‘Amaka,’ Ibrahim said, ‘you cannot meet the girl. It’s a trap.’
‘Of course it’s a trap,’ Amaka said. ‘She’s probably dead. She most likely contacted Malik to get the money he owed her and he lured her in. After leaving her to die like that, when she returned, he would have had no choice. Stupid girl. She’s probably floating in the lagoon or rotting in a shallow grave somewhere.’
‘Take it easy, Amaka,’ Ibrahim said.
Her eyes had glazed over, even as her face had hardened with anger. ‘I’m fine,’ she said. ‘I was hoping we could play along and set a trap for him too.’
‘It’s risky,’ Ibrahim said.
‘You’re a police officer. You can figure it out. It might be the only chance to find him.’
‘Then what? What would I arrest him for? There is no evidence to suggest he’s connected to this. And what if it all goes bad? You’re basically suggesting that we use you as bait.’
‘Yes.’
‘Amaka, this is not a game. They…’
‘Don’t fucking tell me it’s not a game. Do I look like I’m playing? He dumped her on the fucking road. A human being. He thought she was dead. Arrest him for that. He runs a brothel. Arrest him for that. He threatened me – he said he would kill me. Arrest him for that. Just fucking arrest him. Are you going to wait until I’m dead before you have a reason?’
‘Calm down,’ Alex said.
‘Don’t tell me to calm down. Don’t tell me to do anything unless you’re going to tell him to fucking get with the programme and catch this bastard.’
‘If I may,’ Alex said, ‘I disagree with you, Ibrahim. I believe the two are related. Someone threatened her, and subsequently her house is raided. Until we know exactly what happened here last night, we have to investigate all angles, including this. Even if just to eliminate it.’
‘It would be dangerous,’ Ibrahim said.
‘It would be dangerous,’ Alex said, ‘but it’s doable. She will wear a vest. We will choose the location.’
‘Are you joking?’ Ibrahim said.
‘What about my office?’ Amaka asked.
‘That could work,’ Alex said. ‘We can place officers inside and outside, but I doubt he would agree to that. In any case, he thinks you think you are talking to the girl, so we must play along. It would only be natural that you ask the girl to come to your office.’
‘Are you seriously considering this?’ Ibrahim said. ‘We could be dealing with a very dangerous person.’
‘Yes, he’s a dangerous person,’ Alex said, ‘but we know he’s planning an ambush, so we have the advantage of ambushing him first.’
‘What if he expects you to expect it’s an ambush?’ Ibrahim said.
Amaka threw up her hands. ‘What if he’s Lex Luthor? This is our first chance to catch him. If we don’t, he’ll get me sooner or later. And even worse than that, he’ll still have all those girls in his harem.’
‘How can that be worse than you dead?’ Ibrahim said.
She began to type into her phone.
‘What are you doing?’ he asked.
She pressed send.
‘I just asked to meet at my office today.’