Daughters of the Deep

By Uwa Omorodion

Daughters Of The Deep is a story about vengeance, mystery, sweet and passionate love, and betrayal. It is the story of Kirah, a strange and unusual girl. It is also the story of an extremely powerful goddess of the oceans and seas, who desperately seek acknowledgement and worship from the ones she calls her own.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Nov 15, 2011
• ISBN: 9781467009683

Uwa Omorodion

Uwa C.O. Omorodion was born in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. He lives in London, United Kingdom. Daughters Of The Deep is his first completed novel. And it is the first in a trilogy of books forthcoming.

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© 2011 Uwa Omorodion. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First published by AuthorHouse 11/9/2011

ISBN: 978-1-4670-0958-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4670-0968-3 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Author’s Note.

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

For My Parents

Mr. Osasere Pius Omorodion and Mrs. Mabel Omorodion

Author’s Note.

This is a work of fiction. Although some real-world names, organisations, institutions, and situations are used to enhance the authenticity of the story, any similarities to real-world persons, units or situations are purely the product of the author’s imagination.

Prologue

Bimbo took off her shoes, and then handed her handbag and car keys to her mother. She smoothed her skirt as she got up and followed the woman into a small room painted white. In the centre of the room was a three-foot high table covered with a piece of white cloth. On it were three small earthen water pots, several pieces of native chalks, three miniature canoes with paddles, miniature ladders, a brass bell, a small brass box and a white plate with cowries and kola nuts. Also present were a female figurine, a mirror, and some other strange items. Next to the table, to the right was a chair, and it too was covered with a piece of white cloth. The room had only one window at which hung a crimson curtain.

Kneel, the woman told Bimbo. You are in the presence of Yemoja, the Mother and Queen of the oceans and seas. The beautiful robust-looking woman, who was priestess of Olokun, was wearing a white shirt and a white skirt covered in cowries. She also had strings of cowries tied around her ankles. She reached out and took some pieces of the native chalks on the table and handed them to Bimbo. Tell these chalks what you came here for. Tell the Queen your heart’s desires. When you’re done, hand them back.

Bimbo took them from her and began to pour out her sorrows. The priestess observed her with narrowed eyes, as her lips moved. None could hear what she was saying, except of course, the Queen of the oceans and seas. As she pleaded for Olokun to grant her heart’s desires, tears ran from her eyes. When she was done, she handed the chalks back to her.

The priestess took them from her and placed them next to the rest of the articles on the table. She then took the brass bell and began to ring it as she walked around the room in circles, at the same time chanting incantations. Suddenly she seemed like one possessed, for she made a shrieking sound and then began spinning around the room like a whirlwind, and speaking in an unknown tongue. Bimbo, who was wearing a brown knee-length skirt and a cream blouse, didn’t know what to make of it all as she watched the woman spinning and talking incoherently.

The woman stopped abruptly. With her eyes shut, she began to address Bimbo. For unto us a child is born, unto us a daughter is given; and the government shall be upon her shoulders, and her name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty Goddess, the Everlasting Mother, and the Priestess of Peace. There shall be no end to the increase of her government and peace, and she shall reign on Olokun’s throne and over her kingdom, establishing and upholding it with judgement and justice from generation to generation. The zeal of the Queen of the deep will accomplish this. She then paused momentarily. My daughter, she continued, the chosen; blessed are you among women for you are highly favoured, and blessed will be the fruit of your womb. A year from now you will give birth to a baby girl who will be an oracle of the Queen of the deep. This child will restore that which was lost. She will gather from the four corners of the earth all the children of the deep and bring them under one roof. She will unite them under one name so that the realm of the deep will once again know peace and joy, so that the deep will once again have cause to celebrate. As Bimbo listened, joy welled up inside her; the joy of knowing that, at last, she would have a child. She will turn the hearts of the children back to their Mother and Queen, continued the priestess, and the heart of their Mother and Queen will be turned back to them, just as in time past. After the prophecy, the priestess opened her eyes and looked upon Bimbo in awe. Then she fell to her knees and bowed to her.

I greet you, she said, you who would give birth to the divine, you whose breasts the Mother and Queen of the oceans would suck.

Bimbo was surprised at the manner of her greetings, but she was gladdened by the words. She desperately wanted a child of her own; divine or not.

Ever since she had become the senator’s last wife six years previously, Bimbo had been plagued by the thought that she might never be able to have children, as all her previous pregnancies had ended in miscarriage. She had become the laughing stock in the senator’s large household. She was repeatedly called barren by the senator’s other wives, who despised and hated her. They kept saying the reason for her not having a baby was as a result of the countless abortions she had had in the past, when she was a courtesan. But they were wrong!

