Salvation (Joseph Seed)

7. Chapter One

(Confusing chapter title, right? XD)

Evelyn walked into her house, closing the door behind her. She had just gotten home from her visit to Joseph's house. She walked into the living room where her parents were sitting, her father watching the television and her mother reading some sort of magazine.

"Evelyn, how did it go?" her mother asked, folding the magazine and placed it down on the coffee table.

"Well...I spoke with the Father about the conversion but he suggested that I read his book before I join them" Evelyn explained, hoping that her parents would be patient enough for that. She held up the book, letting them see what she was talking about.

"His book? Like an autobiography?" her father asked, turning to face her with a confused expression.

"Yeah, actually. A little bit like that. Apparently it's all about why he founded the church and about what they stand for" she told him with a nod and a small smile, glancing down at the book in her hands.

"It looks like a damn bible" her mother scoffed, wondering what type of preacher owned this church her daughter was attending.

"Does this guy actually think that he is God or something?" her father asked, what type of preacher write his own version of a bible?

"Of course not. The church is just a little unconventional and he wants people to understand why he founded it" Evelyn corrected them. This wasn't some sort of retelling of the bible, it was Joseph's story.

"...alright, and when you have read the book you can join them?" her mother asked, obviously getting impatient about joining the church and how long it was taking.

"I suppose, he just wants me to know what I am joining" Evelyn sighed, tired of the same argument.

"That seems sensible" her father nodded, looking at her mother as if he was trying to convince her to agree with him.

"Just join them as soon as you can. We are doing this for your own sake, remember that" her mother sighed in defeat, knowing that there was no way of rushing this. Evelyn's mother shook her head before standing up and walking into the kitchen.

Evelyn nodded at her father before leaving the living room and walking up the stairs, heading into her bedroom. She shut the bedroom door and kicked off her shoes before falling down onto her bed. She lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling and sighing to herself. She held up the white book to examine it again, running her fingers over the cover. She couldn't deny that the whole thing was rather strange but she just had this feeling in her gut that this was a good thing.

The young woman rolled onto her stomach, holding the book out in front of her before opening it. She turned to the prologue, which seemed to be a quote from Joseph about the Project.

"The messenger is often attacked for delivering bad news
You will hear a great deal about me:
People will tell you that I am a liar, a cheat, a con man, a mad man, and even a murderer.
People will tell you anything and everything
Because I am the bearer of bad news,
Because I am the messenger.
I am the one who must warn you of the ending of this world
And gather the chosen ones who will build the next world.
If you want to live, you need to ignore the slander.
You need to believe me.
You need to follow me.
~Joseph Seed"

Evelyn would be lying if she said that the words didn't intrigue her, if she said that she wasn't already hooked and wanting to read more. Even in print, Joseph Seed's words were hypnotic.

Before she knew it, Evelyn had already finished reading the first chapter of the book. She hadn't even realised that she was crying until she closed the book and placed it down on the bedside table. She wiped her tears and sat up on her bed, processing what she had just read.

The first chapter of the 'Book of Joseph' told the story of where the three brothers grew up and the abuse that they would endure from their father. The first chapter focused on how their father had punished a seven year old Joseph with a belt because he had been reading a Spiderman comic rather than a bible.

All Evelyn knew was that there was more to those three brothers than she thought and that they had been through a whole lot of pain.

The one thing that raised questions was the mention of 'The Voice'. Evelyn didn't know what that meant. Joseph had mentioned that God had shown him the truth and things like that but she wasn't aware that he meant it literally. Did Joseph Seed really hear a voice? And if so, was it really God?