Restless - S01 E148

Story 3 years ago

Restless - S01 E148

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 148

Lilent Hotels & Suites

13:45

Trip checked his wristwatch for the umpteenth after getting to the restaurant fifty minutes ago. He was supposed to meet with Ann there at one o’clock. It was forty-five minutes after and she wasn’t there yet.

He had called her thirty minutes ago and she had told him she was close by. He wondered why she was yet to arrive.

He picked up his phone and was about to dial her number again when he saw her walking in through the door. She hurried towards him and settled at the opposite seat with a sigh.

“I’m so sorry please, I wasn’t feeling so well. So, I had to stop by to get something to use,” she explained.

“Oh! No problem, hope you’re feeling better now.”

“Well, not better but I think I can manage,” she replied.

“Maybe you should just go take a rest now,” he suggested.

“No, I can manage, its not really something serious.” She insisted.

“Are you sure you can manage?” He asked again.

“Yes, it’s just ladies thing, so I can manage.”

“Oh! I see,” he nodded. He was quiet for a moment as he wondered what she meant by ‘ladies thing’. There was nothing else that came to his mind except that she was in her menstrual period. “Shi*t!” he cursed under his breath.

“So, what are we going to have for lunch?” She asked when he wasn’t talking again.

“Oh well, what would you like to eat?” He asked her and handed her the menu on the table. He then turned to beckon on one of the waiters.

Jennifer lifted her eyes to look at the menu at the top wall of the servery counter. “I’d love a plate of shaved carrot and radish salad.”

“Okay,” Trip said and then turned to the waiter. “Get two plates for us.”

“I’ll be back in three minutes,” the waiter excused herself and walked away.

“So, how was the church service you went for?” Trip asked while they waited for the food.

“Tiring, I just had to wait until it ended,” she replied.

They continued discussing until the waiter returned with the food. Their food was eaten in silence for about five minutes before Jennifer spoke again.

“When would you be returning to Benuit?” She asked.

“I’m not certain about that for now,” he answered. “I haven’t finished with what I came to do here.”

“I’ll be returning on Tuesday, I should round off with everything here by tomorrow.”

“Oh!’ He let out a smile, even though he felt sort of heartbroken. He wasn’t heartbroken because he would miss her but because he was yet to really have sex with her.

“Yeah,” she smiled back.

He drew in a short breath. “It’s okay,” he smiled again. “So, how come we never inquired about each other’s relationship status?”

She looked at him, somewhat bewildered. “Yeah, that’s true,” she chuckled. “So, are you in a relationship? You could be even married,” she added and laughed.

He laughed aloud in response. “Married? How in the world do I look married?”

“Is there a particular way married men look?”

“Oh no!” He chuckled. “You would have seen a ring on my finger at least.”

“I’ve seen married men who take off their rings once they’re away from home.”

“Hehe… I’m not like that, I’m not married. My last relationship ended five months ago and I’ve not been with anyone since then.”

“Why haven’t you been with anyone since then?”

“Well, nothing. I have been busy with some projects and I haven’t really met anyone to start another relationship with. What about you?”

“I’m not in a relationship,” she smiled. “My boyfriend broke up with me after he left for South Husan. He wanted me to join him there but I couldn’t. He didn’t think he could keep a long-distance relationship and neither did I.”

“Oh! Since when has that been?”

“About three months ago,” she replied.

“You guys must have had different goals,” he asserted.

“Yes, we did have different goals. And none of us was willing to sacrifice our goal to be with the other.”

The discussion continued for another one hour. They discussed hooking up some other time, if possible. After the discussion, they both decided to go rest in their rooms.

“I hope you’ll be properly rested by evening,” Trip said as they walked together to the hotel building. “We should visit the gaming center together.”

“Yeah, I should have gotten enough rest by then.”

15 Minutes later

Jennifer was alone in her room when she heard a knock at the door. Her dress had been taken off and she was now putting on a T-shirt and shorts.

