The Kill Switch

Somewhere in Lagos.

A quiet private compound, guarded by silence and fear.

Korex Gold poured himself a drink.

His hands weren't shaking. Not yet.

"They think they've won," he said to the man sitting across from him.

"But they've only exposed their weakness."

Senator Babajide didn't reply. He just watched Korex closely, then said:

"This is your mess. Clean it up."

🗡 The Assassination Option

Korex reached into a folder marked BLACKLEVEL.

Inside were contingency plans — political ruin, smear campaigns, blackmail dossiers. But on the last page was something different.

A name.

A photo.

Coordinates.

VDM.

Korex slid it across the table.

"It's time we cut off the head."

Babajide raised an eyebrow.

"You're suggesting…?"

"No speeches. No digital attacks. Just silence. Permanent silence."

The Senator leaned back, considering.

"If we kill him, he becomes a martyr."

"Not if we do it right," Korex replied coldly.

"We frame it as internal betrayal. A fight within the movement. One of his own."

"Who?" the Senator asked.

Korex smiled faintly.

"Halima."

🐍 The Setup Begins

That same night, Korex's operatives moved fast:

They released altered footage of Halima speaking to a man outside a detention center.

They planted a burner phone in her apartment with messages implying cooperation with the regime.

They doctored a bank transfer log showing her receiving ₦5 million two days before VDM's public speech.

Meanwhile, a private hit squad — ex-military, untraceable — was sent to the safehouse where VDM was hiding.

🕯 Cut To: The Safehouse

Tayo, Halima, and VDM sat in near-darkness, reviewing media backlash, fan responses, and global reactions.

Some embassies had condemned the smear campaign.

Others warned their citizens to avoid Nigeria.

Halima stared at her phone, silent.

Tayo glanced at her.

"You okay?"

She nodded slowly.

But she didn't see the red light blinking near the window.

A sniper scope.

💣 Final Scene

Outside the safehouse, the hit squad was in position.

One in the alley.

One on the rooftop opposite.

One posed as a neighbor carrying groceries.

Through an earpiece, Korex's voice came:

"Do it clean. No fire. No camera leaks. Make it look like a fight among radicals."

Inside, VDM stood to stretch.

The sniper's finger tightened.

But then—

"Wait," the squad leader said. "Abort. There's a child in the house."

A neighbor's kid had wandered into the safehouse through the back door.

Silence crackled in the comms.

"Reschedule," Korex growled.

"How long?" asked the squad leader.

"Forty-eight hours. Then we erase him."

The sun hadn't risen yet.

But Halima was already awake—eyes red, mind racing.

Her face was all over social media.

"Halima Adigun: Insider Mole?"

"VDM's Right Hand or Government Pawn?"

"Who Paid Her to Keep Quiet?"

She knew none of it was true.

But truth didn't matter anymore — perception did.

And perception was being hacked.

🔎 Clues in the Smoke

She returned to her apartment alone, despite Tayo's warnings.

Inside, it was just as she'd left it. Except… one thing.

A cheap Android phone sitting on her counter. Still warm.

She hadn't seen it before.

It wasn't hers.

Mistake #1 by the people who planted it: Leaving the battery at 80%.

She powered it on.

The chat thread was open already:

From: "AlphaIntel"

"₦5 million confirmed. Keep him calm. Don't let him cancel the rally."

Halima's hands shook.

Someone had forged this. The timestamps lined up too perfectly.

And the spelling—British English, not the Nigerian slang she normally used.

"They didn't do their homework," she whispered.

But it didn't matter.

To the public, she was guilty.

🧠 Halima's Plan

Halima reached out to one of her former contacts from detention — a hacker named GhostMode, known for breaking into state surveillance servers and then vanishing like fog.

He owed her a favor.

"I need proof this phone was planted," she told him.

"I need GPS logs, metadata, anything."

"You sure?" GhostMode replied. "They'll come after you next."

"They already are."

🐍 Meanwhile: Korex Watches

Somewhere behind tinted glass, Korex sat in a private SUV, livestreaming Halima's every move through a surveillance drone.

He spoke into a mic:

"She's going rogue. That's fine."

Behind him, the hit squad prepared a backup plan.

"Frame her for the assassination. When VDM dies, the world will blame her."

He smiled.

"This isn't about truth. It's about narrative. And I write the ending."

🕯 The Final Clue

Halima met GhostMode in an abandoned internet café.

He handed her a file on a flash drive. His face was covered.

"Whoever planted the phone… used a military signal masking tool."

"Government?" she asked.

"No. Worse. Private contractors. They're invisible. Even to me."

She stared at the screen. One IP address popped again and again.

Linked to Korex Gold Media Ltd.

She froze.

"It was him…"

⏳ Time Running Out

Halima knew what came next.

Korex wouldn't just frame her.

He'd erase her.

As she left the café, she noticed a man following her. Clean haircut. No smile.

She didn't go home.

She disappeared into the city.