A Witch's Curse

by Nicole Lee

  Her wand was nowhere in sight. Staring at her mother, she tried to calm herself. Seeking herself within, she tried to get to a place of calm and harmonious being, which was a difficult goal to set amidst the furious disorder.

  Hemera made a leap for her, eyes glinting, even in the darkness of the cathedral.

  “I’ve forgiven you,” Rose said.

  Hemera continued running closer.

  “You’re just a woman who can’t control the way she is.” Rose clung to this thought obsessively.

  The roof above them shattered into innumerable pieces of wreckage, showering them in a hail of raining wood and stone. The vestiges descended upon the two, hunks of heavy debris crushing the wooden seats around them. The windows broke into pieces, landing before them in a myriad of painted shards.

  Rose realized, in the midst of her attempt at a pacifistic meditation, that this was identical to the shared dream she had at the beginning of the year with her friends. This was the inside of the hotel burning.

  Keeping the mercy fresh and constant in her head and heart, she decided to try her best to escape the collapsing edifice. She jumped over a chair and jogged down the aisle, stopping as a massive pillar fell in front of the path she had planned to travel down. Scaling this newfound blockade, she was almost to the door when she made the mistake of looking over her shoulder.

  Hemera was now flat on her stomach, reaching out and trying to grab Rose’s ankles. Rather than resist, Rose tried to not think of her as an enemy, but as someone in need of great clemency. That was when her other, wearing a familiar expression of pure ire, evaporated into a shade of blue smoke, a smoggy cloud that soon went astray into the inferno.

  Now outside in the cold nocturnal air, Rose did not stop to turn around until she was in the woods. Standing behind a tree, she looked at what used to be an angelic chapel as it crumbled apart into blistering rubble.

  “What the hell happened?”

  The voice was foreign, distant. Rose turned to her right and saw a man standing on a sidewalk. He was wearing a leather jacket and smoking a pack of Virginia Slims.

  “You’re here,” she said.

  He gave her an odd look. “Yeah.”

  “You’re a person? You’ve come from a place with other people?”

  He laughed. “Other barflies I guess, but yeah. That‘s safe to say.”

  She ran past him and out into the street. Drunk couples were walking along and laughing. The average assortment of tourists were visible again.

  Rose pulled out her cell-phone, knowing that this could be the best call of her life.

  A cab turned around the corner west of where Rose was standing. A part of her wanted to fall to her knees and begin crying from happiness. Things were finally back to normal; everyone was safe, celebrating, content. Cars actually worked. She flagged it down, and it pulled up directly in front of her. It was not until she was comfortably seated in the back that she learned it was the same cabbie who had driven her to school the day she met Grady.

  “What are you doing out on a freezing night like this one?”

  “It’s been a crazy time,” she said, dialing Melinda’s phone number on her.

  That familiar, friendly voice came through on the other end. “Hello? Rose? What are you doing? It‘s five in the morning.”

  “I want to know if you‘re alright. Has anything strange happened?”

  “No,” Melinda said in the middle of a yawn. “I have a headache and a weird sense of vertigo. Yet that could be on how I was rudely awakened at an ungodly hour.”

  “Sorry about that. I’ll let you go. Oh, and on more thing, Melinda?”

  “What?”

  “It’s good to talk to you again.”

  “Yeah. Always. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  She then dialed Ms. Harvey’s number. All that responded was an answering machine, but this was fine. It was clear that her teacher was safe.

  Leave a message at the beep.

  “Alexis? I’ve forgiven her. It‘s over. “I’ve forgiven her.”

  “Your friend doesn’t sound much like a partier,“ the cabbie said, turning his body around at a red light to face her. “You, on the other hand, fit the bill. Your elbows are all scraped up; did you just come out of a mosh pit or something? Maybe a coal mine?”

  She looked down and saw that he was right. Her shirt had bloodstains on it, in addition to the dust of the now destroyed building, which Rose knew she would hear about on the news soon enough.

  “Something like that,” she said.

  Walking into her house after paying the cabbie, both her and broomstick, precious items she thought to be destroyed, were now on her porch. They were both set upright. After she searched her house thoroughly to ensure no one had invaded the space, she was filled with joy at seeing her father sitting in his arm chair, reading a copy of the local paper.

  “Are you okay?” Damian asked.

  “I’m fine. What are you doing up this late?”

  “Looking forward to my days off,” he said. “I can’t sleep. What are you doing up this early?”

  “Video games. Hey, I’m looking forward to hanging out with you this weekend.”

  He paused, not sure of what to say to this odd statement. “Thanks, sweetie. Me too.”

  November 13th

  Dear Diary,

  It is strange to think that only a few short years ago, the word magic never crossed my mind. Of course my mother used to wield it all the time, but even after seeing her do impossible things, I grew up to believe that either she was crazy or I had been. A child’s mind could never comprehend such a unusual truism like the reality of the supernatural arts. Now I know it to be a very pertinent part of life. It is difficult to manage, despite how it is also a gift.

