Mrs Stella Adewale was frantic as she stepped out of the Aso Rock Presidential Villa. Her heart was racing but she couldn’t stop now. I need to find out, she thought.

As she strode with determined steps to her black Range Rover, a young man in his early thirties sprinted across the tiled compound and reached the car the moment she entered through the backdoor.

“What are you doing, ma’am? You are breaking protocol. I could be fired for this.”

Stella pressed a button that winded down the tinted car window. She stared at Tim, her Aide de Camp, the man paid to follow and assist her everywhere she went. The gaze that stared back at her had a hint of fear.

What is the use of all these security detail if they couldn’t protect him, she thought as sadness crept onto her face. Tim was royal and good at his job but he couldn’t stop her. No one could.

“You won’t be fired, I assure you. I don’t need your protection. Cover my tracks and tell the President I went to visit my mother. Can you do that for me?”

The young man continued to stare at her as his mind battled with the consequences that would surely follow. “Yes, your Excellency. But madam –”

“Just buy me some time. You just need them to believe you. I will be back in two hours’ time.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Tim replied and waved at the wife of the President.

“Driver, please, get us out of here,” the First Lady ordered.

Maxwell, the driver replied by turning on the ignition and the engine came to life. He barrelled the car out of the Presidential Villa, into the busy street of Abuja.

Thirty minutes later, they arrived at Greimo, the Maximum security prison at Apo. It was built by the previous administration to replace the old and crowded Kirikiri prison in Lagos.

Maxwell parked the vehicle close to the gate. He alighted from the car and rushed to open the backseat door for his boss.

“Thank you, Maxwell. Stay in the car. I won’t stay long,” Stella said as she stepped out of the car.

A cold February wind slammed at her face the moment she climbed out of the vehicle. She winced and buttoned up her coat. They were in front of the prison. She glanced around her as she observed her surroundings.

The prison had lived up to its hype. High walls. Huge metal gate. Cold-hearted guards. Citizens were forbidden to visit the prison for any reason.

The criminals caged inside its walls were dangerous and regarded as enemies of the State. They were the most feared criminals in the country, she was told. A blast of wind hit her again and she advanced to the huge gate, increasing her pace as she did.

“Hei, stop right there! You are not allowed here,” one of the guards shouted.

He was a middle-aged man. His clothes showed he was one of the top prison officials at Greimo. His facial features softened when he observed that they had a high profile visitor.

“Your Excellency, this is unusual. We didn’t get any notification…about…your…visit.” His voice was unsteady.

“There is no need for one. Let’s not waste each other’s time. I came to see him.”

The eyes of the prison official widened and he struggled to speak. “But no one is allowed to see him. We are acting under orders from the high command. He is extremely dangerous. And we could get fired for this.”

Stella didn’t need this kind of drama. She put her hand inside her handbag and brought out a big envelope. She placed it in his hands. “The more we talk, the more we waste your time and mine. Now open the gate and make this happen.”

The official made three different phone calls and barked loud orders to his men. Ten minutes later, Stella was escorted by three guards to the visitor’s room. It was all happening fast. All she heard around her were heavy boots clanking on the hard floor.

And then, the moment she’d dreaded arrived. She first heard the sound of his chains and knew instantly that it was him. Her heart started pounding hard and she held the railings to steady herself.

Two guards led the prisoner to his seat and he sat down on a metal chair at the other side of the prison. Their eyes met and her hands trembled.

“I’ll be alright. You can leave now,” Stella said to the guards beside her.

“Your Excellency, this is not a good idea. Are you sure about this?”

The guard that replied her was met with angry eyes. No one made another mistake. They all scurried out of the room. Stella heaved a sigh of relief and turned and faced her greatest nightmare.

He was six feet tall, she knew that before the visit. But sitting so close to him now, she observed that his presence was intimidating.

He was massive with a chest rippling with muscles and his hands were so large. He barely stifled a snicker. “Now, who do we have here? My first visitor in three months. What a lovely surprise.”

“Why did you kill him? I just want to know why?” Stella blurted out.

The prisoner’s eyes narrowed but his face revealed nothing.

His name was Charles Lobatei. They called him Charles the Viper. He’d been going to prisons since he was eighteen. Charles was once the most feared criminal in the country. He still was, many believed.

