You wonder what is happening. What mess has Brayo got you into this time? Did he steal the money? Did he rob a bank? Brayo has always been bragging how he will be more successful and richer than all of you, but you didn’t know it would be this fast! That is close to half a million on Brayo’s bed, was he serious when he swore he’ll do anything to get rich, even if it meant joining the Illuminati? Then you remember, Brayo was MIA the whole day yesterday, where was this guy?
Johnny and Mike are deep in bewilderment and they had to take a seat, on Brayo’s bed. Brayo’s phone rings again, still no caller identification and this time it makes him shiver like an addict waiting for a shot of their favorite drug. His blue boxers are almost half wet and you don’t know if he’s really sweating in there or he peed. You don’t want to know.
You can’t bear this state of confusion any longer.
“What did you do man? Where did all this money come from? Speak before we leave you here!” you shout angrily.
“Hello? Yes… yes…this…this is Brian. Who am i…?” Brayo stares at his phone. The line went dead.
As the door is flung open Mike shouts in fear and you conclude that bravery isn’t directly proportional to body size after all.
Four mean looking guys hurriedly enter the room, the one in front holding a gadget resembling a walkie-talkie. You are surprised people still use that today, or maybe that is actually a satellite phone. You see a pistol in the holster of one of the guy’s hip. One wrong move and your brains are busted all over the floor tiles. You look down and three of them are rocking Safari boots confirming they are actually the CID. One of the guys begins filling a backpack with the stacks of cash as another instructs Brayo put on some clothes and later cuffs all of you, they then shove all of you out of the room. Brayo has a lot of explaining to do, you tell yourself.
You are led to two sleek looking Peugeots that are parked not too far away. You are all put in one car and you soon speed off the area. About twenty minutes later you alight at a location. It’s the CID headquarters and you are being taken in for questioning. You don’t know what you’ll answer considering that you know zilch about the money.
The room is dimly lit. There are two windows in the room, one has the curtain pushed to the side to allow little light to illumine the room. A desk and 6 chairs haphazardly spread across the room comprise the furniture. All your phones have been confiscated and placed on the table.
The guy seated on the table is slender but tall with a big shoe size like you’ve never seen before. He’s holding a notebook and he wants you to start talking. You all turn dramatically and look at Brayo.
Brayo clears his throat, you are all eager to hear what he has to say. He narrates that the previous day at about 10 a.m. he got a call from his cousin Stan who was in town and wanted to urgently have a chat with him over coffee. Brayo has told you stories about Stan who has had his fair share of scuffles with the law. You remember a story he once told you that ended up with Stan being jailed for years after being found in possession of a stolen car linked to a homicide. In Brayo’s own words, his cousin was a “certified crook”.
So his cousin tells him he has been in Uganda making an honest living Apparently, he plied the car selling trade and the returns were massive He even offers him a job immediately after he graduates. Brayo goes on to say that Stan said he had just sealed a lucrative deal in Kenya that morning, after selling an SUV he got from Uganda at a cheaper price. The only little problem he had was that he was paid partly by cheque and partly by cash. The cheque was fine because it was written in the name of his business, but he couldn’t bank all of the cash, since it would raise a lot of questions. He wanted someone he trusted to hold the cash for him until the next day. Brayo was to keep the money safe till Stan contacted him, and yes, he was free to use some money not exceed fifty thousand shillings. Brayo bit it hook, line and sinker.
The CID officer later informs you that they have been on the hunt for Stan for months. They tracked Brayo’s phone because he was the last person Stan called in Kenya. Stan was wanted for various felonies, but majorly, car related theft. They even had someone masquerade as a buyer for the SUV, whom they instructed to pay Stan by cheque and partly by cash. The money was treated and bugged, which they’d have tracked it to Stan, apprehend him and file charges against him. He explains everything will go on as planned. They’ll wait for Stan to contact Brayo to get his cash and then arrest him in the process. You realize you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“Now that we have nothing to do with this…” you begin before Brayo’s phone ringtone interrupts you. The CID officer picks the phone up, looks at the screen and smiles. He faces the phone screen your direction, Stan was calling.
READ :The Makings of A University Student’s Friday Night: Part One
This is the second of a three-part series on Black Friday. Visit the site for the next part of the series.
This article was written by Capital Campus Correspondent Isaac Shiundu.