She stared at the door for a moment and wondered who was there. Trip must have gone to his room, so no one else could be knocking.

She got up and walked towards the door.

“Who’s it?” She asked from behind the door.

“It’s Cole.”

She opened the door and allowed him to walk in before closing it.

“What the heck are you doing here? He could come here at any time,” she asked.

“He left you to rest, he’s not going to come here anytime soon,” Cole replied.

“What are you here for?” She said as she walked back and sat on the bed.

“Jenny, I’ve been watching you too,” Cole stood right in front of her. “You’re so close to him already and we can make use of the advantage to get more information directly from him.”

“What else do you want me to get from him directly? He’s obviously being secretive with his background.”

“You can get him to say some things without asking him directly,” Cole insisted.

“And how are you so sure he’s going to tell me anything?” She questioned.

“You can get him with sex, Jenny. Throw him questions when he’s longing for the first or a second one. He could let out answers unconsciously.

She stared at his face for a second and then smiled evilly. “And what makes you think I’m going to have sex with him?”

Cole squinted at her. “He’s going to attempt to do that, would you reject him? Remember, he thinks you two had sex yesterday. He could get suspicious if you refuse him now.”

“I already told him it’s that time of the month.”

“What bleeping time?” Cole stared at her in awe.

She glanced at him and hissed.

“D--n it! You messed it up already, he wouldn’t be so interested in being with you anymore.”

“And what were you expecting me to do?”She fired at him. “You wanted to start f*****ng a terrorist happily?”

Cole drew in a breath. “It was only to get enough information.”

“Go f*** him if you’re truly interested in that information,” she said angrily and got up. She walked to the wardrobe.

Cole stood there silently for a couple of minutes before he turned and walked out without saying a word to her.

_____

14:00

Paul Edward’s Residence,

Bexford, Bethanna.

Paul and his friend, Regan were sitting in the living room having a discussion even as they watched a program on TV. Regan had been his close friend since high school, even though they were in different classes. They had both been key players in the school’s basketball team where they met.

They had just laughed about a particular matter when Paul Edwards phone began to ring. He reached for it on the other end of the long sofa where it was placed. He heaved a sigh as he saw the caller’s number.

“You’ll have to excuse me please, I have to take this call inside,” he said as he got up with the phone.

“Sure, you can,” Regan relaxed on the sofa and watched his friend walk into the hallway.

Paul answered the call while walking towards his room.

Carl Winston’s voice came through as expected. “Good afternoon, Mr. Paul, it’s exactly forty-eight hours since I made the request. I’ve not heard anything from you since then.”

“Carl, you should understand that these things don’t work this way,” Paul said in hush tones as he opened the door to his room and walked in. “I can’t risk letting any of the executives know that I’m doing another underground investigation, it would be the proof needed to call for my suspension.”

There was silence for a couple of seconds before Henry spoke again.

“I have the names I need already, but I need an extra name,” Carl finally said.

“What other name do you need?”

“I need to know who the mole in the Fox is,” Carl answered.

“I don’t know, Carl. If I knew it, we would have gotten to the Wolves through the mole already.”

“It appears there are many things you don’t know, even though you’re in charge. I’ll have no choice than to step in and stop the Wolves.”

“Don’t do that, Carl. Don’t get the FOX to fight you. We’re in control of this, let us continue the job,” Paul said in a warning tone.

“The FOX is about to be destroyed by the Wolves and you think you would still have enough strength to fight me?”

“What are you talking about?” Paul frowned his face.

“The Wolves have penetrated deep into the FOX and would be destroying you from within. If you don’t do something quickly, the FOX would be history in a couple of days.”

“Tell me what you’re talking about, Carl,” Paul shouted on top of his voice.

“Pick out the mole and you will save the FOX.”

“Talk to me…” he was saying when the call ended.

“Shi*t!” He cursed and clenched his fist. He pondered on it for some seconds before he dialed back Carl’s number. The call no longer connected.

He heaved a sigh as he walked to the window. He placed a hand on the wall and another on his forehead.