From kidnapping to armed-robbery, drug-trafficking, murder and recently, terrorism, his footprint seemed to be everywhere high profile crimes were committed.

Six months ago, the only child of the first family, Abiodun, was kidnapped from his boarding primary school in Maitama. The men came prepared with assault weapons.

The gunbattle lasted for two hours and left the child’s entire protection detail and 15 policemen that came to the rescue dead in cold blood, their bodies riddled with bullets. What happened next afterwards still baffled the detectives working on the case.

Continue reading https://stanleyumezulike.com.ng/2019/08/15/forbidden-encounter/

A Package for book lovers

Free Preview and Teaser copy of my Romantic suspense novel, Love Diary

Want to read the first 10 chapters of Love Diary for free? Well, here's is the rare opportunity for you to do so.

Love Diary is a gripping tale of unexpected love, breaking the chains of the past, and learning how to trust again.

To get this teaser copy for free and start reading right away, follow this link:

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To my readers, this book was written for you. Thank you for your encouragement and support.

Enjoy!

A Short story by Stanley Umezulike
Writer’s Note: This story contains strong language and scene of violence.

The lives of four young NYSC members suddenly turns upside-down on the eve of the election day.

This story is dedicated to all NYSC Corp members currently serving our country. You are doing a great service to our Nation. God bless you all.

Sometimes when fate wants to deal with a man, it comes without warning. These were the thoughts on my mind as sweats mixed with tears and streaked down my face. Remain strong Dele, real men don’t cry, I told myself. But now, I realized there are troubles and pains in life that’d push you to your limit and make you recognize your own humanity.
“It’s okay Dele. We thank God they didn’t succeed,” my friend Ayo tapped at my arm as he pleaded with me to stay calm. We were all sitting on a long wooden seat. My eyes squinted at the direction of the two young ladies sitting beside us. Tope and Bisola. I breathed a sigh of relief as I said silent prayers. Tope saw me and hugged me tight. She clung to me like I was her oxygen and refused to let go.

We were still dressed in the white polo and khaki trousers of the NYSC – National Youth Service Corps. Up till now, I couldn’t still pronounce the name of the Registration Area Centre where we were posted by the Independent National Electoral Commission – INEC, the body in charge of conducting elections in the country. But I knew it was somewhere close to Kafanchan. The four of us, Ayo, Tope, Bisola and I, we were all young people, fresh from the university, serving our fatherland. It was a mandatory national service after graduation that was programmed to last for one year, to inspire unity and love among the youths from different parts of the country.

I stood up and Tope shot her gaze at me with a look of concern on her face. I was so close to her but my mind was perching in different directions at once. This place, this life, this country, this election, it was as if we were all in a dangerous tunnel that none of us could escape from. Can we ever get out of this endless loop? What happens after service? Have many people are even employed? Even now, my mind was telling me that the worst was not over yet. I blinked my eyes as my mind took me back to how we survived the toughest night of our lives; a snaky, treacherous night...



Read more: https://stanleyumezulike.com.ng/2019/02/18/treacherous-night/#ixzz5g3OtXBnj

No! This can’t be happening.

How can this be?

What is really going on here?

These were the questions on my mind when I opened the door and received the shock of my life. All at once, my hands started shaking as it does every time and the glass of water I was holding on my hand slipped from my grasp and fell on the tiled floor. I felt numb, and continued to stare, my eyes searching for anything real and my heart shattering again.

“Jesus Christ!” Michael my Fiancé said as he joined me at the door. He must have heard the sound of the broken glass. We have known each other for six months. Michael had saved me from myself, I would have been lost without him. It was still early Saturday morning in the city of Enugu. Michael who worked as a doctor at LUTH hospital in Lagos had come down to my apartment in Enugu to stay with me for the weekend. Here I teach kids in Nursery school – a job that was part of the reason why I had not yet lost my mind. Michael had been so worried about me. Immediately he came back yesterday, he started checking my body temperature, and my blood pressure. It enabled him to monitor the progress I’d been making so far. Every time he travelled, he’d worried to death that I might suddenly go to the other side.

I won’t blame him. He brought me back from the clutches of death.

“Vivian, this is not real,” Michael said as he began to drag me inside. I believed him. It can’t be real.

