The BROUHAHA of OGA MARTINS 2.0 | Chapter 14

Martins was preparing to leave Office under the guise that he was going to meet up with a prospective client. However he only had one thing on his mind as he made his exit from the work premises moments after Ada had left with the Engineer. A little bird had told Martins that they were headed for the bank and Martins thought this was his only chance to nip the matter in the bud. He had tried hard to get across to the Engineer but all his efforts had proved abortive. So he thought he could meet them up in the bank nearby where they had gone to do some transactions in respect to the land. He really needed to hear from the horses’ mouth, what led to his fall-out with the Engineer on the deal and the role Ada played in it. At least the Man owed him an explanation.

He felt his pocket for the umpteenth time to be sure his recorder was with him as he hurriedly proceeded to the bank. Martins was going to ensure he had every bit of the conversation he would likely be having with the Engineer and Ada too on tape even if it will only end up as a confrontation. Martins was judiciously adhering to Deji’s advice and was determined to let the cat out of the bag in the best way possible.

The bank was just a stone throw away. Ada and the Engineer were within the bank premises five minutes before Martins arrived.

The sun was burning red hot. Its intensity was so much that Martins’ throat began drying up like he had being forcefully fed some chilled red hot pepper which was heating up the walls of his Oesophagus. The celestial realm flaming ball was obviously registering her prowess as the most domineering celestial object. A day earlier, the rain had challenged her supremacy following a massive downpour on the earth after seven days of being bullied off the skies by the sun each time it tried to make its presence felt. It had rained so hard that at some point some people had gone searching for the ‘Ark of Noah’ just in case it was lurking around the corner after making a return to the earth. The Ark’s presence would at least lay credence to the rain’s sudden show-off.

It was the month of July the supposed coldest month yet the temperature in Lagos was fluctuating between 32-34 degrees celsuis. Now, that wouldn’t have posed much of a challenge if the traffic didn’t add to the despair facing motorists, commuters and pedestrians alike. Martins tried to find a shade to serve as shield from the earth’s flaming ball but it seems even the shade he found had lost its cover to the scorching heat. Even the fowls of the earth sought refuge away from the sun’s vicious rays. He wondered how much longer he would endure the agony bestowed on him by the insensitive bully in the skies as he watched the Engineer come out of his car after what seemed like ages. That was Martins cue to get going and Ada’s remained stay in the car made it a perfect plan.

The only thing Martins needed to do now was to get into the bank unnoticed by Ada. Martins had only just started walking into the bank premises when he noticed someone that seemed like a 6-foot-5, 170-pound, 19-year-old teenager. The burly teenager who was wearing a tad gear military jacket, a fisherman’s cap which almost concealed his entire face and dark sunglasses walked daringly as he caught up with Martins moments before he entered the banking hall. Martins smelled a rat and for a moment forgot about what brought him to the bank. He instantly realised going into the banking hall was going to be a bad idea. Martins attempted to make a complete U-turn but was stopped on his tracks by the devious teenager who is called ’47’ by his squad members; a name he derived for his swift and easy usage of the AK 47 gun.

“Ogbeni, where you think say you dey go?” 47 asked Martins in a husky tone.

“Eh…sorry sir, but I been leave my ATM for house” Martins stuttered in near fright.

“No worry, just enter bank, we no go need your ATM. I sure say money go plenty for strong room and if we no find money for there, you fit come carry us go your house make we use your ATM replenish our supplies”

“I don’t get you sir” Martins is beffudled.

“Guy, move inside bank jare” The Burly teenager gripped Martins neck and threw him to the ground in a flash.

There was turmoil just behind them as other members of the teenager’s gang being driven by an unwitting chaffeur scurried out of a Toyota town ace van as they shot sporadically into the air. Everyone including the security men on duty outside the bank ran for their dear lives in the commotion that ensued. It was a rat race.

The 7-man gang rounded up the two fragile security men outside the entrance leading to the bank lobby as 4 of the gang members forcefully gained access to the banking hall after dis enabling the rotor door, leaving three men including the burly teenager behind as they continued to shoot indiscriminately outside the bank. One of the men who broke into the bank dragged Martins in.

READ ALSO: The BROUHAHA of OGA MARTINS 2.0 | Chapter 13

As the men, all in their windproof masks advanced, everyone in the lobby screamed and ran helter skelter like a pride of lions were hot on their trails. The commotion that ensued reminded one of 9/11.

“Everyone go down!” The leader of the Robbery squad, Solonzo barked his orders.

