I am so sorry for the long delay. This was almost ready but it has been some hard long weeks. But all in all, we are grateful to GOD.

By GOD'S Grace, the book is now being divided into parts and this is the second by HIS Mercies. May THE LORD kindly see us through.

How are we all doing, please?

Kindly receive my humble apologies,

Phela. 🙏🏻🥹💞✨

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"At the latter period of their reign,
When the transgressors have finished,
A king will arise
Insolent and skilled in intrigue and cunning.

"His power will be mighty, but not by his own power;
And he will corrupt and destroy in an astonishing manner
And [he will] prosper and do exactly as he wills;
He shall corrupt and destroy mighty men and the holy people.

"And through his shrewdness
He will cause deceit to succeed by his hand (influence);
He will magnify himself in his mind,
He will corrupt and destroy many who enjoy a false sense of security.
He will also stand up and oppose the Prince of princes,
But he will be broken, and that by no human hand [but by the hand of God]."

~Daniel 8:23-25; AMP

"Let no one in any way deceive or entrap you, for that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first [that is, the great rebellion, the abandonment of the faith by professed Christians],

and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction [the Antichrist, the one who is destined to be destroyed],"

"And you know what RESTRAINS him now [from being revealed]; it is so that he will be revealed at his own [appointed] time."

~ 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 6; AMP

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Violet was transported back to her younger days.

She had been grieving, fearing there was no way out of the grief of her parent's demise.

Her brother's reassuring words had felt like mere platitudes to her guilt-ridden soul.

She felt she had had enough and had secretly hidden a small but sharp knife in her bedroom.

Throughout the conversations with all the guests that had arrived that morning, her mind had been on that very thing—the knife in her room.

Could none of them stop seeing her as a pitiful little girl and see the ache in her dying heart? But soon, she will get to end it all.

As she trodded grievously and painfully down the long and hollow marble-floored hallway that evening, her heart felt like stone. And it was weighing her down so fiercely she could feel it physically.

"GOD will see us through, Vee. GOD says in HIS WORD, 'Precious in the sight of THE LORD is the death of his saints'," her brother had quoted earlier to her from Psalm 116:15. "Trust your ways unto HIM, and HE will direct thy paths."

Well, she did not feel any leading from GOD just then.

The pain in her heart had grown ever-so-palpable she almost dropped to her knees in despair.

"Oh, JESUS," she had clenched the little area of her chest.

The cry had not held any conviction but had rather come out on impulse—having been trained in HIS Ways from infancy. But they held no meaning at all to her at that very moment.

And that was when the LIGHT broke in. Shining brighter than the sun, her SAVIOUR had revealed HIMSELF.

So great was the impact of HIS Presence, that she had dropped to her knees at last. Finally, not being able to control herself, she lay prostrate weeping her heart out to HIM.

HE was no longer One she had heard of from her brother nor parents—HE had become real to her.

~~~

Violet could not believe her eyes. She tried to blink severally in order to comprehend, though what she saw was not with the physical eye.

But even the physical eye could detect that she was beholding a stranger.

The inner LIGHT blazing from within the man who stood in front of the door made him a complete stranger—and it was manifesting in the physical.

Mouth agape, she had almost blurted out, "Who are you?"

But she clamped her mouth tightly shut lest it betrayed her.

Before her stood a stranger. No, not altogether a stranger—but one whose LIGHT connected with the One in her.

"My brother seems a bit strange, doesn't he?" Isabella whispered in amazement into Violet's ears at the sight of her brother. "Am I the only one who thinks so?"

"No, you are not the only one," not taking her eyes off him, Violet had replied in a whisper.

"It is strange, her vitals seem perfectly okay, and.. there is no sign of uterine infection." The Doctor declared in a puzzled voice, confusion etched all over his features.

As he spoke they had all turned to listen to him.

"It seems all that she needs is rest and a healthy lifestyle. But, I must admit I do not understand how this... this..." he stammered and shook his head.

But Violet found herself distracted and turned to glance at Vincenzo again in order to finally confirm she had been hallucinating what she had just seen in the man.

Fire and lightning! Do I need an eye checkup?

Again, she had to remind herself that it had nothing to do with the physical.

"I will prescribe some vitamins which are to be taken in such circumstances, though it seems she does not need it." The Doctor finally concluded and left still shaking his head, with Vincenzo moving out of the doorway to make room for him to pass.

"Are you really alright, mia figlia(my daughter)?"Queen Giulia asked in wonder, her eyes lit with glee at the news.

Vincenzo soon approached his sister, as did all of them, Violet included.

They all seemed to ask Ginevra the same question over and over till they saw she had grown weary of their inquiries.

Finally satisfied, the worn-out family decided to head out and give her room to rest.

Isabella continued her mumbling about, "What I thought was going to happen." But she finally also left the room.

Violet was the last one out the door as she had patiently waited for all of them to file out first.

On reaching the door, she turned to Ginevra. She wanted to ask her what she had meant by the words she had spoken in just her hearing, it seemed.

"Sorry, Violet", Ginevra had first whispered when she had woken up.

But, seeing her peaceful form entering into the deep realm of sleep, Violet lingered for another moment debating whether or not she should ask her what she had meant by that statement.

But, she thought better of it.

She probably heard about what I also went through the day before, she concluded with a shrug and stepped outside.

Violet knew she had tarried long enough for the family to have probably had a head start towards the Ferrari Villa.

She was glad someone had driven her to the hospital, she did not want to have been the reason to keep them waiting.

Yet, as she stepped out, she discovered they had not all left—one person had stayed behind.

Worst of all?

Though some place deep down in her heart, she was thrilled at the amazing change she could see in him and wanted to ask about it, yet, she feared she would not know how to deal with this new stranger.

Would they ever balance it out?