“Watch it,” he quickly added as I almost stepped on shards of broken glass. I froze and he then carried me across the long corridor and lifted me down in front of the door to our room. He then rushed to the kitchen to bring broom to clean up the mess at the front door.

I entered the room and collapsed on the bed as tears started dropping from my eyes.

In two minutes time, Michael was already at my side “Don’t cry Vivian. Please! Life is not fair but it can’t be true.”

But I couldn’t hold it any longer. I started to cry. It was too much. Michael held me in his arms but he couldn’t console me. No one could.

Michael. He had gone to hell with me too. He’d helped me to pick up the broken pieces of my soul after the tragedy that almost destroyed my life.

Broken bones, tormented cries of the dead, blood and bullets; these are the summary of the dream I had every night. During the day, they would come back in form of nightmares to haunt me.

In few minutes, I closed my eyes and started sleeping. And I saw them again. The horrible details. The struggle, and then the broken bones, the deafening cry which was put to an end by series of heartless bullets.

When I suddenly opened my eyes, gasping for breath, I heard Michael shouting “Stop! Vivian, wake up!”

“You were kept saying two words in your sleep; no, don’t,” he added.

He held me tight in his arms as we both started to sob silently “Everything will be fine Vivian, I promise.” I nodded as he crushed his lips on mine and kissed me hard, as though this would be the last time he would be with me. It was so vicious that it cut off my oxygen supply. I pushed him aside with my weak hands and scrambled for air as I began to cough. I took three deep breaths, then drew him closer and rested my head on his chest.

I felt broken.

This was what I pass through every day. Michael had taken me to pastors and his fellow doctors, yet nothing had changed. For the past 12 months, my dreams had continued to torment me. And my mind had continued to tie me to my past. I couldn’t let go. My past had overwhelmed me, swallowed me up and kept me in chains. Even Michael couldn’t teach me how to love again.

Every day when I woke up, I’d still remember the day my life ended; a day I would never forget. Whenever his name flash through my mind, tears would flood my eyes. His name brought back all the memories. Agony. Tears. Pain. Helplessness.

Richard

My Richard. The bone of my bone. The blood in my veins. The air that I breathe. My reason for being alive.

The first time I met Richard was three years ago at my friend’s wedding ceremony. I was one of the bridesmaids. He was one of the men in suit. I later found out that he was a friend of the bridegroom. Immediately our eyes met on that fateful day, somehow, we both knew that our lives would never remain the same again.

Then I was still a fresh graduate from the University. Richard on the other hand was working in the National Intelligence Agency at Abuja. They were a special kind of security operatives. He had great love for his country.

Meeting Richard changed my life. Our love for each other was like a hurricane ready to tear everything apart but couldn’t. It was so intense that we couldn’t survive a day without hearing from each other. Then I usually felt like I would faint anytime he promised to call but failed. And when we finally saw each other, it would seem as though we were in heaven. Loving Richard brought peace and balance in my life. It was us against the world.

A year into the relationship, he proposed and I quickly accepted before I’d go insane. Something he said that day still echoed in my mind, “My love, any time I leave you and travel back to Abuja, I feel like a part of me is gone.”

I knew then that without him, my life would lose its meaning.

After our engagement party, we were so excited. I introduced him to my parents, they quickly approved and when he introduced me to his family, I blended in naturally. It was as though I had always been a member of their family.

While I was tall, dark and plump, Richard was of average height, fair, and handsome. He was the perfect gentleman. His eyes were magical and they always had effect on me. Whenever I looked at them, they’d drew me in and when I’d hear his voice, my heart would open up to welcome him. He had a way of getting to me. Even when we were silent on the bed, we’d still be communicating with each other as we listen to the sound of our heart beats. My heart was tied to his.

That was us. It was to be a union made in heaven.

Frantically, we rushed up the wedding plans and got everything ready for the big day. The last message he sent to me was still etched on my mind.

“Baby, I can’t wait for you to finally be mine.”

But while we made plans, fate came in the way.

On the eve of my wedding day, my female friends were in my room with me perfecting the Saturday plans and adjusting the details when we heard the knock on the door.

Rita, my friend opened the door and we were surprised when we saw who it was. Richard’s mother. She was crying. I quickly stood up from the chair where I was sitting as my make-up kits scattered on the floor.

