LarrySun:
Flash 18: The 98th Victim

Specially dedicated to Ekop Sparo Ayara - a wonderful follower.

The remains of Joshua Abbey Alabi, a 29-year-old banker, was recovered from the bodies of water at the Ikorodu river. The bullet wound on his chest and the missing left ear is a suggestive of the MO of Sheik - the Ikorodu serial killer who has reportedly killed ninety-seven victims, both male and female alike. Joshua Alabi is the ninety-eighth victim, and his identity was established by the national identity card in his pocket.

The authorities are stumped by the identity of this killer. He has continued to kill and nobody has any idea about who he is. The Sheik is reputed to be one of the smartest criminals in the country. He has successfully killed members and associates of his victims in the same manner, and each victim has been killed on different occasions.

Investigations by the local police reveal that, instead of Sheik to find his victims, it's usually the other way round. The victims always find Sheik.

The body of Joshua Alabi has been deposited in a nearest morgue. If you know the victim, kindly call this number - 050448631295.

***
Joshua Alabi dropped the newspaper as if scalded by it.

"Is this some sick joke?"

He couldn't believe what he just read. The newspaper contained the report of his own death. He had been shot in the chest, his left ear severed and had been dumped in the river. How was that possible? Here he was, hale and hearty. It could have been a different person entirely - that was the only explanation.

But the victim was him. Apart from the fact that the name of the victim was his, Joshua's picture was also boldly printed in the page. Everything matched his profile. His middle name was Abbey. He was twenty-nine years old and also a banker.

This must be some sick twisted situation. The victim was carrying his national ID card. Everything felt unreal. It was impossible for something like this to happen, yet it did happen.

For the rest of the day, Joshua's mind had not been at rest. Soon, people who knew him would begin to call his number just to confirm. He would tell them all he was alive - the information about his death could only be a gigantic mistake. Then he remembered that his phone had been stolen the day before, and he had not retrieved his line. If anyone called him now, his line would not be available.

Joshua decided that he must get to the bottom of this. He would visit the morgue and check the corpse. Something was definitely wrong somewhere.

The following morning, Joshua borrowed his neighbour's phone and dialled the number in the newspaper.

"Hello, my name is Joshua Alabi," he said. "I think there's a confusion in your newspaper report. I'm not dead. I'm alive. You must have got the wrong information."

"Are you playing some kinds of prank?" the recipient asked.

"No, I'm serious. I'm Joshua Alabi. I'm alive."

There was a brief silence at the other end. "Okay, please come over with your national ID card. I'll text you the address. Call me when you get there."

"Um, my phone was stolen yesterday. I'm using a neighbour's phone. I won't be able to call you."

"No problem. Just get to the address by 3 PM. I will be waiting for you. I am Dr Kishe."

The address entered the phone a few minutes after the call. Joshua wrote it down and deleted the SMS before handing the phone back to his owner. He dressed up and left the house.

By 3 PM, he was at the location. Joshua was surprised to see that he was standing in front of a house located close to a railway track. The building didn't look anything like a morgue. There was an old truck a few metres away. He walked slowly to the door and knocked.

The door was opened and a tall man wearing a horn-rimmed pair of glasses appeared. He was smiling at Joshua.

"Hello Mr Joshua. I'm Dr Kishe."

The two men shook hands and Joshua was invited inside.

"I thought I was coming to a morgue," Joshua said as the doctor sat in a chair before him and lit a cigarette.

"Well, technically, you can call this a morgue," the doctor replied jovially.

"So where is the body?" Joshua asked, looking around.

"Oh, you're the body," replied Kishe.

Joshua frowned. "What are you talking about?"

The doctor laughed and said. "You still haven't got it, have you? Look around you. You've been lured here. The report you read about was what is going to happen to you. It hasn't happened, but it's going to happen. You see, I wrote the report and sent it to the newspaper company. In my profession, I deal a lot in Psychology. You, Joshua Alabi, are going to be my ninety-eight victim. I was the person who stole your phone yesterday. It's part of the plan. Everything is going to happen as the report established, as it has always been."

"Who are you?" Joshua asked, confused.

"My name is Tishe," the doctor answered, smiling. "Now unscramble that."

Joshua thought about that and it occurred to him. "You're the Sheik."

The doctor spread his hands proudly, "The one and only Sheik of Ikorodu. You shouldn't have made that call. Now all your family members and associates will make the same call, but your neighbour will die first. With this method, I will never be caught."

A train moved past in the street and a gun suddenly appeared in killer's hand. He shot Joshua in the chest. The gunshot was drowned out by the sound of the train.

By nightfall, Joshua's body would be missing an ear. With the truck outside, Sheik would transport the corpse.

In a few days, the corpse would be fished out of Ikorodu river, his national ID card would be discovered in his pocket.

©Larry Sun, August 2020

Doctee:
why you dey take so long to update abeg pls be updating on time