The last laugh.

Eight:. Blood or brotherhood

3:17 AM — Carter Tower, Private Office

I couldn’t sleep.

My mind was burning.

Not with fear.

Not with sadness.

With rage.

The black box was a trick. The Shadow Table had baited us and destroyed half our system. Our name was dirt again. But this time… it wasn’t just the enemies outside.

It was someone close.

Someone who smiled in meetings.

A voice I trusted.

A shadow I didn’t see.

---

That Morning — 7:00 AM

I called a closed meeting.

Only five people.

Felix. Nova. Amber. K-Six. Deek.

I entered the room slowly.

Said nothing for the first full minute.

Then I placed my phone on the table and pressed a button.

> “This room is now locked and silent. No one outside can hear us. Not even Nova’s AI.”

Everyone looked nervous.

Even Felix.

Even K-Six.

I looked each of them in the eyes.

Then I said it:

> “One of you is the snake.”

---

Silence.

No one moved.

No one blinked.

Amber spoke first. “Jason, are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Deek leaned back, lips tight. “You think we’d betray you after everything?”

“I don’t think. I know.”

Nova stared at her hands.

I could see she was hurt.

So was I.

But hurt didn’t matter now.

Only truth.

---

Felix’s Plan

Felix finally spoke. “We need a clean test. A trap. We feed false info and see who leaks it.”

“I already did,” I said.

They all looked at me.

“Yesterday. I created three fake reports. Sent one to each of you privately through a ghost server. Each file was labeled differently.”

K-Six crossed his arms. “So which one got leaked?”

I held up my tablet.

Opened a report titled: Project Horizon: Realignment in Johannesburg.

I turned it so they could all see.

“This was only sent to one person.”

They all leaned in.

The room went silent.

Nova gasped.

It had been sent to…

Deek.

---

Confrontation

Deek stood up fast.

“That’s a lie! I never opened that file!”

“I didn’t say you did,” I said calmly. “But someone using your device sent the report to an unknown IP — traced back to Geneva. Hours before our server burned.”

“I swear to you, Jason—”

“Sit.”

My voice was sharp.

Deek sat.

Hands shaking.

“I’m not saying you’re the traitor,” I added. “But your system was used.”

Felix stepped in. “Which means either Deek is lying… or someone is using his tech to get close to you.”

K-Six muttered, “That’s all it takes. One hole in the armor.”

Amber stared at Deek.

“You told me once you kept your tablet in your bag during breaks.”

“I did.”

“Where was your bag the night before the black box mission?”

“In the security room. Charging.”

K-Six’s head snapped up.

“That’s my area.”

We all turned.

K-Six stared at Deek.

“I run the cameras. That night, the feed was wiped for 12 minutes. I thought it was power glitch.”

Nova asked, “You didn’t think that was strange?”

K-Six said nothing.

And in that silence…

A new possibility opened.

What if it wasn’t Deek?

What if it was both?

Or someone else?

---

Deek’s Breakdown

“I’ve never betrayed this team,” Deek snapped.

“I’ve been with Jason since before all this. When we had nothing. When we were eating noodles out of paper bags!”

He stood up again.

Tears in his eyes now.

“If someone used me… then help me clear my name. Don’t stare at me like I’m a ghost.”

I looked at Felix.

Felix nodded once.

“We’ll run your device through Marble’s lab. Every inch.”

“Do it,” Deek said. “Please.”

Then he walked out.

I watched him go.

Something in my chest felt cold.

Not because I thought he was guilty.

But because I couldn’t trust my own gut anymore.

---

Later That Night — Jason’s Private Quarters

I sat alone on my balcony.

Lights from the city flickering in the distance.

Amber joined me quietly.

She handed me tea.

No words.

Just presence.

Then she finally whispered:

> “They want you to fall apart inside.”

I looked at her.

“They’re not just hitting your name. Or your company. They’re coming for your mind. Your heart. Your trust.”

She paused.

Then added:

> “And it’s working.”

I stared at the sky.

Couldn’t lie.

She was right.