“Mama, why are you crying? What is the problem?”

Did something got burnt?

“I just got a phone call,” she said quietly.

I wanted to ask her what the phone call was all about but she quickly added, “Just switch on the television.” And she left.

Rachel, my other friend quickly switched on the TV inside the room and we discovered that it was already in the news.

“Oh my God!” Everyone in the room was silent. I couldn’t believe it.



Read more: https://stanleyumezulike.com.ng/2018/12/29/richard/#ixzz5bT9NDT4d

Festac, Lagos

The sun was intense, huge wind was blowing as though rain was about to fall and the Festac Branch of Access bank was buzzing with activity this Friday afternoon. Traders and civil servants were busy scurrying up and down, rushing to withdraw the lump sum they would use for the weekend.

“Enjoy the rest of your day sir,” the gateman at Access Bank said to the bank’s accountant who was dressed in white Ankara top and trousers as he walked briskly past the huge gate, straight to his Toyota Camry which was parked in the parking lot outside the bank.

“Thank you Charles,” replied the accountant. He was in a haste, looking like a man who was about to miss his flight.

As he entered inside his car and put the key in the ignition, someone shouted outside the gate, “James!” He peeped through the car window and saw Stella his colleague in the bank, waving frantically at him.

“This is not closing time yet,” she shouted over the noisy environment.

She had been crushing on him for years, using the routine car ride to her apartment after close of work to get to his attention.

“Not today Stella,” James told her as he waved back with a hint of a smile on his face. Looking disappointed, she turned back and headed into the bank. In less than 30 seconds, James swung the car through the busy road of Festac. Lagos traffic was already getting thicker even though the time was still hovering around 2.pm. Another Friday rush hour. But James was not worried about the traffic. He was so excited. His heart was beating fast.

Finally.

30 minutes later, as he parked his car close to his apartment, his phone beeped. He opened the message and smiled as he read through it.

All I want is forever with you baby.

The message was from Cynthia, his longtime girlfriend.

Me too baby.

A relationship of seven years, now James had a lot of surprise packages that would make that forever come true. He had already sent money to Cynthia’s sister, Jane to prepare a surprise birthday party for her.

And I will be there too. Perhaps, tomorrow will be the happiest day of my life.

James was so happy. He couldn’t wait to be in Port-Harcourt already. His heartthrob Cynthia was residing in the garden city with her elder sister Jane. She had just graduated from the University of Port-Harcourt. James had already booked a ticket for a night travel from Lagos to Port-Harcourt. The night journey would be tiresome but it would be worth it. Earlier that day, he had taken permission from his branch manager to leave early. So far, everything was working according to plan.

Hopefully, I’ll be in Port-Harcourt by Saturday morning.

Immediately he reached the ‘Young Shall Grow’ park, his IPhone started ringing.

“James, are you already on your way?” asked the voice at the other end of the line.

“Yes Paul. I’m so happy. Finally!” He had discussed his plans with Paul, his best friend since secondary school. Four years ago, James had introduced him to Cynthia when she came to visit him for the weekend. Over the years, Paul and Cynthia had equally become good friends. Something that gave James a great joy. And whenever a serious quarrel sets out between James and Cynthia, it was Paul that always came to the rescue.

Paul my good friend. I think he will make a good best man.

“Yes, my best friend is finally getting married,” said Paul excitedly.

“Not yet,” James cautioned. “But Paul, I have been calling you since today, your number hasn’t been going.”

“Sorry bro. Business meetings. And tomorrow too, it will last from morning till evening. I want to close an important deal. Tell me when you get there and send my warmest greetings to Cynthia.”

They exchanged pleasantries and the call ended.

While James was a banker, Paul, on the other hand, had his own business. He dealt in the importation of electronic gadgets from China. At 32, two years older than James, Paul looked charming, always had his way with beautiful ladies, not yet ready to make his choice and settle down. Apart from that, he remained obsessed with expanding his three shops in Alaba market.

James paid for his ticket, boarded the red luxurious bus and closed his tired eyes. He dreamt of a lady in a scarlet dress. But when he woke up, he couldn’t remember who she was or what happened in the dream. Time moved fast. He slept, woke up and slept again. By 6 on Saturday morning, they arrived in Port-Harcourt.

