Calm before the storm

"Let me go!!!!

Timothy screamed and tried to pry his hands away from the masked man's grasp. The pain in his trapped right hand was now unbearable.

"You won't run away from me this time hahaha." The evil masked man smiled evilly and held Timothy's hand tightly.

"Oh, please stop hurting me," Timothy shouted, trying to steady his feet and find something to hold with his left hand.

His hands soon grabbed hold of a strong pole and held on tightly.

Now he uses all the strength in his body to pull his hand out of the man's grip.

Timothy now gained the upper hand as he steadily loosened the strings holding him back.

But suddenly the man's nails grew longer and dug into Timothy's skin, piercing the skin and blood spurting out.

The pain struck Timothy in the head and caused him to cry loudly, while the wicked man laughed even more evilly.

"Timmy, Timmy, wake up, what's going on?" Someone's voice woke Timothy from his dream.

"mama." Timothy blurted out as soon as he woke up and was sweating profusely.

"Another nightmare?" The woman asked again.

"Yes, Mama," Timothy answered.

"What happened this time?"

"I was in Onitsha this time, and I was being held by a masked man who was trying to drag me into a cell. What's confusing is that I was younger in the dream." Timothy said calmly.

"Man with the same mask, now your dreams are getting serious." the woman said.

"Mama, do you think catching up with me is a thing of the Past?" Timothy asked the woman.

"Well, I'll meet with Father Francis tomorrow after work to discuss the matter. Okay."

"Okay, Mama," Timothy answered the woman.

"Okay, now let's pray. Then you can go back to sleep," the woman said.

Six hours later, the woman woke up, got ready for work, and called her grandson, who was sleeping in another room.

"Timmy, I'm going to work now. Your meal is on the cardboard in the kitchen. You also have to get up and get ready for work. It's already 6 am you have to start early."

"Okay, bye mama," Timothy muttered as he lay on the bed.

After about 30 minutes, Timothy got up and got ready for work, which was quickly completed. After properly locking the house.

He went to his Tricycle parked in the yard, inspected it, and drove out of the yard.

He roamed the streets of Lagos carrying one or two passengers.

The driving business was booming in Lagos these days....

He is very satisfied with his life, which is much better than when he was in Onitsha five years ago.

Now he has cleaned up his life and has stopped smoking, drinking, and living a wild life.

Now he is determined to live an honest and clean life.

But lately, he's been getting restless almost every night because of the same dreams he's been having about the masked man.

"Ikorodu?" Someone's voice was heard from behind Timothy.

Timothy turned and saw a well-dressed young man standing next to him with a briefcase in his hand.

"Or is this keke not working?" the man asked.

"Of course, it's working," Timothy said.

The man rides the Tricycle and Timothy runs to the man's destination.

"How much will you charge to travel to Ikorodu and then back here?" The man asked Timothy.

"If you don't waste any time there, it's 5,000 naira. But if you waste too much time, the money goes up." Timothy answered him.

"Okay, no problem. I'll get the job done quickly and come back without wasting much time." said the man.

Timothy nodded and continued driving.

They soon arrived at the man's destination, which was an unfinished building with no signs of anyone working inside.

The man tells Timothy to wait for him while he goes inside the building.

Timothy waited for a while without seeing the man return, became worried when he heard gunshots nearby.

Timothy, who was trying to get out of the Keke to check on the man, went back quickly and started the engine to prepare for an unknown situation.

Soon, someone ran out of the building holding his left hand, which was dripping blood.

Timothy realized that it was the same person who had just dropped off. The man soon arrived and entered the Keke.

"Go, go, go, go!!!" The man shouted at Timothy.

Timothy drove off, turned around a corner, and escaped the pursuit, of the other men who ran out of the building in pursuit of the previous man.

Timothy, who had been holding back his anger, was about to explode at the man, but before he could speak, the man spoke first.

"I know you're angry and upset, but now is not the time to argue. I'll make it up to you, just take me home I will explain things to you there," he gritted his teeth and held back the pain. Coming from his arm pierced by a bullet.

Timothy wanted to say something but decided to do as the man said and quietly drove back to where he picked him up.

About 30 minutes later, they arrived at the man's house, and he was staying in a well-built apartment.

Because the man lived alone, Timothy had to help him clean and bandage his wounds.

"Then how are you going to explain it? First, You entered my car with illegal items in a briefcase and covered my entire Keke with blood." Timothy said calmly.

Since this was nothing new, he had already calmed down his anger. This kind of thing happens all the time around the country.

"I don't want to get into trouble with anyone, so I'm not going to pursue this. Just pay me my fees and pay me for my Keke maintenance," Timothy said.

"Brother, calm down. I said I would compensate you handsomely, so please give me your account number so I can transfer 50,000 naira to you now. And I'm sorry for what happened and thank you again for your help, brother."

Timothy gave the man his account number and was waiting for the man to send money when a call came on the man's cell phone. After the man answered the phone, he sent money to Timothy.

Timothy thanked the man and was about to leave when the man called him back to discuss something.

"Brother, I don't even know your name." said the man.

"Am Timothy Okoye," Timothy answered the man.

"Well, I'm Taiwo." The man said. "Look, I already know that you may have had some experience in my kind of business seeing how calm you were throughout the ordeal, I'm right?"

"I do have experience but I already stopped doing illegal and dangerous things," Timothy said to him.

""Yes, my business is so-so, but I can make money quickly and once I achieve my goal, I immediately stop and emigrate from this country," said the man.

"That's good. But why did you call me back if there is nothing important? I want to go back to work." Timothy said.

"Due to my injuries, I need your help to get the next supply ready. I can't make by noon tomorrow," Tiawo said.

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to risk my life right now," Timothy said.

"Wait a minute, help me make this deal. I will give you 500,000 Naira as payment." Tiawo added.

"I'll never do it again," Timothy said and walked out of the room, but the man's voice followed him outside.

"Think about it, brother, if you agree, I will make it a million naira."

Without pausing to consider the offer, Timothy started his Keke and left the building as quickly as possible.

After driving out, he decided to go home and clean the Keke first before resuming work.

He returned home and started washing his Keke, but almost immediately his phone rang.

Since it was a new number, he picked it up and decided to let the caller speak first.

"Hello, is this Timothy Okoye?" the caller asks on the phone.

"Yes, I am being contacted. Who is asking?" Timothy answered the caller.

"This is the Lagos Teaching Hospital. Your grandmother suffered a shock at work today and was admitted to our hospital. Could you please come and meet us at Ward 295?" the caller declared before hanging up.

"Mama, not again!" Timothy shouted before running inside the house to get ready before rushing to the hospital...