by Jill Jones
Nick kissed her forehead. “That, my darling, is a secret likely no one will ever know.”
Esther Brown hurriedly gathered up the items she needed for the night’s work. It was Lammas. The first harvest. The perfect night for working her spell.
Going to the drawer where she had secreted her craft ancestor’s Book of Shadows, she took it out and turned to the page where Mary Rose had made certain notations. There was a short poem, a sketch of two corn husk “poppet” dolls that she supposed represented the lovers John and Mary Rose, and some special instructions for casting the spell.
Tucking the book into her apron pocket, along with two dolls she had made from husks of corn according to Mary Rose’s directions, the old witch drove the short distance to the cottage where Mary Rose Hatcher once lived. She parked on the lane so as not to arouse suspicion, then hurriedly made her way to the garden behind the house. She winced as the metal gate squeaked noisily when she entered.
She scanned the garden and immediately spied the mahja plants Simone had told her were here. Her excitement grew when she went to examine them and saw that although they were no longer in bloom, the branches were lined with the same small, black seeds as Simone and she had planted in her own garden. Esther grinned.
Simone had insisted that they uproot her mahja plants when they were finished blooming, because she’d promised somebody up in London she would destroy them. Apparently that person understood the potential danger in the essence of the mahja.
Still, Esther knew it was only dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands, and she was unhappy because her uprooted plants left her with no way to make more of the precious healing perfume. Her own plants had not had time to go to seed, but here before her lay the answer to her dilemma. She was glad she’d come tonight, for she knew Simone also planned to destroy these bushes soon.
She plucked seven seeds and hid them securely away in her purse. The world need never know what grew in a witch’s garden. She would tell only her protégée, to whom she would also teach the technique of enfleurage. This would insure that the mahja oil would be available for the right and correct use in healing.
That is, if she was successful in this night’s affairs.
Esther had never seen this garden cleared of weeds and debris, and as the late summer night began to fall around her, she studied the mandala she’d known was hidden beneath the web of vines and brambles. She walked the entire circumference, examined the shape of the wedges, then saw a bench nearby. Taking great care not to fall, she managed to climb onto the bench, which elevated her sufficiently that she could see the entire pattern of the garden.
Its design did not surprise her. Mary Rose had laid out this garden in the shape of a pentagram within the manadala’s circle. The pie-shaped beds within the outer circle were the lines of the five-pointed star that was the symbol of the witch. Each of the points represented the four basic elements—Earth, Fire, Air and Water. The fifth stood for Spirit. The center of the pentagram, where all of these things work in perfect balance, was where magic happened.
With sudden clarity, she knew what she must do.
Clambering down again from the bench, she went into the center of the circle, where an inner pentagon-shaped circle was formed by the white rocks. Just as she’d suspected. The rocks of this circle were charred. She took out the Book of Shadows and turned to the page she’d marked, where Mary Rose had written the charm that had cast the spell:
Fire high, flaming bright,
Remove the darkness of our plight,
Burn away the harsh divide
That keeps me from my true love’s side.
Fire high, banish fear
And bring me close to he I hold dear.
Twice round two, and my work be done
As into the flame we melt into one.
Esther regarded the charred rocks.
Fire high, fire high…
She gathered a handful of nearby twigs and brambles and put them into the inner circle, stacking them ready to light.
Twice round two…
Two lovers? Two corn husk dolls? Twice round two…Two circles.
As the light of the rising moon lit the night sky, the glow from Esther’s fire illuminated the mandala garden. In a ritual older than time, the crone performed an incantation, then followed the directions given in Mary Rose’s charm. First she walked the outer wheel, then crossed into the inner, circled it and stopped directly before the pyre. Taking the two doll figures from her pocket, she anointed each with a drop of the perfume oil, then cast them into the flames.
In a voice that cracked with age, Esther Brown began walking round the fire, chanting the words Mary Rose Hatcher had written long ago. She repeated them over and over as she gazed into the firelight’s glow, watching mesmerized as the dolls melted together, then burst into a last bright flame before turning to ash.
Esther’s work was done. She was confident the spell she’d cast using Mary Rose’s enchantment had now empowered the newly extracted mahja oil to serve her purposes. She had an abundant supply now to use in healing the emotional wounds that prevented those who sought her help from knowing the beauty and joy of the physical aspects of love.