Throughout the day, he was busy in his hotel room, pacing around and perfecting his plans. He was so anxious.

I can’t wait to see you my love.

The day moved fast in a blur. By 9 p.m., James dressed in white designer shirt and blue jeans, walked into the red hall inside the Presidential Hotel, the venue of the birthday bash. He had been getting constant updates of the event from Jane.

The birthday party had been on for two hours and immediately the chief celebrant cut her huge birthday cake, James entered inside.

Cynthia was dressed in a red body-tight scarlet designer gown. At 25, she was easily the most beautiful lady in the room. Her long black hair cascaded down her shoulders as she wowed the crowd with her infectious smile.

Immediately he saw Cynthia in the scarlet dress, broken pieces of the dream he had the night before flashed through his mind. His face brightened when he remembered that the lady he saw in his dream wearing a scarlet dress was Cynthia. And she seemed to be smiling at him in that dream.

Sweetheart, it’s so lovely to dream of you especially on the eve of this great day.

As he took a step forward inside the red hall, all the details of that dream came back to him.

Wait a minute. In that dream, she was standing tall, confident and happy. At first, I thought she was smiling at me but when I looked at her seductive eyes, I discovered that she was not looking at me. She appeared to be gazing at something or someone behind my back.

What does that even mean?

James straightened up his face, pushed all those thoughts at the back of his mind and strolled happily towards his lovely angel. Neon lights, loud party music, moving bodies and dancing feet, everything and everyone stopped as the crowd looked up to the scene unfolding in front of them.

Cynthia’s face was full of joy; she was dancing when it happened. Her eyes widened, her mouth agape revealing her open-teeth, as her biggest birthday surprise began to unfold.

James knelt down on one knee and brought out a diamond ring that he saved a year’s salary to buy. Immediately, there was a ‘wow’ exclamation from a section of the crowd.

“My heartbeat, I told myself that today will not be complete if I am not here to celebrate with you, to finally be part of your life. I may not be good in making long speeches, but finally, our forever is knocking on the door. Baby, you are the love of my life. I can’t imagine spending the rest of my life without you. My love, will you marry me?”

Cynthia’s eyes were wide open, her eyes revealing her huge surprise.

James closed his eyes. The moment I have been waiting for. His heart was pounding. His hand holding the ring was raised.

In a second now, a finger will slide inside.

But when he opened his eyes a minute later, nothing had changed. He was shocked. Cynthia was struggling to speak but couldn’t. The whole crowd was gasping in surprise.

Read more: https://stanleyumezulike.com.ng/2018/12/30/the-lady-in-a-scarlet-dress/#ixzz5bGyBW0hI

It was Christmas day, the weather was bright and everyone was in their best clothes, with faces filled with joy and happiness. The city of Ibadan was glittering with neon lights and beautiful faces. It was a lovely time of the year.

“Happy Christmas,” my M.C friend, Kola greeted me.

“Happy Christmas,” I managed to utter the words.

I forced myself to smile but inside me, I was lost. After several months in self-imposed purgatory, my heart was still heavy with pain. Then I saw a young lady and I blocked out all Kola was saying and turned my head to observe her. She looked at me and I saw the face of a stranger. It wasn’t her.

I was in the church where we first met, it was a first encounter that changed our lives. I was light-skinned and five feet, eight inches tall. I was sitting on a pew that meant a lot to me. This was where I met her the second time. Suddenly, I felt a deep pain that made me to blink back tears and my mind took me back in time to exactly a year ago in this very place where it all started…

***

The first time I saw her, my heart skipped a beat, my body trembled and I struggled to regain my balance. We were inside a church for a December 25th Chrismas Wedding. Her beauty was so divine, I had never seen such a sensuous creature before. She was dark-skinned and had eyes that made her irresistible. She had a body sculpted by Da Vinci, with a face that reminded me of angels.

She was wearing a tight pink gown that revealed her wide hips. She was sitting so close to her dad. I didn’t know who she was. I figured she was in her mid-twenties. Perhaps, they were friends of the bride.

I had no reason to be in Tola’s wedding that day. I was not his relation, nor his bride’s. I was invited by Kola, my M.C. friend to snap pictures of him as he performed on stage. It was when I was on duty that our eyes met and sparks flew between us. For the past twenty minutes, we had been stealing glances at each other.