---

A Flashback — 6 Years Ago

Back when I had nothing, Deek was the only one who gave me a room to sleep in.

I was down, dirty, and broke.

He had a one-room flat in Ajegunle.

We shared bread and groundnut for dinner.

He once told me:

> “Don’t let the world change your smile. Let your smile change the world.”

I held onto that.

But now?

Even his smile made me feel afraid.

---

Two Days Later – Results Are In

Nova, Marble, and K-Six ran a full trace on Deek’s device.

What they found shocked everyone.

Deek’s tablet had been cloned.

Cloned.

By a device that used military-level tech.

Something only available through private intelligence networks.

The messages weren’t sent by Deek directly.

But…

The cloned device still responded to his voice commands.

Which meant?

> Someone close enough to record his voice, clone his signal, and access his apps.

It had to be someone within ten meters of him the night it happened.

Someone who entered the security room.

I looked at the time logs.

Only two people entered in that window.

Deek.

And…

K-Six.

---

Jason’s Decision

I called K-Six privately.

He entered, tall, calm, always unreadable.

I slid the tablet toward him.

No words.

Just evidence.

K-Six glanced at it.

Then looked up at me.

“You think it’s me?” he asked.

“I don’t think. I just follow facts.”

K-Six nodded.

“I joined you because you were real. Because you didn’t pretend to be clean. You just tried to be better.”

“So?”

“So if someone used my position to hurt you… I want to fix it.”

I watched him closely.

Still not sure if he was lying or not.

But he leaned forward and said something that froze my chest.

> “The real snake isn’t inside the team.”

“The real snake… is inside you.”

“What?”

He looked me dead in the eye.

> “You’ve stopped trusting people. You’ve started seeing everyone as a threat. That’s how they’ll win. Not by killing you. But by turning your friends into strangers.”

He stood.

And left without waiting for permission.

Carter Tower – 6:12 AM

The sun was rising.

But the air in the building felt cold.

Heavy.

Different.

Something was off.

I could feel it in my bones.

When I stepped into the war room, Amber was already there.

She wasn’t smiling.

“Jason,” she said slowly. “We have a problem.”

I raised an eyebrow. “What now?”

She didn’t speak. She just handed me a letter.

A real letter.

White paper. No envelope.

Just folded once, like something a child might pass in class.

I unfolded it.

Five words.

> “He knows what you did.”

---

7:08 AM – Missing

Felix came rushing in, breathing hard.

“I’ve checked all cameras,” he said. “No signs of forced entry. But… Deek’s room is empty.”

“Empty?” I asked.

“Completely. Clothes gone. Bag gone. Laptop gone.”

Nova checked her phone. “He was supposed to meet me at 6 for code audit. He didn’t show.”

K-Six was already checking the main gate logs.

“His name was removed from the exit record. Someone wiped it.”

Amber folded her arms. “You think he ran?”

“Maybe,” I said. “Or maybe someone made it look like he ran.”

Nova asked the question we were all thinking:

> “And what does ‘He knows what you did’ mean?”

---

8:00 AM – Deek’s Apartment

We drove fast.

Felix, Amber, and I.

His apartment was on the 14th floor of a quiet building. One of the few places we trusted because we paid for the entire block under shell names.

The door wasn’t broken.

But the inside told a story.

The room looked too clean.

Too empty.

Like it had been cleaned… by a professional.

Amber spotted something on the desk.

A cup.

Still warm.

Meaning?

Deek had been here less than an hour ago.

Felix’s face darkened. “He left in a hurry. Or he was taken.”

But the scariest part?

The security camera across the hall — the one we installed secretly?

Footage gone.

Wiped clean.

No one saw him leave.

---

The Real Message

Back at the tower, I called a full lockdown.

No one in. No one out.

All systems offline.

I sat in my office with the note in my hand again.

> “He knows what you did.”

I read it five times.

It didn’t sound like a threat.

It sounded like… a warning.

But who was “he”?

And what was “what you did”?

Felix walked in, calm but tense.

“You think this is about Victor Tembo?”

I shook my head. “No. Victor doesn’t play with notes.”

Felix sat down. “Then who?”