~~~

"Mummia(Mummy), you saw what happened, what would it take to convince you that GOD is real?"

Alessandro had barely managed to contain himself from asking his mother both in the hospital room and in the car.

But, on reaching home, he felt he could wait no longer—and neither could Isabella.

"All of this proves GOD exists!" Isabella was at her breaking point. She felt like screaming the words out loud to her mother.

How sad it is to have a loved one who does not understand nor realise the truth, she thought.

She felt a certain urgency she could not quite comprehend, that her mother needed JESUS—and that it had to be soon.

But Isabella felt her heart constrict with agony as she beheld her still cold-hearted mother.

"It is not that I do not believe, cari(dears)..."
Noting the helplessness in their countenance, she took in a deep breath before continuing.

"But, there are some things you cannot just rush into. And this is one of them. Besides, you are all too young to understand my reasons."

~~
(Kindly try to replay this song if possible, for this part, please 🙏🏻🥰)

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

Giuseppe could feel the power surge through him as he sat cross-legged on his evil-eye mat. He had returned earlier on to his lair and finished the latter part of his ritual—drinking the remains of the blood of his seed.

"Ah..." he moaned in pleasure as his chants continued. "This is what true power feels like."

Though his actions against the wench had been fruitless, his sacrifice had paved another path around the dilemma—he had finally gained entry into the midst of the Elite King Makers.

He knew he had been trained extensively for the task ahead of him.

Everything—from his being brought into existence, to his training in the deep knowledge of dark mysteries and the art of subtlety and of the ways of the cunning—had hinged on the success of his entering into the midst of the Elite King Makers.

And finally, he had received it. With Tal gone, a replacement needed to be installed. And of course, he had been chosen.

"Enlighten me great one," he prayed to his master in a singsong cadence. "And spare not any power, for I have succeeded in reaching the point that will project me to the pinnacle you made me for."

He chanted some more with his body heaving up and down in gracious movements to the rhythm of it.

His found spirit transiting into the highest realms of darkness, with the world slowly giving way to him—he was steadily gaining the foothold of its entirety.

True, he was not done yet. For other paths had to clear before his full reign began—as the king of the world system. But he was almost at his destination.

And oh, how he had so longed to fulfil his mission.

"Soon, the RESTRAINER will be taken out of the way," he said after he had risen to his feet from his daily time of meditation and waiting.

"And then, it will be time for me to wear the crown which is rightfully mine. I will be king over the earth..." he continued as he stood with his eyes closed, basking in the aftermath of the step toward his goal.

"Yes, soon and in no time at all," he moved on to change. "But until that time comes, I must still wage war and eliminate all those on my path."

Coming out of his lair, he took in a whiff of the air around him, a sense of determination filling his countenance.

No, he would not rest, not for a single moment —for he did not even know how to and had never taken a break since his existence.

Unlike the wretched beings who slumber all day long, he thought distastefully.

"Let the games begin," he said with resolution as he marched on with purposeful strides, his mission clear before him.