I snapped more pictures and looked at her again. She smiled at me and my heart melted at once. It was then that I knew that if I looked at her again, I would lose my focus. I steadied myself to forget about her and focus on the task at hand. But her image kept creeping into my mind. At a point, I didn’t want to snap pictures again. I couldn’t. One thing was in my mind; I had to find out her name.

Two hours into the wedding reception, I saw her leaving with her father. Her father was a tall dark man with a commanding presence and a demeanour that whispers – don’t mess with my daughter. Fear crept into my mind when I saw the way he clung to her like his life support.

Why do you want to embark on a fruitless venture?

What if she was just flirting with you and nothing more?

Perhaps, you had been imagining things.
I pushed those negative thoughts at the back of my mind, dropped my huge camera with my friend, Bisi and rushed to meet her.

The big hall that was the venue of the wedding reception was filled to the brim with the bigwigs and business moguls from different parts of the country. It was a high society wedding. The guests were now meeting with the newly wedded couple dropping wedding gifts and fat envelopes as I made my way past the crowd, and walked out of the hall. I got my only opportunity when her father stepped aside to greet two men that also came for the wedding. Business partners perhaps.

I walked up to her, she saw me immediately and cast her intense gaze on my face. And the worst happened; I forgot all I came to say. It took me a minute to say Hi but my fear choked out the sound of my voice. I looked into her eyes and brought out my hand. “I am Ayo. Please, can I know your name?”

She panicked immediately. “Please, don’t talk to me. If my dad sees me with a man, he will kill me and then kill himself,” she said with fears in her eyes and walked out on me.

At once, her father finished with his friends and father and daughter started walking towards a black Lexus Jeep. I was shocked at sudden turn of events. I had a lot of questions in my mind. Something was off about this damsel and her dad but I couldn’t place my hands on it. She acted as though I was a complete stranger. Of course I am, – to her.

Perhaps I was just a fantasy in her mind. It took me two minutes to recollect my thoughts. I picked up what was left of my ego and walked back into the big hall.

At night, thoughts of her filled my mind. When I finally slept, I saw her in my dream. We were swimming together and she was smiling at me, enjoying the moment. We were now swimming close to the shore. I reached the wet patch of sand first and brought out my hand to help her out of the water. Suddenly, a huge wave that came out of nowhere pulled her forcefully inside the water. The last thing I heard was her shrieking voice and then there was blood everywhere. I woke up clutching my hand to my chest.

What is this all about?

Fear gripped my whole body and I couldn’t sleep again that night. On Monday morning, I went to my office but I was not there. My clients were coming to collect their pictures but my mind was far away.

“What is wrong with you Ayo?” Kola queried me as he came to collect his pictures.

“Are you sure you are alright?”

“Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”

But I was not. Throughout that week, I kept looking for her but couldn’t find her. My mind was restless. I felt empty.

On Sunday I attended church service in the same church and was surprised to see her. I felt a wave of joy and sadness at once. She was sitting close to her father. Again. This time, they were sitting in a pew at my back. Once the church service ended, I rushed to meet her as she was heading to the car. I didn’t see her dad.

“Hi. We keep meeting in a church.”
She heard my voice and tuned to face me.

“What is it you want from me?” Her question threw me off balance.

“I…”

“Ene, what are you doing there?” her father’s stern voice cut me off.

“Please go!” she pleaded and quickly opened the car door and entered.

I hurriedly left the church. Small victory. At least I have known her name. Now, I could put a name to the image on my mind.

***
All that happened a year ago.
For the first five months, she gave me a hard time. Whenever I met her, she kept telling me to leave her alone. But fate kept bringing us together. On the sixth month, I got information from a friend that she would be travelling out of the country and wouldn’t be back again. I stopped all I was doing and went to look for her. I had to be a man and tell her how I feel. Even if she would reject me, I would know that I had told her my mind.

By then, I had known where she was staying. Iyanganku Estate located in Government Reserved Area, Ibadan was a placed where the super-rich resided. I drove my weather beaten Mercedes to the Estate and stopped in front of a huge metal gate. I rang the alarm and the gate opened a minute later.

I entered inside the huge compound with an imposing structure that reeked of luxury and old money. The white building was majestic in appearance and was adorned with beautiful flowers and shrubs. The gate man, a dark Hausa man saw me and was surprised.