“I think this is someone new,” I said.

“Or someone old… using a new name.”

---

Nova’s Discovery

Later that afternoon, Nova came running in.

“Jason, I found something.”

She placed her tablet in front of me.

“This isn’t just about Deek disappearing. It’s about why.”

She pulled up a video clip.

“Three weeks ago, someone accessed your private server from an unknown source. They didn’t steal money. They didn’t touch files. They just downloaded one thing.”

“What?” I asked.

Nova hesitated.

Then tapped the screen.

A name appeared.

Nathaniel Carter.

My father.

Dead 18 years ago.

“What the hell?”

Nova looked at me.

“The file was your father’s old audio message. The one you recorded from that old cassette when you were 16.”

I stood up.

“How do you even know about that?”

“It was in the encrypted archive. I broke it while tracing the Shadow Table breach. I swear, I didn’t mean to—”

I raised my hand.

It wasn’t her fault.

But my heart was racing now.

> Why would someone take my father’s voice?

---

Deek’s Last Call

Then Amber rushed in.

“We just cracked Deek’s last GPS ping. It came from outside the old train yard in Zuba. We’re sending a team now.”

“Send no one,” I said. “I’ll go myself.”

“Jay—”

“Lock the tower. If I’m not back in 4 hours, erase everything.”

Amber looked shaken.

But she nodded.

Felix stood up.

“I’m coming with you.”

---

Train Yard – 6:44 PM

The place was dead silent.

Rusty trains. Dry air. No lights.

We parked the car and moved slowly.

Then Felix spotted it.

A red shoe.

Deek’s.

Lying in the dirt beside an old shipping container.

I drew my small pistol.

We moved closer.

Inside the container?

Nothing but a laptop.

Screen glowing.

No wires.

No power.

Just… glowing.

I stepped in and touched the mouse.

A video started to play.

---

The Video

It showed Deek.

Tied to a chair.

Alive.

Bloody. Bruised. But breathing.

And behind him?

A man in full black.

Hooded.

Voice distorted.

He spoke calmly:

> “This is not about war, Jason.

This is about balance.”

> “You built something too bright.

Too loud.”

> “You’ve made enemies you cannot see.”

He leaned forward.

> “You were chosen once. But you strayed.

Now… the world must choose again.”

He placed a note in Deek’s lap.

Then the video cut to black.

---

The Note Left Behind

On the laptop keyboard was a printed message.

It read:

> “One must be lost…

For the rest to live.”

We were all back in the war room.

No one was speaking.

The lights were low.

The air was heavy.

I had just shown them the video.

Deek, tied up.

Bleeding.

Alive.

The masked man speaking behind him like a calm storm.

Nova looked pale. “He’s still breathing.”

Amber whispered, “They’re not bluffing. They’re giving you a test.”

Felix was pacing now.

“A trap. If we go after him, they’ll be waiting. If we don’t, he dies.”

K-Six leaned on the wall, arms crossed.

“If it were me in that chair, what would you do?”

They all looked at me.

Waiting.

My chest felt tight.

Because I didn’t have the answer.

Not yet.

---

The Past is Speaking

That night, I couldn’t sleep.

I sat in my private quarters, holding the letter from the container.

> “One must be lost…

For the rest to live.”

It sounded familiar.

Too familiar.

So I opened the old voice file — the one stolen, the one Nova found in the breach.

It was my father's last message.

He had recorded it on an old cassette player the year before he died.

I hadn’t listened to it in years.

I pressed play.

His voice came through, quiet, tired, but strong.

> “Jay, this world is not fair.

There will come a time when you must choose:

Your brother… or your kingdom.”

I paused the tape.

Heart pounding.

Brother.

My father didn’t mean blood brother.

He meant Deek.

We had grown up like brothers.

He gave me shelter.

I gave him trust.

And now?

Now he was being used to force my hand.

---

1:13 AM – Alone with Felix

Felix met me on the rooftop.

He handed me a bottle of water.

“No tea this time?” I asked.

He shook his head. “Too late for tea. Too early for war.”

We stood side by side, staring at the quiet city.

