmed sat at the backseat alone. The two men who had helped him to take off the bomb were seated at the front, one of then driving and the other working on a mini laptop. Their Jeep stopped behind a public transport bus as the traffic warder at the front ordered vehicles coming from their direction to stop.

‘Are you outside already?’ Garuba said into his phone.

‘Yes, I just got outside the station.’ the receiver replied.

‘Okay, we’re close to the roundabout and driving towards A Division already. We’ll pick you in a minute.’

The vehicles began to move and they crossed the roundabout in few seconds. They located Inspector Kehinde standing with the other pedestrians waiting to get vehicles and they stopped for him to join them. He walked to the car quickly and joined Garuba at the backseat. They drove off.

‘Good morning Inspector Kehinde,’ Garuba Ahmed greeted first, offering the officer a handshake.

‘Good morning sir,’ Inspector Kehinde replied with a bow and took the handshake with two hands respectfully.

‘We have something very important to discuss, and we have to find somewhere perfect we can discuss it well.’ Garuba said.
‘Sir, you should have asked for me to come to your place. From the way your voice sounded when you called, I believe what you want to discuss with me is very urgent.’
‘Yes, it actually is. But I couldn’t call you to come to my place, my wife is around and she would want to listen to our conversation.’
‘Okay, why don’t we just start right away?’

Garuba chuckled and then stared for a second at the men sitting at the front. The Inspector understood with the gesture; the man wasn’t comfortable discussing the matter in the presence of his men.

Garuba suddenly glanced at his wristwatch and looked up. ‘It’s 12pm, can we listen to the news now?’ he said to his men.

The man at the passenger’s side in front turned on the car radio and tuned it to the station airing the news. The newscaster began to read out the headlines just as the guy increased the volume. The first headline read: ‘Eze Okafor confirmed dead this morning’.

The news threw Garuba off guard and he placed his palm on his chest as his eyes widened in shock. He closed his eyes and inhaled and exhaled deeply to suppress the shock as he waited for the details of the news to be read. The reading of the headlines ended and the details of the news began immediately after. The newscaster read in details how Eze Okafor was found lifeless in the hospital bed by seven thirty am while the doctor was going on the morning round. His death was however not announced immediately because it had to be confirmed first and the cause had not been ascertained. Signs of ropes were said to have been seen on the man’s legs and hands and a window of ward he was kept in was found damaged. The State commissioner of Police had reviews the incident himself and concluded that Samantha Osman came back at midnight to finish off the man.

‘But this isn’t true?’ Garuba Ahmed argued aloud with no one in particular.
‘I think it is sir,’ Inspector Kehinde opposed in a calm voice. ‘She tried to kill him yesterday but was intercepted by the police, I’m sure she really returned to the hospital to finish her mission.’
‘No, she didn’t kill him.’ Garuba insisted in a strong tone which made him sound suspicious. Everybody else in the car remained silent and stiff, waiting for him to say something else to back his argument but the man was quiet and moody. Written all over his face was confusion, he had his lips sq££zed in like he had swallowed something bitter.

‘Sir, why do you say so?’ Inspector Kehinde asked.
‘I know,’ Garuba turned to the Inspector still carrying the confused look on his face. ‘Let’s get to Friendz, I’ll book one of their inner rooms where we can sit and talk.’

Fifteen minutes later
Friendz Eatery, Ajase Ipo Road, Ilorin.
Garuba and Inspector Kehinde sat opposite each other at a table, inside the management office. They discussed in the room with no one else present while the normal activities went on at the eating areas of the restaurant.
‘Kehinde…