“Who are you?” Let me see your appointment card.”

Such was a place like this. To be able to enter into any compound in this estate, you need to book an appointment. If your name was not in the visitor’s books, you would be ordered out of the compound.

I had nothing but only my guts and a confession I needed to make before I ran out of time.

I stuttered. As I wanted to speak again, a door opened and she came out the house. She was wearing singlet and shorts. Her big thighs and wide hips swayed as I stood rooted to the ground, paralyzed by her grace and exceptional beauty. But as I looked at her, I discovered that something was wrong. She looked fragile and appeared older than her age. Older than me. Suddenly, she rushed inside and came out wearing a cardigan.

Was she feeling cold?

Our eyes met and she became surprised.
“Musa, it’s okay.”

“Kai, this young man sef. Oya dey go.”

I walked up to her and she gave me an inquisitive look. “How do you find where I am living? Have you been stalking me? What are you doing here?”

I was no longer shy. I need to tell her my mind now.

“Ene, I got information from a friend that you will soon travel out of the country with your dad and I knew I had to see you. I don’t know how it happened but I have this feeling deep inside me. I have tried so hard but can’t seem to get you out of my mind. I love you Ene and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Yes, I have said it. Now, let the worst happen.
Perhaps she would reject me and tell Musa to drag me out of the compound.

Suddenly, tears filled her eyes. “Yes I will be travelling with my dad tomorrow. My dad is at the U.S embassy trying to process the documents. You are brave to come here.” Then she looked away.

Why are tears in her eyes?

“But you don’t know anything about me,” she said in a tearful voice. She was looking at me already.

I was taken aback by her statement.
“Ene, I am here now, to get to see you and know the woman that had finally captured my heart. The woman that I love.”

The love word made her to panic. She almost fell. I helped her regain her balance and she began to sob. I was confused.

“What is wrong Ene? Why are you crying?”
I tried to wipe her tears but she did it herself.

“Ayo, you won’t understand. You don’t know anything about me. We can’t be together. It is too late.”

The compound was suddenly so uncomfortable for me. I felt like I was losing her. I began to ask her what was wrong because my life depended on it. And her reply made my blood to run cold.

“I have only two months to live,” she said as she began to cry.

Read more https://stanleyumezulike.com.ng/2018/12/28/ene-a-christmas-short-story/

For lovers of romantic novels and readers of interesting books. Exactly what you need to relax for this coming weekend.

Get ready for an emotional rollercoaster ride.
Introducing Love Diary, a romantic novel by Stanley Umezulike

Love Diary

A first encounter brings two people together in a twist of events that changes them in ways they never imagined and places the most important thing they hold dear to the greatest test of all…

Christopher Ayodele is the most eligible bachelor. With a successful career, he has spent all his life focused on his career with no space in his life for any other thing or so he thought.

Everything in his life was going well as he planned until a first encounter made him to realize that there is something important missing in his life.

Samantha Menziwa is hot, beautiful and trendy. She has the body of a super model and everything appears perfect on the outside. But this sexy damsel has a few secrets of her own with scars that she didn’t believe anyone could help her heal. Her personal life has kept her in bondage even as the image of the cause of her greatest problem lurks in her shadows…

TWO SOULS MEET

Everything changes as two souls meet in a first encounter that sets events in motion and changes them in ways they never imagined. From the streets of Lagos to the streets of Fairland and Pretoria, both of them must fight their emotional battles as they engage a common enemy that threatens to come between them and break them apart.

As they strike the least alliances and make friends and foes in unexpected places, will their challenges tear them apart or will they be able to overcome the greatest test of all and follow the message of their hearts?

To get it for NGN 200, follow

https://beta.okadabooks.com/book/about/love_diary/24043

Here's how you can get Love Diary with MTN 200 naira recharge card

You can buy it with MTN 200 recharge card, just download the Okadabooks App from your Google play store, sign up with your email, search for love diary, click buy, and you will see - refill your account, check refill options and choose mtn recharge card, enter the pin, and your Okadabooks account will be credited, then you can use it and buy the book, after getting it, go to library/my books section in the app, you will see the book, download and start reading. Enjoy!

Wishing you all a lovely week and an amazing weekend. Enjoy