Must Read: The Cartel (18+)

Episode 7 years ago

Must Read: The Cartel (18+)

I spent the Christmas break in Lagos thinking about where I could get more drugs to sell once I get back to Calabar. My stock were almost exhausted with roughly about half a million naira worth left in stock. I had a total of about three and a half million naira in savings and felt the cash was better reinvested than left idling in the bank. But rather than put that money into my apparel business or some other legit business, I opted to reinvest in the drug trade. The reason was simple, I got a better ROI and there was a (not so competitive) market.


This decision was definitely going to put a strain in my relationship with Vivi, because I had promised to stop after selling what she gave me.


Again I knew I would have to source for these products myself and definitely outside Calabar. I knew who to call to find out and I did just that. This guy had over the years lived up to his reputation for always knowing someone who knew someone who knew some people. His name is Jamiu but nicknamed Handyman or H-man for short. At a point, only a few of our mates knew his real name.



A friend and an acquaintance, Handyman was now in the University of Abuja. This was another campus (in)famous for drug (ab)use in the country. Handyman and I were bunkmates in our first year, and classmates till from SS1 – SS3 being science students. Coincidentally we were also seat mates during several examinations we took back in school because the first three alphabets in our surnames were the same. This included the entrance examinations into Jss1, our Junior NECO in Jss3, WAEC and NECO in SS3.

Back then, he was always on the wrong side of the school laws, breaking all known and hitherto unknown laws, an expert in breaking bounds (a terminology for students jumping the school fence to town), and one who always knew who did what in the hostel. Whenever your item got missing, if he ain’t the one who stole it, he’ll have an idea who did because he spent more time in the hostel than in class like “normal” students. And if you needed anything from town, he was the go-to guy.


He was surprised when I made my enquiries in that I wasn’t the type back in school. But he proceeded to tell me types of products I could get while also promised to make further enquiries for me which he later did. At that point, I decided to buy a car to aid my movement around and to safely transport my “good” myself.

I mentioned it to Vivi and she was initially against it saying I always had her car at my disposal. She felt it was going to draw unnecessary attention to me because I just wanted to show off. But I held my own explaining it was to aid my side businesses and it wasn’t going to be some flashy car but something I can just use to run my other business.

I told her since I bought my clothes in Lagos, I’ll save the extra cost of transportation and would also carry some passengers along, using their fare as my fuel money. Then while in Calabar, I’ll also augment my cash at hand as a cab driver during weekends or once in a while. She believed me at this point after I told her I just had a budget between 300-400k for a used salon car in pretty good shape.





I decided to wait until after the Christmas celebration and when in Calabar to buy the car.


Firstly, this was because the prices of cars (like most commodities) were on the high side due to the season. And secondly not to give my parents the impression I had a whole lot of cash than I pretend to because I didn’t want them to know.

I got back to Calabar Sunday night, the beginning of second week of the new year. Surprisingly, when I went downstairs the next morning to get some items at the store nearby, I noticed a dude who lived in the same apartment with me had put up his car for sale. It was a 1999 Toyota Carina E Wagon, well maintained and in good condition. Although I had a smaller saloon car in mind, I quickly went over to his apartment and knocked to make enquiries. Dude said he needed the money urgently for an issue back in his home state. At 600K, the price was higher than my budget, but I quickly seized the opportunity and made him an offer of 500k with the option of paying him that same day.



I eventually paid him 550k for the car and spent almost 100k for necessary documentation and fixing of all that needed to be fixed including buying a complete set of four tyres, replacing the breaks etc. The dude only drove the car to and from work, but I intended to embark on several long distance trips so the car had to be in perfect shape.

*******


Leaving the car behind, I went by air to Abuja the following Sunday to meet Jamiu as planned while in Lagos. Although he claimed he wasn’t into the drugs I was sourcing for, he had a whole web of contacts that can get me what I wanted.



