CHAPTER 6 – “CORDELIA”

©️ Opeyemi Akintunde
As Inspired by the DEEP ONE

I had heard about him.
I kept hearing about him… silently.
In the dining hall. In the bathroom.
Although, only as whispers.

I had seen him.
Well, sort of. Not physically….online.

I’m talking about no other person than Father.

The General Overseer.
The voice behind the veil.
The god behind the doctrine.

Before joining The Fold, all we ever saw of Father were pre-recorded videos. His teachings would always begin with a soft hum, a veil covering his face like Moses returning from the mountain. His voice? Soft like velvet, but with an undertone that could command an army.

He always said:

“I hide my face that you may not lose sight of Jesus. Behold the Lamb, not the man. I veil my face not out of pride, but mercy. That your hearts may not be drawn to flesh, but to the Son. For only those who dwell in His house shall see the face of His servant.”

And of course, that sounded noble. Deep even.

To be honest, I thought it was all performance.
Mystery marketing.

But the way the saints talked about him… ehnnn…

It was like he was their Moses, John the Beloved, and Jesus’ twin brother…all rolled into one.

And for new initiates like me, his face was a treasured revelation… something only the Household Saints earned the right to see.

But I was curious.

So when I woke up one morning to attend dawn devotion, I wasn’t expecting anything unusual. I dragged my tired body to the common hall like a faithful zombie… only to see him.

A low hum ran through the room. A ripple. A hush. Like the atmosphere held its breath…

“He’s here.”

I turned slowly.

And there he was.

Father. Unveiled.

Walking down the aisle like glory personified.

My heart?
Ewooo!
It did gbish gbish gbish inside my chest.

He was tall… effortlessly tall.
And oh dear Lord…

He was beautiful.

Not fine like regular men fine.

No. This one looked like he was carved from golden scripture.

His skin glowed…literally shimmered under the flickering light.

His beard was lined like Psalms.
And his eyes?

Yah! His eyes held the weight of generations.
Not the kind of eyes you look into and remain the same.

I froze.
Everything in me froze.

And when he looked up?
Our eyes met.

That single moment?
It was like time paused. My breath caught in my throat.

A strange heat ran from my face down to my toes.
Something drew me to him and it was dangerously magnetic.

I looked away sharply.

“Focus, Mabel. You came for Cordelia, not for this…This is not admiration. This is warfare in disguise.”

But my body didn’t listen.
My knees suddenly felt weak.

I swallowed hard and kept singing the hymn, even though my voice was shaking like a reed in the wind.

He took the pulpit and opened the Bible, reading from Revelation.

I tried to concentrate. I really did.

But every few minutes, his gaze swept the room and paused… paused… on me.

Just a few seconds.
But it felt like eternity each time.

And my mind?
It wasn’t safe anymore.

His voice… it wasn’t normal preaching.
It caressed the soul like honey laced with thunder.
The words were hard, but the tone was gentle.
It messed with my discernment.

“Holy Spirit,” I whispered under my breath, “hold me. Don’t let my spirit drink what’s not of You.”

But then…
He descended from the stage.

The room tensed up.

They had warned us:

“Lower your gaze when Father walks past. He carries the presence of the Lord. Looking directly could bring judgment…”

But you see curiosity ehn?
It’s a stubborn spirit.

I peeked.

And just as he walked past me, he leaned slightly and whispered:

“You carry light, Daughter of Zion….And we’ve been expecting you.”

My legs nearly gave way.

“Expecting me?”

What did that even mean?

To be continued….

Good News💃..Have you seen our Latest Movie release ” SOLD” . IT’S HOT AND TRENDING… Watch it here …
We celebrate you our readers, thank you for joining us on another journey, feel free to share to enlighten others. God bless you. Follow Us:
🌐 www.deepthoughtsintl.org
📘 Facebook: @Opeyemi Akintunde
📸 Instagram: @OpeyemiAkintunde
🎥 YouTube: @Deep Thoughts TV

✍️ DEEP THOUGHTS NOVELS
Inspired by the TRUTH REVEALER
Written by Opeyemi Akintunde
📞 +234-8151103646