Carl Winston’s warning was never to be taken lightly. He knew that indeed, something was about to happen to the FOX as Carl warned. The mole had to be fished out before the FOX was destroyed. But Carl had said in a couple of days, and that got him more apprehensive. He needed to act quickly before the FOX was destroyed under his watch.

_____

July 4

09:30 AM

Jennifer walked into the computer room to most of the team already sitting in a circular arrangement.

“Good morning everyone,” she greeted, walking past the empty seat beside Cole to sit close to Hannah.

“Welcome Jenny,” Henry replied to her. “Can someone reach out to Samantha and let’s start now.”

“I’m here already,” Samantha said as she appeared at the entrance. She sat at the empty seat beside Cole and smiled at Jennifer who waved with a finger to her.

“So, we don’t have so much to discuss today. I just want to let you know about some changes in our strategy,” Henry began but paused as he looked at Jenny’s face. “Jennifer, thank you for helping us trap Trip. We’re sure he’s going to lead us to Hutton Ryker soon.”

Jennifer and Cole’s eyes met at that moment and she gave him a cold look. She wondered why Cole was bent on having sexual intercourse with the man while Henry himself didn’t seem bothered.

“As I said, I’ve made some discoveries which seem to affect our strategies. Hutton Ryker is a man I knew. His real name is Hughes Kanwa and he was a FOX Agent…” Henry took a few minutes to explain how he knew Hutton and all that happened.

“How come he is a terrorist now?” Samantha asked.

“That’s what I’m about to explain,” Henry replied and then got up from his seat. He moved the stool aside and positioned a lower chair in front of the master system. In ten seconds, he turned on the large screen by the wall and projected the images from the laptop.

“A year after Hutton Ryker led the team that stopped the Kueda Terrorists, he was convicted in the FOX’s court for compromise and insubordination. He was guilty in some way but he wasn’t guilty of what he was convicted for. During the war against Kueda, he had to go against instructions from his boss. By going against those instructions, two FOX executives and more than ten other FOX men died in the process but he saved over twenty thousand people from death. He discovered the plans of the Kueda group who wanted to take leadership of the three Anna Nations, starting from Bethanna.

The Agenda was to make the people bend by fear. They were going to kill over twenty-thousand people most in Bethanna, Anthanna, and then South Husan. Hutton Ryker uncovered this and killed all the soldiers who led the terrorist. But there was something important that he didn’t uncover and that was those behind the terrorist group. Those three men he never knew until he got to prison were Evans Blake, Dexter Joe, and Abraham Carter.

Evans Blake was the FOX chairman at that time, Dexter was the President of Bethanna, and Abraham worked in the UN.

These men made up fake proofs against Hutton and accused him of working with the terrorist secretly. They pulled out many pictures of Hutton taken at some locations during his investigation of the Kueda to link him to the terrorist. His report was turned against him. Eventually, they were not able to prove all their claims against him in the FOX court but they still had the power to ensure he was punished. They put him away in prison for seven years.”

All the while he spoke, Henry displayed pictures of younger Hutton and the other people mentioned. He also showed pictures of the Kueda group and the prison where Hutton stayed.

“If he wasn’t with the Kueda then, how did he end up being a terrorist now?” Dave asked.

“He wants to get back at these men, he wants them to go through some kind of punishment.”

“But the only thing he has been doing is killing innocent people,” Cole interrupted.

“Yes, he has become so ruthless, killing innocent people but I think he has a plan,” Henry paused and looked at their faces one after the other as if to add some suspense. “At the end of the whole thing, no one is going to be able to trace the deaths to him. The people who will be caught as sponsors of the Wolves will be those three men. Those three men are going to be accused of killing over twenty thousand people. The whole of Bethanna would come against these three men, Africa would come against them, and the world would come against them. These men might likely commit suicide after he tarnishes their image.”

“How in the world is he going to do that?” Samantha asked, looking confused. She looked at the faces of the rest of the team listening to see if they understood Henry.