“Jason,” he said slowly, “I need to ask you something.”

“Go ahead.”

“If it was me in that video… would you come for me?”

I looked at him.

I didn’t lie.

“I don’t know.”

He nodded. “Fair.”

“But if I don’t save him,” I added, “I lose something worse than a friend.”

Felix asked, “What?”

> “I lose myself.”

---

The Next Morning – A Plan is Born

At 7:00 AM sharp, I walked into the war room with purpose.

“New plan,” I said.

“Operation Split Veil.”

Nova raised an eyebrow. “Sounds like you’re going for him.”

“I am.”

Amber asked, “You’re walking into a trap?”

“No. I’m setting one.”

They leaned in.

I explained the plan in three parts:

1. Public Misdirection: Amber would release a video saying we had confirmed Deek’s death — to throw them off.

2. False Coordinates: Nova would send three fake mission plans into the web — so any traitors would spread the wrong location.

3. Real Team: Only three people would go with me — Felix, K-Six, and Marble.

The rest?

Would prepare for what came after.

Because if we saved Deek…

The war would change.

---

The Mission – 11:22 PM

The real coordinates pointed us to a warehouse outside Minna, about two hours from Abuja.

Abandoned. Quiet. No movement.

Too quiet.

We parked far and moved on foot.

Each step felt like a countdown.

I carried no phone.

No ID.

Just a small pistol.

And my father's voice echoing in my head:

> “One day, you’ll have to bleed for someone who bled for you.”

We reached the warehouse door.

Felix gave the signal.

K-Six kicked it in.

---

Inside the Warehouse

It was empty.

Dark.

Too still.

Then a speaker turned on.

A voice, filtered and strange.

> “You chose brotherhood over power.

Good.”

Then the lights came on.

Deek sat in the center of the room.

Still tied up.

Still alive.

I ran to him.

Checked his pulse.

He was weak… but breathing.

“Jason…” he whispered. “I didn’t say anything. I swear.”

I nodded. “I know.”

But just as I untied him—

Boom.

The wall exploded.

It was a trap.

---

The Ambush

Smoke everywhere.

Six black-clad men rushed in from the far side.

Felix fired first.

K-Six dropped two with clean shots.

I grabbed Deek and pulled him toward cover.

Marble threw a flash-bomb.

Boom!

They fell back.

We pushed forward.

Felix got hit in the shoulder.

K-Six was bleeding from his arm.

But we kept moving.

We were almost out when another bomb went off — near the exit.

I hit the ground hard, ears ringing.

Dust in my eyes.

Then I heard footsteps.

A voice.

Clear this time.

> “I gave you a choice, Jason.”

I looked up.

The masked man.

The same one from the video.

But now, he was close.

He pulled off his hood.

My heart stopped.

It was a face I had seen in an old photo on my mother’s wall.

---

The Reveal

“Who are you?” I asked.

He smiled sadly.

“My name is Caleb.”

“Caleb…?”

“Caleb Carter.”

I blinked.

“Your father’s first son.”

I froze.

That couldn’t be.

“My father only had me.”

He laughed.

“No, Jason. He had two sons. One born in Lagos. One raised in Kenya. One in light. One in shadow.”

He stepped closer.

“He trained you to lead the public. He trained me to destroy the hidden.”

He looked around.

“This fight isn’t about money. Or power. It’s about balance. You’re breaking it. And I’ve been sent to stop you.”

I couldn’t speak.

My head was spinning.

> This wasn’t war.

This was family.

---

The Escape

More gunfire broke out.

Felix dragged me back.

We got Deek up.

K-Six created cover with smoke grenades.

We moved fast.

Out the back.

Through the field.

Into the car.

Engine roared.

We drove hard and didn’t look back.

---

Back at Carter Tower – 3:03 AM

Deek was rushed to the clinic.

Felix got stitched.

K-Six slept with a gun on his chest.

I sat alone again.

Holding two things:

My father’s old tape.

And the truth…

> I wasn’t the only Carter.

> I wasn’t the only heir.

> And I wasn’t the only one playing for the Last Laugh.