Bimbo was only twenty three years old when she became a member of the senator’s household. She was a virgin until she met the senator, or rather, when the senator met her. She had just completed her Youth Service then and was in desperate need of a job when she and the senator met. It was around 6:30 pm one evening, on Broad Street, in Lagos. The senator was on his way to his guest house when he noticed Bimbo on the other side of the street. He immediately asked his chauffeur to stop the car. When the car stopped, the senator wound down the back window and called out to her. Bimbo turned around and saw the black Lincoln Navigator with its tinted windows, parked across the street. A man from inside the jeep beckoned to her. She hesitated for a moment, and then crossed the street to meet him. When she got close, she noticed that the man was probably in his mid-forties.

Hello, beautiful girl, the man said in a strong Yoruba accent. How are you this evening?

I’m fine, sir. Good evening, sir.

The senator nodded and smiled broadly. That’s good. What’s your name, please?

Bimbo, she replied.

Ah! Beautiful name, beautiful name, the senator said. I’m Desmond. Nice to meet you.

Bimbo was taken aback. The first thought that came to her mind was that Mr. Desmond was probably into money rituals, so she became wary.

How may I help you, sir? she asked cautiously.

The senator ran his eyes all over her taking in her sexy, shapely figure. Actually, I was on my way to my guest house when I saw your beautiful face and asked my driver to stop, he said. I would really appreciate it if you would join me.

Join you? I’m sorry, sir, I can’t, she said firmly and angrily. I’m not a prostitute. It’s late already and my folks are expecting me anytime soon. She managed to control the rage boiling inside her. She also managed to hold back the urge of spitting in the face of the big, old, ugly buffoon who seemed to have no neck inside his agbada.

As she made to leave, the senator said, Please wait a minute. She stopped. I’m sorry I treated you like a prostitute. Please accept my apology. After he’d said that he gestured to her to wait a bit longer, quickly reached for the black leather briefcase lying next to him, opened it and took out two bundles of one thousand naira notes and handed them to Bimbo. Please accept this money as a token of my apology.

Thank you very much sir, but I can’t, she told him, although she desperately needed that money.

The two hundred thousand naira would go a long way for herself and her family, especially now that her dad, who was the primary breadwinner had recently lost his job. Her mother was a primary school teacher. The meagre salary she earned wasn’t enough to support the family of six. Being the eldest of four children, and also now that she was a graduate of Lagos State University, she desperately needed a job in order to help support the family.

The senator observed her. Are you a student? he asked.

No. I graduated from Lagos State University two years ago. I’ve just completed my Youth Service. I’m looking for a job now, she told him.

The senator nodded. That’s wonderful. How old are you if I may ask, please?

Twenty three, sir.

The senator seemed thoughtful. I’m going to get you a job, he said seriously. I’m going to help you. I feel inclined to do so after the way I addressed you, and I don’t use people for money. I’m not into blood money, he added with a half-smile.

I never said you were into blood money, sir, Bimbo said. She hoped the man could really help her get a job.

I know you didn’t say it, but you thought it. He smiled. Anyway, take this. He produced a piece of paper, that had a phone number scrawled on it, from his breast pocket and handed it to her. Please call me on this number tomorrow noon, and I’ll see what I can arrange for you. By the way, what did you major in? I need to know so that I’d know how to recommend you.

With her heart racing, Bimbo took the piece of paper from him. Economics, sir.

Please, call me Desmond. the senator smiled.

True to his word, the senator helped Bimbo get a job at Afribank. After that she and the senator kept on seeing each other. She became a regular visitor at his guest house, and she no longer saw him as an ugly, old buffoon but instead, as an angel who had come to better her life. At the back of her mind she kept on thinking of ways to pay him in kind, and although the senator wasn’t making any passes at her she could tell from the way he occasionally looked at her during her visits that he still wanted to sleep with her. Had he made any move that suggested in the slightest bit that he wanted to, she wouldn’t have refused him. How could she, after what he’d done for her?

The senator still desperately wanted to sleep with Bimbo, but he wanted her to offer herself to him.

One evening, as they were having a drink together, he asked Bimbo about her boyfriend.

I do not have a boyfriend, sir.

Come on, stop kidding. Feel free to tell me about him.

Sir, I…

Please, call me Desmond, the senator said, and then took another sip from his glass of champagne.