  For a while there, I thought I had lost all of my friends because of a miscast spell. I was humbled by it. I am also willing to believe that Hemera could have brought the town with her on purpose, and she simply wanted to make me feel like a criminal, so she placed the blame on me. This is what Ms. Harvey says, and who am I to disagree with her? My mother is a bringer of anguish to countless people. I cannot list the ways she has been capable of ruining men and women physically, spiritually, and mentally. I am glad she is exiled at least from Lake Pines.

  I told Alexis yesterday that I forgave my mother. How it was possible for me to find mercy in my heart for her that night alone- but what about the rest of my life? I could never forgive her permanently. This is a woman who once locked me in a fireplace for days on end without food or care of any kind when I was only six years old. It is difficult to let a grudge for an act like that go.

  Harvey gave me a blank look, like she always does when she knows I am about to be in trouble. She did not answer me.

  I would like to believe Karen will wander the desert forever along with her followers, always hoping to discover a new town and realizing that it is impossible. I hope they are lost in that terrain for the rest of their lives.

  Yet any spell that we can think of, she can equal. And any enchantment we have used against her is one she can break with her own abilities.

  Something tells me Hemera will be back. I don’t know when or how, but I know she will see me again.

  25

  The following morning she hugged James and Melinda in the locker room as if they were long lost siblings. They were the closest thing she had to a brother and sister, and she told them as much.

  “There’s something you should know,” James said. “Please don’t feel like you owe us anything for the fight at Blume Park. Alexis was the one who did most all of it. You could have died if it weren’t for her.”

  “I respect you two for everything you are,” Rose said. “You don’t have to save my life yourselves in order to earn my high opinion. Maybe you’re both cool because of who you are.”

  “What’s gotten into you?” James asked.

  “Maybe she almost died the other night because she was attacked by a horde of evil wit
ches,” Melinda said. “It would change the way I look at the world. You?”

  “I guess,” he said.

  “Okay,” Rose said. “I need to tell you two something. You’re close enough now to deserve to know everything that happens.”

  “What’s happened?” Melinda asked.

  “Something to you two. Can I explain it to you over lunch? Let’s just say you’ve had the bad luck of meeting someone I wish I never knew. You just don’t remember it. Neither does anyone else, for that matter.”

  “We definitely need to know what really happened here,” James said, looking perplexed.

  “Let’s talk it out over a round of coffee, okay? It will all make sense by the time I’ve explained it. Plus, if you two choose to not know me anymore, I’ll understand.”

  “You’re not making any sense today,” Melinda said.

  “What I mean is, knowing me has become dangerous.”

  “You’re stuck with us.” Melinda grinned sheepishly. “You might as well like it.”

  Later that evening, Rose was sitting in her living room with her father. They were both staring at the television, in spite of how it was on mute.

  “So you swear he’s a good boy?”

  “I promise,” Rose said. “You’ll really like him. He’s not as into reading as me, but he’s very polite. And brave.”

  “He better not be too brave, especially with me around my daughter.”

  Rose hoped the night would not drop into further tension. As soon as the worry increased, a knocking on the door began.

  Her father was out of his seat before she could even know where the noise was coming from.

  Grady stood there on the veranda, light snowfall showering near the back of him. He shook hands with Damian.

  “Nice to meet you, Mr. Whelan.”

  “You too, Mr. Bell. Feel free to come in. Rose is baking cookies and cakes. Most of ‘em are already done. It’s amazing how quickly she bakes them. I don’t know what her secret is.”

  “Me either,” Grady lied, stepping into the warm cabin.

  Rose had worked extra hard that afternoon to make sure that everything was perfectly clean. The golden wood counters, stainless steel fridge and stove were now shimmering enough to see her own reflection in, which was the only acceptable form of cleanliness to her. By the look on his face, she assumed that her sanitary skills were adequate. He was used to seeing everything she owned - her binder, backpack and notebooks - in a completely disorganized mess.

  The dinner went well.

  At one point, he offered Grady the chance to see the motorcycle he had been building for years now. He accepted, and they moved out into the garage.

  When they came back, they sat down and continued eating and talking. Damian even drank a Guinness beer, which astounded Rose due to how she had rarely seen him consume anything with alcohol her entire life.

  Her father treated Grady with respect, especially after learning that he was from one of the wealthiest families in all of Lake Pines. This was a fact Rose had to inform him of discreetly over a tray of frosted chocolate raspberry pie earlier in the day.

  After the festivity was over, Grady stood in the threshold of the door. She could tell that he wanted to lean in for a kiss goodbye, but he knew the consequences of such an action in front of her father.

  “It was my pleasure joining you this evening, Mr. Whelan.”

  “Mine too,” he said, before stating the last thing that Rose thought he would ever be able to say: “Perhaps we can do it again sometime. Only the next time it’ll be at a restaurant where we won’t have to worry about slipping into a diabetic coma. In other words, anywhere my daughter isn’t the cook.”

  Grady laughed. “Sounds good.”

  Later that night, after curfew, she thanked her father for the pleasant evening.

  “It’s my obligation,” he said, after hugging her. “I’m not always trying to embarrass you.”

  “Good thing,” she said with a laugh, waving and then climbing the steps to her room.

  After closing the door to her bedroom and locking it, she called Grady right away.