“…and as you are going down switch off your phones” Salewa, the only female member of the squad added

“Ori Iya mi o!” A bereaved customer voiced his fears as he went down flat kissing the floor beneath like they were both having a discreet love affair

“Wetin I find come bank today o!” Another customer quietly bemoaned his fate

Staffs and customers of the bank complied to orders from the gun-wielding miscreants with immediate alacrity. Everyone asides the misfits seem to have their hearts in their mouths

“This can’t be happening to me” A young female teller in her early 20’s tried to come to terms with the bank invasion by the robbers

The loose cannons perpetrating the bank heist held everyone in the bank hostage while the looting of cash and personal effects began with reckless abandon.

Salewa- the only female member of the gang, walked up to the terrifying tellers. She ordered them to empty their treasury. They nervously handed her bags upon bags of money as she passed it on to two other members.

It was a field day for the robbers.

“Get up” Solonzo aggressively yanked up one of the female tellers. He then called out to one of his squad member

“Pharrel”

“Yes boss!”

“Make you and Machiavelli follow this babe enter strong room”

“Ahhh! Strong room! Skiibo! Eni yin ma bad gan ni. Let the storehouse be opened to mankind” Pharrel goes into a frenzy, speaking gibberish at the mention of strong room

“Oya babe! Enter the place” He grabs the lady roughly by the waist, while pointing a real steel AK 47 rifle at her

“Na money I send una oh! No go do another thing for there oh” Solonzo warned having noticed Pharrel’s eyes on the female teller

“Haba boss! Why you dey talk like this?” Pharrel frowned at Solonzo’s comment

“I know you naa. This one wey you don dey size the babe up so.”

“That one na just normal due process” Pharrel maintained

“Go with her into the strong room jare, we ain’t got time” Solonzo urged him.

Pharrel and Machiavelli dragged the female teller as they matched her into the strong room. After about 20 minutes, Pharrel stormed into the banking hall from the strong room on cloud nine, while Machiavelli in the company of the subdued and hapless female teller followed suit

“Bossman! See as money just dey waste for here oh! O yapa gan!” He bellowed”

“Mumu, no be why dem call am strong room?” Solonzo berates him

“Omo the room strong gan ni oh. We don hammer!” Machiavelli added

“Hope say you carry enough sha?” Salewa asked

“Enough ke? We fit buy the whole of Togo and Niger with this money.” An overly excited Pharell joked.

“Are you mad ni? Abi you don forget say I be Togolese” said an infuriated Salewa

“Abeg babe no vex na the money wey I see they disrupt my brain signals”

Martins managed to catch a glimpse of the unfolding drama from where he laid like a rebel that was captured by a troop of ‘ISIS’ soldiers. The ecstasy displayed by Pharrel reminded him of Rashidi Yekini’s near-post celebration after he scored Nigeria’s first goal in her first ever world cup in 1994 or you may want to liken it to Chioma Ajunwa’s first Nigerian Olympic gold medal celebration after she leaped 7.12metres to win the long jump event of Atlanta 96.

READ ALSO: The BROUHAHA of OGA MARTINS 2.0 | Chapter 12

Satisfied with their booty, the gunmen were almost going to storm out of the bank when a phone rang from one of the customers that were held captive by the dare-devil robbers.

“Who was that?” Solonzo’s voice echoed in the bank lobby like a solitary voice in a dark cemetery for slain vampires. Now looking in the direction the phone rang, Solonzo’s voice bellowed again “I say, who be that?”

“You deaf ni, abi you no fit answer” Salewa points her rifle at Engineer Adetukasi (the client Ada stole from Martins) as she corked it.

“I’m sorry ma, it was a mistake” The Engineer stuttered, shaking vigorously like a fowl drenched in rain. Goose bumps covered the entire length of his skin.

“I thought I told you guys to switch off your phones” Solonzo is infuriated

“It was my other line, sir. I didn’t remember I had it with me” The Engineer replied in a disoriented mode sensing trouble

“Salewa!”

“Yes boss!”

“Take him out”

“Always at your service boss”

Salewa immediately fires a point blank perfect shot at the engineer. Her rifle instantly dislodges a bullet into the Engineers’ temple, spilling the contents of his brain around, amid the Engineer’s incoherent cries. Brain matter splatters on walls and some of the people lying flat on the ground cried out in muffled sounds. It was a gory sight to behold!

Moments later, an eerie silence rends the air. The Engineer instantly blanks out as his body became lifeless.

There was no way he could have survived that for he was gone even before the shot was fired at him!

The Brouhaha continues…