But frustratingly despite his supposed connections and contacts, by Wednesday evening, all we could get were mere retailers and non was even ready to give us any lead as to were their source came from. But after we left the last place and contact that evening, Jamiu got a call and spoke at length with the person in Hausa. From his gestures, I knew it was about the drugs.

After the call, he said nobody trusted me. That the audience we’ve been given for the past two days were basically because of him. That I should tell him the truth, was I an undercover agent?. The question came as a surprise but I answered in the negative but I couldn’t tell if he was convinced or not.

He went on to say the guys feel I don’t look or act like a supplier or someone who had even seen what I was looking for before probably because I was an undercover agent. Hence the suspicion. He then told me he had been given the address of the major dealer in the campus and we had already booked an appointment. When I asked when did we book the appointment, he replied saying once anyone unusual ask about the guy or his address is given to you, before you leave that premises, the guy has already been notified. As a matter of fact, the guy must have approved before we were told where to find him.


Later that evening in his apartment he begged me to open up if I was an agent or not so he’ll know what to do before they come for us because I’ll definitely be killed and buried without a trace and no one would look for me around here.


He said to me “Look Fury, these guys are as screwballs, depraved and dangerous. And when I say dangerous, I mean they could literally kill you, cook your flesh and feed you to their dogs without a trace of blood on their doorstep.


Don’t just think of an easy death. And whatever you think you guys have going on down south, bro these guys are masters of the acts.


Besides, they’ve probably ran a check on you from their contacts in Calabar. So all you have to do when we meet them, I look them in the eye and prove you’re legit. One act that shows panicking on your part, and you’re gone.


And I hope you’re not thinking all you have to do is tell them you want to buy a million naira worth of shìt and they’ll be impressed. These are rich kids who have all counted millions of their own right from their secondary schools days. So (your) money doesn’t impress them one bit and might even get them pissed. Guts do”.



I just asked him when are we meeting with them?.
“They’ll come for us”. He replied

******

10 pm that evening, a Mercedes Benz car was sent to pick I and Jamiu up from his apartment.

We drove for about 15 minutes (obviously) aimlessly around Gwagwalada before the driver pulled over in front of a fenced building. The gate was opened and the driver drove in.

We were then led into the building by a girl whose beauty couldn’t be hidden by the darkness outside. After we were searched by two guys, Jamiu was asked to wait in the first living room which had a couple of other guys smoking and drinking God knows what. The house had everything to show it was owned by really rich kids. I was led on by that same girl (whose beauty I now saw clearly) into an inner room where I was asked to wait.

She exited the room through the same door we came in with and a minute later a door at the other end of the much smaller living room opened. In came this dark and huge dude and two much slimmer/smaller guys. While I could tell I and the huge guy were of the same height (assuming I wasn’t even taller), he was much bigger than me with glaring muscles as proof of his regular visit to the gym, or was he on steroids? I paid much attention to him thinking he was the head, boss or something until one of the boys asked me to have a seat while taking a chair by the corner.


Not until our discussion began did I realize big dude was either a body guard or something to the much smaller guy who was obviously the man in charge. A closer look at the other smaller guy who hadn’t said anything revealed he was definitely a sibling to the one talking.


The guy talking said they’ve ran a check on my name from their contacts in Calabar and the report came back saying I didn’t exist and must be impersonating or a “rat” so could I explain why it is that I wasn’t known by their folks in Calabar?

I had walked in here hoping that the strength of my reputation and or my relationships with Milady would get me back out the door with the drugs I needed, but I was shocked with his revelation that I wasn’t known by their goons.



But after all I had witnessed in Calabar or the fact that I was dating Milady, If he felt that statement (assuming he truly ran a check on my name was true) would scare me or throw me off balance, he had to come up with something better then.

Having a sangfroid nature, a calmly replied “That’s because I’m just a guy and I don’t exist”.

This statement confused them a bit and I watched all three put their heads together whispering in Hausa. After a while, we immediately proceeded with marketing and negotiations. No further test or silly questions were asked.

*****