Novels by Lily John and John Izuchukwu

The news was immediately sent to the king. And without waiting for the slightest moment, he had personally left the palace with some guards, all on horses' back. That was exactly how they came to be there. And when the king saw his son staggering away without even recognizing his presence, he almost did not know how he alighted from his horse as he rushed to his aid. When he picked him up and saw his body full of blood, he raised his voice and cried bitterly. The prince would have liked to tell him not to worry since he felt he was alright, but he could scarcely open his mouth to speak. So, waving his hands for the guards to clear, he pointed at the dead snakes some yards away and said:'The serpent is dead. I killed it. Seven snakes, one serpent,' - and collapsed into his father's arms.King Adino almost could not believe it. How he held and embraced his beloved son, how he wept with joy! For at

Meanwhile, however, the river having now settled considerably, the young men had already slipped into the water, quietly swimming about in search of the ring. The prince was in fact also with them. But for the next forty-five minutes, they moved about inside the river, going down, deep and almost across to the other bank in the serious search. But there was nothing like the ring to be found. So, at the end, they came out of the water completely exhausted. It was the saddest day in the prince's live. For since he grew up, that was the first time he saw his sister weeping so bitterly. It was with the greatest art of persuasion that the princess was made to accept leaving the river bank. She said it would be better to die in the river than go home without the ring. She could not help imagining what was really going to happen to the people of Mayomi now the ring was lost. As for her own fate, she knew she was simp

THE HANGING SENTENCEAt the end of the third year after these happenings, an alarming thing happened. Knowing how important her gold ring was, princess Mara kept it with every care. It was during the time of the Virgins' Festival also called The Festival of Pure Lily. On that day, all the virgins of Mayomi went to the various rivers of the land to swim as a part of the festival of the season. They were usually accompanied by some of their brothers to protect them from assaults if there happened to be any such thing. It was however the princess' habit to remove her ring and put it into a little box before going out to swim. But on that day, she was rather so excited about the event of the day that she forgot to remove it. And unfortunately, neither her brother nor any of her maids bosom friends noticed she had brought the ring to the river. If any of them had seen the ring on her finger, there would never have been the need for a

There was silence inside the room. The brother and sister looked at each other as if they had never met before. None of them knew what next to say. The princess had however already decided on what to do. She loved her brother more than she had been able to express.As she had already said, she could not afford to lose him or her fiancé. So she must stop them from continuing with that plan. To stop them, however, she must do something she would never have liked to do. Scarcely did her brother leave her room than she found herself in her father's bedroom.'You look terribly flushed, Mara,' her father said, 'what is the matter?’'Nothing,' she said, smiling. 'I've only come to make a request.’'Oh, go on my daughter. But don't ask for what you don't deserve.’'Is there anything I won't get from you just for the asking?’'Well, well, well. Of

With the ring almost always in her finger, princess Mara became rather too quiet and pensive. She suddenly boycotted all social gatherings and no longer went out to swim with the virgins of Mayomi. Her mother called her to herself a number of times to tell her there was no need to live a solitary life because of the gold ring. But all she said were to no avail. When the princess started living so much on her own, her brother as well became worried. One evening, however, six weeks after she was given the ring, the princess was sitting in her room hearing her maid read her a story.'All these hours you have been reading me stories.' She said to her. 'Now keep the book aside. I will tell you a story.'The maid closed the book and placed it on a nearby table.'Have you ever heard any story about the terrible serpent?'There was a knock on the door before the maid could answer her question. So she i

THE PRINCESS AND THE GOLD RINGThe king's two children continued to grow. At the age of sixteen, princess Mara had already developed into such a beautiful maiden that the news of her beauty spread far and wide. And being the first child, the king loved her so much that almost every time, he was thinking about what to do to protect her from all harm. For she was so beautiful that she looked rather too delicate and fragile for the earth. 'What happened if by chance the serpent regained the power to hurt people?' the king thought like a child. 'Being so wicked, would the beast not go straight after his beloved daughter?'Although the king knew too well the fact that as long as the gold ring was there the serpent would not hurt anybody in Mayomi, he allowed this thought to gradually become a part of him. But he never told his wife about it. Instead, he decided on something he felt must be done to make sure his beautiful daughter wa

