THE ILLUSIONIST’S TRAP- Episode 1- The Hustler Magician
🎠THE ILLUSIONIST’S TRAP
A Tragicomedy in Five Episodes
Episode 1 – The Hustler Magician
Baba Kazeem was a man of many names, but the one he carried like a crown was The Great Kazimondo. It sounded foreign, exotic, powerful. In reality, it was just Kazeem, the hustler-magician of Lagos streets—known more for his noise than his wonders.
Every day, he performed at bus stops and markets, pulling coins from children’s ears, changing pure water into something that looked suspiciously like Fanta, and shouting “Ladies and gentlemen!” even when nobody was paying him attention. His audience was mostly street urchins, bus conductors, and market women who clapped only when they had nothing better to do.
But Kazeem carried dreams larger than his shows. He believed one day, one single trick would open the doors of wealth. One day, he wouldn’t be sweating under Lagos sun; he’d be sipping champagne under chandeliers. That hope kept his hunger alive.
On one hot afternoon at Balogun Market, while attempting to pull a rat from a boy’s empty pocket, he saw her. She glided through the crowd like she owned it—the powdered face, the jangling jewelry, the gown so shiny it blinded his eyes. She looked out of place, like a queen mistakenly dropped among traders.
His eyes followed her. She stopped to buy perfume, bargaining with an accent that tasted like Dubai and Banana Island. “My dear, money is not the issue, I just don’t like being cheated. I travel often. Dubai, London, you know how it is.”
Kazeem swallowed hard. Dubai? London? Banana Island? His brain began to spin calculations. If this woman could drop one dollar on him, he’d multiply it with his magic—or at least with his mouth.
She introduced herself when his performance drew her attention. “I am Lady Vanessa. My late husband was a businessman. Left me houses on Banana Island. I just came to Balogun for small shopping before I travel again.”
Kazeem nearly fainted. Banana Island? That was Lagos heaven, where the rich built castles on water. His eyes widened as he imagined walking into such a mansion, no longer a hustler, but The Great Kazimondo, magician of the elites.
For the first time, Kazeem’s heart whispered: This is it. This is the miracle I’ve been waiting for. He smiled, bowing dramatically as if the universe itself had sent Lady Vanessa into his show.
What Kazeem did not know, however, was that Vanessa’s own life was as much a performance as his tricks. Behind the powder and the accent lay debts, fake jewelry, and a rented gown. The queen he saw was only a costume—but one that would change his life forever.
👉 To be continued in Episode 2 – The Hypnotic Proposal
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