“Hutton Ryker is a very intelligent man,” Henry smirked. “When he plans a trap, it would be difficult for anyone not to fall into it.”

“But we’ve gotten out of his traps so many times, he has not been able to hurt us,” Dave remarked.

Henry stared at him with a smile. “We were lucky the last time, the unexpected arrival of Paul Edwards and Emery Jack saved us.”

“Hutton Ryker is a bleeping dumb head terrorist that we need to get down so soon,” Samantha fumed.

Henry glanced at her. “Don’t underestimate Hutton Ryker, he’s not a dumbhead, trust me.”

“But we’ve got him cornered now, we’re going to reach him soon through Trip.” Jenny put in.

“You’re right,” Henry turned to her again. “We seem to have luck on our side. Sheila Jack is alive because Paul Edwards stepped in luckily and she gave us the information that led to Trip, we only have Trip by chance.”

There was a moment of silence. Henry wanted to make sure that the team was not underestimating Hutton. That could make them overconfidence and could lead to a fall.

“So, what are we going to do with Hutton Ryker? When are we killing him?” Dave asked impatiently.

“Whether Hutton leaves or dies is left to him, we will give him a choice,” Henry replied Dave.

“How?” Jenny asked.

“If he still has some humanity left in him, he will leave. But if he’s bent on killing other innocent people to take his revenge, he will have to die.” Henry replied.

“I can’t wait for all this to end, I’ve been into a lot of trouble already. I was tricked into the Wolves and now I have to make sure the Wolves are eliminated. It has to happen so quickly because I want to be with my family again,” Hannah Kelvin complained thoughtfully from where she sat.

They all remained silent for a couple of seconds and just stared at her. Her voice sounded pitiful and it was obvious she was tired and desperately longing to be with her family again.

“Hutton Ryker would choose life or death by options we present to him,” Henry continued. He walked again to the system and began to search for some files. “We have another recording from Trip’s last night’s call, it gives us an idea that we could get to present Hutton Ryker with the choices on Wednesday. This call was made around 9 o’clock last night” He said before he played the recording.

The Phone call:

Trip: Hey!

Unknown: Hi! What’s up with you?

Trip: I received the email containing records of all the FOX’s members today. But we’re working with the top fifty.”

Unknown: Okay, we begin work on them tomorrow?

Trip: No, Hutton Ryker won’t be available tomorrow. But we will all be meeting at the Operation House tomorrow. We would work on Tuesday and Wednesday to fix it all.

Unknown: So we’re meeting at Ruthernard tomorrow?

Trip: Yes, Ruthernard. The operation House on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Unknown: What about your new girl? Bleeped her yet, or tonight?

Trip: No, the d--n girl is on her period and she’s leaving Bexford tomorrow.

Unknown: (Chuckles) Better luck next time bro.

Trip: I’ve got her contact. I’ll bleep her the next time we connect.

Unknown: Don’t forget to come with your note to Ruthernard tomorrow. Remember, we’ve got some codes there.

Trip: I won’t, see you tomorrow.

End of the Phone conversation.

Henry continued speaking immediately after the record finish playing. “Now that we know Trip would be going to the operation center on Tuesday and Wednesday, we can plan our attack. We would get the location of the place when he visits on Tuesday and attack on Wednesday. Once we get the location on Tuesday, we would conclude our strategy to get them.”

“What about the email Trip received?” Jennifer asked.

“I have it saved here,” Henry turned to the system and quickly opened a saved webpage. He projected on the larger screen for all to read. “The downloaded document contains details of all FOX agents working at the Bexford Head Office. They’ve separated the top 50 officials there. The plan is to hack into their devices and the applications on their phone. They would send different instructions to these men devices to cause confusion and weaken the system from inside. But we are not sure how they plan to kill them yet.”

Henry stopped talking and looked towards his phone which was ringing on the stool where he placed it. He reached for it and checked the caller.

“It’s a call from Paul Edwards,” he announced to all of them and answered the call. He placed it on loudspeakers.

To be continued.