The time was 11:00hrs N.T. Richard drove into his parents' compound in Port Harcourt, beside him was his bride to be, Nneoma. They were there for a formal introduction to his parents. The security man closed the gate as Richard drove further into the compound. He parked his vehicle neatly at the drive turning to Nneoma.'Here's our abode,' he smiled.'I can see,' she said softly, gazing at the white duplex, standing grandly in its aesthetic beauty.'Come on, let's get out.' He opened his door likewise Nneoma.Richard was attired in a green brocade mini jumper artistically embroidered. He was as usual posh and elegant. Nneoma was dressed in a shimmering dark blue lacy skirt and blouse, beautifully sown. She wore Richard's birthday gift; the gold jewelry. Her hair was beautifully twisted and a pair of black slippers graced her feet. She was as usual charming. They were still closing their doors when a lady in her early twenties came out of the house, excited,

For the next two months, Nneoma and Richard saw a lot of each other. They stayed together most weekends reluctant to part. Sometimes, they dined out but most times they were indoors, enjoying one another's company at Nneoma's residence. They shared jokes, problems and life in general.On Sunday evening, relaxed on Nneoma's settee, they exchanged jokes and funny experiences, the epitome of a happy couple.'I was very fond of having tea and bread for breakfast,' Nneoma told him, eyes alight with amusement. 'And there came a period of bread scarcity in town. Most stores were short of bread. My mother presented biscuits to me in place of bread and I refused because, I normally dunked my bread in the tea so the biscuits did not work.'Richard smiled.'I was around four years old then,' she continued. 'Chika was still a baby. That morning, my mother was busy and I wanted bread by all means. My mother gave me N 10.00 to go to the nearby store and see if they had bread.

Throughout the week Nneoma was happy. This was evident in her eyes. She laughed at the slightest provocation. Gladys whom she had told of her reconciliation with Richard was happy for her. Richard phoned her thrice that week. On the third occasion, she was resting on her divan around 20:00 N.T. She grabbed her phone eagerly.'Hello,' she cooed.'Hi,' Richard replied richly. 'How are you?''I'm fine and you?''I'm fine too. So, how was the day?''Enjoyable but I'm tired.''Have you eaten?''Yes, I have.''Why don't you take some pain relievers?''It's not that serious. It's just … it's just…' Her voice trailed off as a yawn over took her. 'I'm sorry,' she apologized chuckling. 'In a couple of few minutes I will feel fine.''You are really tired,' he noted. 'I wish I were there to soothe your nerves.'Nneoma laughed softly. 'What about you? Being at the helm of affairs in your hotel must be trying.

Nneoma arrived her office fully in control of her emotions. With struggles, she had relatively forgotten Richard. As usual, customers filed into the bank for one reason or the other. Nneoma had a busy time tackling her duties. She was working on some figures on her computer when she heard someone say.'Excuse me.'Nneoma looked up and saw a young man with a pronounced floral emblem on his shirt. She understood he was a florist.'Are you Miss Dike?' the man asked.'Yes. Nneoma Dike.''I'm from Claribel, a floricultural outfit.'Nneoma nodded, her eyes going to the beautiful bouquet of pink roses he was carrying.'Someone sent you this bouquet,' he said proffering it her.'Who?' She received the aromatic flowers.'A note accompanies it.' He pointed out to her.Quickly, she pulled out the note from the bouquet and opened it.My Dear Nneoma, I hope you have a nice time at work. Could you join me at La

Seven years gone by, Nneoma was hale and hearty. She worked as an accountant in a reputable bank in Aba, the second city listed in the world gazetteer popularly called the Enyimba city, situate in Abia State, Nigeria. Courtesy of her uncle who had introduced her to the Utos years ago and her parents, she eventually graduated with a second class upper division degree certificate.Nneoma, through a magistrate law court had for six years formally paid back Pius approximately all he spent on her. And with the approximate last kobo paid, that sad episode was finally closed.Nneoma, in her thirtieth earth year was a raving beauty. She suffered a lot of advances from men which amused, pleased, or irritated her at times. Suitors came her way but she refused them. It was as if she had sworn off men. Her parents were worried. Wouldn't she settle down? Why did she joke with marriage? She was almost thirty! They gave her sermons on the reasons why she should make the most of her

Nneoma!’ 'Aunty,' she responded quietly, unable to smile. ‘Come in, come in,' Ogechi said, taking the former's hand. She led her into her living room. Nneoma dropped her bag on the floor and sat down on one of the cushioned seats.'You look troubled, Nne. What's the problem? And how is your mother?' Ogechi gazed at her concernedly, subsiding on the adjourning seat.'She's fine, I believe but I'm not so sure.''You are not so sure? I don't understand.''Oh, aunty Oge, I ran away from them.''Ah… Nneoma?'She began tremulantly, 'Pius came home.''Your fiancé?''Yes, he came home for the Easter Holiday. When he called at our house, I was not yet back from school. When I came home, my parents said I should visit them as they desired…''Mmh.