CHAPTER 6: The Weight of Revenge

The days blurred in concert as Ugochukwu’s search for those responsible for his father’s death intensified. The in one case peaceful people he had acknowledge seem to have collapsed into an unrelenting nightmare. Every moment was fulfil with rage, with the gnawing desire for retaliation, and it was direct its toll on him. His body felt heavy, librate down by the endless hunt and the constant air pressure of prevent his programme under wraps.

It was early morning when Ugochukwu received another mystifying message.

“They’re close. You have where to look. Don’t waste clip. ”

No name. No number. Precisely a content that cauterize with an urgency that spurred him forward.

He seat in his car, the engine idle as he stare out into the engaged Lagos traffic. His fingerbreadth gripped the stirring wheel so tightly that his knuckle joint were white. Every part of him screamed to coif something—anything—to bring his begetter’s killers to jurist. But as the hours ticked away, the import of his obsession go clearer. He was misplacing himself.

Adaobi’s facial expression, while a source of solace, had been haunting him. He couldn’t run away the trope of her rip-streaked face the night she betrayed him. She was gone now, and Ugochukwu knew he could never forgive her for what she had do. Nonetheless, there were moments—fleeting ones—when he wished he have got the power to wipe out everything that had happened. The anger clouded his judgment, and he couldn’t remember why he was then despairing to piddle things right. All he make out was that vengeance was the alone thing that count anymore.

But as the days eliminate, it suit unclouded: this was more than than hardly about his dad's Death. This was about natural selection in a reality that had no topographic point for failing, no situation for forgiveness.

Ugochukwu moved through the street of Lagos, each routine draw him deeper into the infernal region, into a city he didn’t recognize anymore. His Father's legacy, once a symbolisation of strength and laurels, had been maculate by greed and corruptness. And straight off, Ugochukwu found out simply how far that corruptness spread.

He arrive at a ramshackle edifice, a lieu he had seen rumors about but had never dared to visit. It was in the heart of the city, hidden behind layers of lie and deceit. The voiceless spoke of batch nominate in dour box, of men with no conscience, and of the great unwashed who would stop at nothing to protect their secrets.

Ugochukwu tread out of the elevator car, his hand brushing against the cold metal of the gun tucked in his cincture. His heart beat quickened, a motley of fear and turmoil. He has been close to this where he would find his foremost real lead—if the rumors were true.

The door skreak open as he approached, revealing a dimly dismount hallway. The smell of smoke and decomposition filled the air. Ugochukwu’s middle narrow down as he run down the room. His judgement raced with opening, each one darker than the last. Who was he dealing with here? And what would they require from him in return for their silence?

A dark figure appeared in the doorway. He was talk, heafty and huge, with a scar running down his cheek that feed him an air of menace. His optic glisten as he regarded Ugochukwu with a smorgasbord of curiosity and disdain.

“You’re the one looking for answers, ” the man broke the silence, this charisma dispirited and gravelly. “I thought you’d be different. But then again, it's just a waste to have someone like you here…all the same. ”

Ugochukwu didn’t quail. “Where is he? ” he asked, his voice regular despite the latent hostility in the air.

The man’s lips loop into a smirk. “You’re not here for answers. You’re here for revenge. And I’m not indisputable if I should be impressed or not. ”

Ugochukwu clinch his fists, but he kept his composure. “I don’t care what you think. I’m not leaving here until I get what I came for. ”

The man chuckled darkly. “That’s the heart. But you might require to reconsider. You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into. This is bigger than you. Lots bigger. ”

The man took Ugochukwu deeper into the building, into a room that looked to a greater extent like an authority than anything else. There were papers dot everywhere, Indian file stacked in high, and a large map on the bulwark with red markers marking certain locations.

“Sit downwards, ” the man said, motioning to the hot seat opposite his desk.

Ugochukwu took the seat, his eyes scanning the room for any signboard of danger. He knew this was a game of high interest, but he wasn’t prepared for how cryptic the web of corruption ran.

“I’m looking for the people who killed my father, ” Ugochukwu said, his representative cold.

The man didn’t react immediately. He picked up a file from the desk and rip it open. “I don't know who you’re talking about. But why risking everything? you think you’re the only one who can take them down? You’re just a contractor. A businessman. ”

“I’m more than that, ” Ugochukwu said, his voice tint with bitterness.“

The man’s gaze indurate. “You’re actimg on a dangerous biz, my friend. And you’re already in too deep. You want revenge? Fine. But you accept to understand that there’s a toll. You want justice? That’s another matter all. ”

Ugochukwu leaned forrard. “I’m not interested in. I want to make them pay. ”

The man nod slowly. “And Then you’re going to need to pee-pee some bond. You can’t do this alone. You’re get have someone who is experienced in the street chips in order to postulate. One who roll in the hay how to make things disappear. ”

Ugochukwu’s jaw tightened. He had always prided himself on his independence, but the man is was correct. The profoundly he dug, the more he realized that he was out of his depth. The game was switch, and he had to transfer with it if he was give way to survive.

“Who do I need to speak to? ” Ugochukwu demand, his voice urgent.

The man's eyes glinted with something almost like entertainment. “You’ll come up out soon enough. But remember, every choice you form will fall with a price. The question is: are you willing to pay? ”

Ugochukwu stood up, his clenched fist clenched at his sides. He have no time for games. “Just tell me what I require to suffice. ”

The man’s smile faded, and he nod toward the threshold. “Give Way to the docks. There’s someone at that place who can help. But don’t rely anyone. Not even me. ”

Ugochukwu didn’t hesitate. He stood up and headed for the exit. As he walked into the night, he couldn’t escape from the smell that he was splay far into a worldly concern he would never bunk. The hungriness for revenge burned hotter than ever, but the cost was becoming clearer with every step he took.

He could feel the weight of it—the weight of everything he had done and everything he would bear to do. And yet, he couldn’t blockade. He had already crossed the line. There was no turning back now.