  “What did he say to you when you were in the garage with him?”

  “How come you think something happened?” Grady asked.

  “My father’s motorcycle in-progress hasn’t been touched for years, if you couldn’t tell by looking at it. He never shows it to anybody.”

  “You caught him,” Grady said. “For the most part, he talked about his love of Harley Davidsons, and how he’s always felt inadequate as a mechanic. Then he mentioned you.”

  “In what way?”

  Grady cleared his throat, trying to imitate Damian‘s rough voice. “He told me, ‘If you ever hurt my daughter, I’ll murder you in your sleep.”

  “Grady, I’m so sorry-”

  “No, don’t be. You know what I told him? I said, ‘Trust me sir, your daughter is strong enough to keep herself safe from anyone and anything. That’s why I like her so much.’ And then he told me something that proves he really does know you. Damian responded with you’re right.”

  Rose smiled. “It’s nice to know I have guys who care about me.”

  “We do, Rose. More than you know.”

  “I’ll talk to you after your practice game is over with. Sound good?”

  “Great,” he said. “Before you hang up, let me tell you something.”

  “What?”

  “I love you.”

  “I’ve been waiting to hear those words from you forever. I love you too, Grady.”

  Rose put the cell in its charger, leaning up in her bed. She reached under the shining lamp in an attempt to find the switch around the red hot bulb. Just as her fingers found it, preparing to allow the darkness of night to enter a room of what she was sure would be incredible sleep devoid of leaving her house, she noticed something in the corner of her eye.

  Something had moved outside by her window. Rose stood up and walked closer to the frame. Stooping down and peering into the casement which gave her the regular view of the tree, front yard and mist covered road, she saw a recognizable black feline balancing its dark body on her ledge.

  It was motionlessly watching her.

  She swore there were reflections of her mother in the cat‘s eyes. It was as if Hemera was staring right back at Rose from a far away depth.

  26

  In the bedroom above the Realm of the Out of Print, Rose stared at herself in the body-length mirror, adorned in a glimmering white dress whose crystals sewn into the fabric shone with the effervescence bounding off of the Christmas lights hung outside. Alexis was wearing a wide smile. “It’s a big thing when a boy asks you to meet his parents.”

  “Maybe. But I’m nervous.”

  It was a surprise when Grady proposed that she meet his folks, a couple of wealthy entrepreneurs and restaurant owners who had a place in Lake Pines history. It was expected in a way - this relationship was serious, insofar as she had told him her greatest secret. He had the decency to meet her father, which was not the easiest task. Simultaneously, Rose knew little to nothing about the upper class, and had been a part of the proletarian lifestyle since the day she was born. She had magic, which was in its own way a certain form of power, one that could not be bought with money for a change, so naturally she was aware of her inherent differences from everyone else, and in retrospect, this could have been the reason she connected with Grady so well.

  Rose sat down on the bed, continually gazing at herself in the mirror, remembering Mary Worth and then trying to eliminate the name from her mind. She decided instead to go to the next uncomfortable subject.

  “Ms. Harvey,” Rose said quietly, trying to stew over in her mind the words she had been planning to say for quite a while. “I don’t want to ruin your Christmas Eve, but I feel I have to inquire this, otherwise I’m going to lose more sleep in the future. What are the chances of my Mom coming back?”

  “Better than we could imagine,” Alexis admitted.
<
br />   “Can you give me a sense of how much expectancy I should have?“

  “There’s a chance she will return, but you have little to worry about.”

  “Why is that?”

  “I banished her to a place where there are no rocks for her to draw a circle. She could still cast a spell, but it’s highly unlikely. Most of her magic has been drained. Her abilities have greatly diminished, even if she escapes the desert she is now wandering.”

  “If she comes back to Lake Pines, will the curse return with her?”

  “No,” Alexis said. “For all I know, the reverse could happen. Everyone here could wind up becoming incredibly wealthy, content, and in good physical shape.”

  “You’re telling me Hemera making another visit could be a beneficial event?”

  “Well, I don’t know about that.” Alexis stopped talking for a second, lowering her head and seemingly filled with great thought. “It was simply a presumption. If that be the case, imagine how wonderful it would be, notwithstanding how we would still have to stop her from pursuing her goal of immortality.”

  “My life is weird,” Rose said, suddenly filled with a sport of spiteful depression. “Most mothers who are bad are only bad because they forgot to pick up their child from soccer practice or something. Mine is one who frolics with hell.”

  “It could be worse,” Alexis said.

  “How?” Rose said defiantly, turning around to face her mentor. “Explain.”

  “You could…have no mother?”

  She stared blankly at Alexis, before both ended up filling the room with laughter.

  At seven a clock that night, Grady drove her up to the gateway of his parents’ manor. It was a large palatial estate with sharply peaked turrets and a limitless supply of darkened windows. Easily the size of a football stadium, there was nothing to prepare Rose for the sheer magnitude of their wealth. Of course everyone knew they were greatly esteemed amongst the bourgeoisie, not to mention unanimously recognized as being affluent and constantly generating more revenue to add to their prosperity thanks to their restaurant franchise, but the size of their house was still unexpected.