I do not have a boyfriend. I’m not seeing anyone, Bimbo maintained.

The senator regarded her with suspicion. Why not? A beauty queen like you should have lots of young men running after her. Right? he said coolly.

Well, quite a few have showed interest, but I just don’t want to be bothered.

I see, the senator said, half to himself. His heartbeat increased as he imagined himself penetrating her.

Ever since the night he had first set eyes on Bimbo, he couldn’t stop thinking about her, thinking of having her naked body lying next to his in his bed. The senator loved women, young women. He had slept with countless numbers of them. No girl he had ever asked out, or invited to his guest house, had ever refused him, but that night he was surprised, shocked even, when Bimbo turned him down outright and it hurt his ego. When Bimbo made to leave after turning him down, he was determined to have her by all means. He had never failed, not once, to sleep with any one of the girls that he desired, and he wasn’t going to let Bimbo put a dent in that record!

After he got her the job at Afribank he made sure she kept on coming to see him at his guest house. He now pretended he was no longer attracted to her. As for Bimbo, she saw nothing wrong with going to see her new-found friend, the angel who had come to better her life.

The senator took another sip from his glass of champagne. You had better be bothered, he said. Aren’t you planning on getting married?

Of course. Bimbo smiled, and then took a sip from her drink.

The senator observed her. The way she held her glass and sipped from it sent a flood of desire through him. You are a very beautiful woman, he said softly, and then ran his tongue over his lips, so finding a husband won’t be a problem.

Thank you, Desmond, Bimbo whispered lustfully, bit her lower lip and tilted her head to the left. The champagne was beginning to get to her. The way she sounded, bit her lip, and tilted her head sent a current of electric excitement through the senator’s whole body. No longer able to control his feelings, he rose to his feet in an instant. With two strides he was standing before her. He squatted and looked into her eyes. With her dreamy eyes, Bimbo held his gaze, heart thumping. The senator reached out and touched the side of her face and softly stroked her cheek, then leaned forward and kissed her on the lips. Bimbo responded by kissing him back, she considered it as paying him in kind, so felt no qualms about having to sleep with a married man who was twice her age. As Bimbo kissed him passionately, the senator, now overwhelmed by desire, murmured incoherently. He felt triumphant. Bimbo, after all, hadn’t put a dent in his record of conquests.

A few minutes later, they were both lying naked in one of the bedrooms upstairs. Absolutely surprised to find that she was still a virgin, the senator proposed to Bimbo that evening. He promised to change her life and that of her family forever if she would only become his wife. At first Bimbo refused, but she later accepted in order to elevate her struggling family.

Two months later, she became the senator’s third and favourite wife. After two years without issue she became worried and desperate. She knew that without having a child for the senator her future and that of her family would not be secured should he suddenly pass away. So she went from church to church, from witch doctor to witch doctor. None could help her.

One night, she dreamt that she was standing on the seashore. Suddenly a goddess, tall and regal, emerged from the sea and stepped onto the shore. Her body was clothed in a snow-white, ankle-length silk gown. Around her waist she wore a belt of diamonds. A diamond crown was atop her long, sleek, black hair, braided in seven locks. Attached to the ends of the locks were cowries. Her face, her arms and her bare feet were like polished gold. She was beautiful!

I am Olokun, her voice, although sounding like a hundred whispers, was music to the ears, the Mother and Queen of the oceans and seas. I am also known by many names all over the world. To my daughters and devotees in the Western hemisphere, I am Yemaja. To your tribe, I am Yemoja. And I am one and the same, she said. I know what ails you, Bimbo. I know what your heart’s desires are. I have the power to grant you what you seek, but for me to do that you’d have to visit one of my priestesses.

Where and how do I find her? Bimbo asked anxiously. Please tell me, she cried.

When you seek, you shall find, the goddess said and vanished.

Bimbo later related the dream to her mother, who then sought and found an Olokun priestess, and took her daughter to see her.

The priestess’ words came true. A year later, Bimbo gave birth to the most beautiful girl ever to be born. She named her Kirah, according to the word of the priestess.

Chapter One

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I was in a deep sleep when I was awoken by frantic banging. Wondering who it might be, I reached out and switched on the table lamp, squinted at the wall clock which told me it was 5:45 am and then dragged myself out of bed. At the door, I asked who was knocking and was surprised to hear Kirah, my best friend and course mate, say she was the one. When I opened the door I was shocked to find her in a dreadful state; her braided hair and clothes were dishevelled, and she