As for its other, more dangerous side, the secret of the perfume’s magic would remain forever hidden safely in her witch’s heart.
More from Jill Jones
Circle of the Lily
Claire St. John lives in solitude near the grounds of the sprawling Hartford hall, an ancestral estate on the English countryside. Her life remains serene until she discovers a mysterious ring that belonged to the lady of Hartford Hall before her scandalous, unexplained disappearance a century earlier.
When Michael Townsend arrives in town and rents Claire’s guest home, she instantly senses the darkness that surrounds him. Claire knows she should stay away from him, but the passion that ignites between them blazes too powerfully to be resisted.
As Claire aids Michael in a dangerous quest, she soon finds herself caught in a web of magic, psychic battles, secret societies, and star-crossed love.
Emily's Secret
American professor Dr. Alex Hightower has always been fascinated by Emily Brontë and her brief and tragic life. But the question that haunts him is the one of her death. What were the secrets Brontë took with her to the grave?
The answers begin in the village of Haworth, where Brontë lived and died. Alex journeys there in hope of proving his theory that Emily did not die a natural death, but rather committed suicide after a passionate and secret love affair.
Soon Alex finds himself trying to decipher the mystery of an old letter, an ancient family curse, and a beautiful and mysterious woman who may hold the key to Emily Brontë’s secret. A unique and absorbing tale, Emily’s Secret pieces together the puzzle of an untimely death.
My Lady Caroline
Alison Cunningham endures her parents' tragic death with as much grace as she can muster, but her grief is overwhelming, and she’s soon trying to seek them out through the powers of séance. Instead of speaking to her beloved family, she makes contact with the ghost of Lady Caroline Lamb. The once beautiful but high strung Caroline has some unfinished business, and Alison may be the only one who can help her.
Caroline’s scandalous 1812 affair with legendary charmer Lord Byron ended in bitter betrayal and vengeful madness. But even from beyond the grave, Caroline is determined to set the record straight. Convincing the wealthy but naïve Alison to purchase the Dewhurst Manor where Lord Byron’s memoirs—and his declaration of love to Caroline—are hidden, she hopes to see Byron’s true feelings revealed.
When Alison arrives at the old house to begin her search, she finds an arrogant British antique dealer there instead, also seeking the potentially incendiary memoirs. Suspicion and anger flare between the seekers—but so too does a passionate desire as electric as that of Caroline and her once adoring poet.
A Scent of Magic
Simone LeFevre wants only two things: th
e first is to obtain a spot amongst the world’s most elite perfumers. The next is to exact revenge on the man who destroyed her family, her heritage, and her heart. When she discovers a mysterious elixir dating back to the 19th century, she knows it’s the key to getting close to her greatest love—and her most bitter enemy.
Nick Rutledge is determined to restore his crumbled family empire; a myopic yearning that had once led him to lie, to steal, and to betray Simone, the only woman he has ever loved. It is only in his dreams that he finds himself in Simone’s arms again, dreams stirred by the essence of “My Desire,” a mysterious new perfume.
As two lovers turned bitter fierce enemies trespass into unknown regions of longing, the past and present will meet in a place of immeasurable danger and unrelenting passion.
The Scottish Rose
Taylor Kincaid is the host of a popular television series that debunks myths and legends. So when she travels to Scotland after receiving notice of an inheritance, she hopes to unravel the mystery behind a local legend surrounding the disappearance of locals through the “Ladysgate,” an archway of stones just off the Scottish coast. Despite the warnings of rugged sea captain Duncan Fraser, Taylor sails toward the arch. But when a vicious storm strikes, she is thrown overboard and through the portal, with Captain Fraser close behind her.
Together, they come to grips with the inconceivable—they have somehow ended up in 1651. Taylor and Duncan soon find themselves thrust into a desperate plot to save the Scottish crown, sword, and scepter amid imminent peril. As they attempt to re-cross the centuries, they risk losing the love they've found in a time long past.
Connect with Diversion Books
Connect with us for information on new titles and authors from Diversion Books, free excerpts, special promotions, contests, and more:
@DiversionBooks
www.Facebook.com/DiversionBooks
Diversion Books eNewsletter
