The Veil Read Free

and less of him. It took so much of his time. She prayed it would be soon as she longed to be held and touched as a man would touch his wife on a daily basis.
    It had been a long time since she had sex. But she wanted more than sex. She wanted to make love to Roger, as husband and wife. She wanted it to be special. Something that was fruitful in mind, body, and spirit—an act that would bear witness to their love and could be seen on their faces, spirit, and in their children. One day soon, she hoped.

Chapter 2
    Sunday had finally arrived. Six months of counseling with Bishop along with six months of classes with Elder Pringle on the doctrine of the church, the day had finally arrived. Misha was nervous as she stepped into the pulpit to deliver her initial sermon. She sat down in the center chair, which gave her a clear view of the entire church. Familiar faces filled the pews, waiting patiently for her to speak. The children in her junior missionaries group were sitting together on one side of the church near the front. Her family was sitting in the center pews. The deacons, dressed in gray and black suits, were lined up across the front row of all three sections. The youth choir sat behind her in the pulpit. She could hear the children moving restlessly as they prepared to sing.
    She finally stopped stressing about how she looked when Roger picked her up to take her to the church. He had always loved her natural hair. Today her kinky twists were pulled back in a conservative wrap. Her chocolate-brown suit made her feel as though she could be a preacher. It was uncomfortable and not what she was used to wearing. But Roger made her feel like she was the only woman alive who could rock the straight-laced suit.
    Glancing to her left, she saw Roger smile as he stepped into the pulpit and sat in the chair next to her, his right eye giving her a quick wink. Watching the other ministers file into the sanctuary and sit behind the deacons in the second row of the center seats, her legs shook nervously. Finally Bishop Moore walked proudly into the sanctuary and everyone stood as he entered. He stepped up to the podium and began addressing the congregation.
    Everything looked different from Misha’s view in the pulpit. The church had three aisles of seats. Her family was sitting in the center aisle. She leaned to the side to get a better view of something other than Bishop’s rear end in front of her. Inhaling long, slow, deep breaths, she hoped no one noticed her heart beating so fast her chest moved up and down to the rhythm of the beat. Leafing through the notes she held in her hand in a poor attempt to keep her hands from shaking, she briefly looked over them.
    There was no reason for her to be nervous. She spoke in front of people all the time as a teacher and at the church. But this time was different. She could feel the enormity of the occasion. It was a big step in her life. God had placed her in a position to bring people into His presence or drive them away by what she said. The thought made her hands tremble even more.
    Again, she tried to focus on the crowd. She could see her family smiling. She looked at her mother: the perfect missionary dressed in her royal blue suit and large matching hat that only rivaled First Lady Moore’s large white hat with feathers. She couldn’t believe this was the same woman who whipped her with an extension cord many times for nothing, and locked her in the closet to keep her from playing with the other kids. Their relationship had been strained for many years. Her mother didn’t believe she would go to college or make something of herself. College was her only escape from the hell she called home. So she went to Howard to get as far away from her as she could. However, she missed being with her father, brother, and grandmother.
    Misha focused her attention on her grandmother’s small body sitting between her mother and her brother on the pews. Their enormous size