The station buzzed with tension. Officers moved with urgency, yet a heavy silence lingered in the air. Ayo sat at his desk, the photograph of Tunde Bakare still in his hands. His past was unraveling before him, and the more he dug, the less sense it made.
Bimpe entered, dropping a thick folder onto his desk. "I pulled the archives from 2013. Officially, there's no record of you ever interrogating Tunde Bakare."
Ayo frowned. "That's impossible. I remember handling a case tied to his name. I just… can't piece it together."
"Then someone's gone to great lengths to erase it," Bimpe replied. "The question is, why?"
Before Ayo could respond, Inspector Goke appeared in the doorway. "We just got another message."
Ayo and Bimpe followed him to the briefing room. A laptop was open on the table, playing a video that had been sent anonymously. The footage was shaky, as if the cameraman was walking through a dark alley.
A distorted voice spoke over the video. "You're digging in the wrong places, Detective. The answers you seek aren't in the past. They're what's coming next."
Then, the camera panned downward. A red ribbon was tied around a man's wrists. His face was covered with a sack, but he was trembling.
Ayo's blood ran cold. "Who is that?"
The voice continued. "Another loose end. One you forgot, just like the rest."
Bimpe cursed under her breath. "He's daring us to find him."
Ayo clenched his fists. "We need to track the video's location."
Goke nodded. "Our tech guys are on it, but the signal was masked. We're working on isolating the background sounds."
Ayo studied the video again. The alley was narrow, dimly lit by a single streetlamp. A distant siren echoed in the background. He knew that sound. "That's near Broad Street," he muttered. "There's an abandoned factory there."
Bimpe grabbed her radio. "We need a team there now."
The factory reeked of mildew and rust. Ayo led the way, his gun drawn. Bimpe and two other officers flanked him. The silence was unnerving, broken only by the occasional drip of water from the ceiling.
They moved deeper into the factory, following the faint hum of a generator. Then, they heard it a muffled cry.
Ayo raised his hand, signaling the team to move cautiously. He pushed open a half-rusted door and found the man from the video, tied to a chair, red ribbons binding his wrists.
Bimpe rushed to untie him. "We got you. You're safe."
The man gasped for air as the sack was removed. He was in his late fifties, his face gaunt with fear. "You… you have to stop him," he croaked.
Ayo crouched beside him. "Who? The Ribbon Reaper?"
The man's eyes darted around. "No… the one pulling his strings."
Ayo's breath caught. "What do you mean?"
The man coughed. "He's not alone. He's working for someone. Someone powerful."
Before Ayo could press further, gunshots rang out.
"Ambush!" Bimpe shouted, pulling the man down for cover.
Ayo fired back, his heart pounding. Shadows moved in the darkness, figures in black, their faces obscured. The factory erupted into chaos.
Goke's voice crackled over the radio. "Backup is en route! Hold your position!"
Ayo ducked behind a crate, reloading his weapon. The Ribbon Reaper wasn't just a lone killer he was part of something bigger.
And now, they were in the crosshairs of whoever was really pulling the strings.
Bullets ricochet off metal beams, the deafening echoes filling the factory. Ayo peeked out from behind the crate, firing twice before ducking back. His mind raced. If the Ribbon Reaper had a benefactor, then this was bigger than he had anticipated.
Bimpe crawled toward him, her breath ragged. "We're pinned down. We need an exit."
Ayo scanned the area. A metal staircase led to the second floor, where a row of broken windows lined the back wall. "Up there."
They moved cautiously, covering each other as they ascended the stairs. More shots rang out, one narrowly missing Ayo's shoulder. The man they had rescued followed closely, his steps unsteady.
"We have to hurry," Ayo urged.
They reached the top and Bimpe smashed one of the windows with the butt of her gun. "Go!"
Ayo helped the man climb through first, then followed, landing on the rooftop. Bimpe was the last to jump, just as another hail of bullets shattered the remaining glass.
From the rooftop, they could see flashing red and blue lights approaching. Goke and his team were almost there.
Bimpe spoke into her radio. "We're on the roof. Hostiles inside."
"Copy that. Hold position."
The attackers seemed to realize backup was arriving, and the gunfire slowed. Moments later, the police stormed the factory, shouts and more gunfire echoing below.
Ayo exhaled sharply. "That was too close."
The rescued man clutched Ayo's sleeve. "They won't stop. Not until he gets what he wants."
Ayo steadied him. "Who is he?"
The man's eyes were wide with terror. "A ghost. A man who should be dead."
Bimpe exchanged a look with Ayo. The case had taken a darker turn. If the Ribbon Reaper was just a puppet, then the real mastermind was someone who had stayed in the shadows for far too long.
And now, he was ready to reveal himself.
Just then, a single gunshot rang out from below. The rescued man gasped and collapsed, blood staining his shirt.
Ayo spun around, eyes scanning the rooftop perimeter. The shot had come from a sniper, but from where?
Bimpe cursed. "Sniper! Get down!"
They ducked behind the rooftop ledge, but it was too late for the man. He struggled to breathe, his lips trembling. "He… he knows… you're coming."
Ayo pressed a hand to the wound, but the man's eyes glazed over.
Bimpe whispered, "He's gone."
Ayo slammed a fist against the concrete. Whoever was behind this had just silenced a crucial witness.
Goke's voice crackled through the radio. "We got some of them, but a few escaped."
Ayo stood, his jaw tight. "Then we hunt them down."
The battle wasn't over. It had only just begun.