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  “It’s time,” she told her daughter as the music began, signaling the bride’s entrance. She clasped hands with Goldalynn and they marched forward so she could deliver her daughter into the arms of her soon-to-be husband.

  When the time came to exchange rings, William produced a simple band of gold and held it up so that the sunlight glinted off of it. With happiness shining just as brightly in his eyes, he leaned forward and whispered. “This ring was my great grandmother’s and grandmother’s. My grandmother gave this to me before she passed away and told me to give it to you when we married. Supposedly, it is made from melded fairy dust.” He grinned and slipped it onto her ring finger.

  She held her hand out, examining the ring, and giggled. “William, you know fairies don’t exist.”

  “If it was possible for a woman as beautiful and amazing as you to agree to marry someone like me, then anything is possible, my love.”

  As the ring nestled against the skin of her finger, her body warmed into a slow, smoldering burn. It was magic. She may not believe in fairies, but she did, however, believe in magic and the ring on her finger definitely held some within it.

  After they were pronounced man and wife, William and Goldalynn lived a blissfully happy two months together. So blissful, in fact, that she was able to ward off any paranoia of losing William. It crossed her mind many times, but she always shoved the thoughts away.

  She should have known better…

  She should have listened to her mother…

  One sweltering hot summer day, William went to work at the market in town and Goldalynn thought it would be a thoughtful treat to meet him for a picnic lunch at the park across the street. So, with the utmost care, she packed a picnic basket full of her delicious homemade fried chicken and potato salad. As an afterthought, she added a bottle of wine they had received on their wedding day and then topped off the basket by resting two wine glasses in a cloth napkin over the rest of the contents.

  Her little car sputtered and lurched a bit as she pulled it up to the curb across the street from the market. Before she got out, she spent a moment watching the patrons going in and out. Through the large panes of glass with the market name painted on them, she could see her William running the cash register and laughing with a customer. His blond hair highlighted by the sun shining through the window and his freckles from childhood still prominently spread across his cheeks.

  Unable to hold back a smile, Goldalynn pulled open the door handle and stepped out of the car. After smoothing down the skirt of her yellow sundress, she gathered her purse and basket and then slammed the car door shut. Cars zipped past her while she waited patiently to cross the street. During the brief seconds in between the cars, she watched William though the window. He hadn’t seen her yet and appeared to be directing a customer somewhere in the store, from the looks of his extended arm and forefinger.

  Then she heard the shots. Three distinct shots. Bang. Bang. Bang.

  Her basket fell to the ground, its contents spreading across the hot pavement. There was a muffled crash of the shattering wine bottle as it fell from the open top of the basket and hit the pavement. Red wine spread like blood, staining the cement. The air seemed to waver and tighten around her, causing her world to spin. Distant screams filtered into the whirling nightmare her reality had become. The previously calm sidewalk outside the market had quickly become chaotic, with people rushing to and fro in complete confusion.

  Wham! It hit her all at once. Their love hadn’t been strong enough to survive the curse after all.

  Coming back to reality Goldalynn bolted out in front of the oncoming traffic, ignoring the horns and screeching tires coming from the cars as the drivers tried to avoid hitting her. Once she was safely on the sidewalk in front of the market she heard the sirens begin their ominous, wailing song of death.

  She knew what had happened. Deep inside she knew it, but she still had to see for herself.

  “Miss Goldalynn!” Rudy, one of Williams’s employees at the market, came running out, “Don’t go in there ... not yet.”

  She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Clearing her throat, she tried again. “I need … my husband,” she managed to croak out, pointing inside the market.

  Rudy shook his head. “You don’t want to go in there, Miss Goldalynn.”

  “Move, Rudy!” she screamed, blinded by her tears.

  Before Rudy could move, they were both shoved aside by two policemen as they rushed into the market.

  Ignoring anything more Rudy had to say, she hurried in behind the officers. When she entered the market, she forced herself to stop and take a few breaths and thought to herself, Maybe it wasn’t him.

  Her gaze shifted toward counter where William had stood. There, she saw several people surrounding someone on the floor. She couldn’t physically see who it was, but she knew anyway.

  Her heart felt as if it were going to explode in her chest. Each and every step toward the counter, and what was behind it, felt like wading through a muddy swamp. Frantic, her eyes darted back and forth touching on each of the bystanders. Her body flooded with momentary relief when she recognized Shirley, one of William’s employees, standing near. Shirley caught her eye and read the questions in Goldalynn’s dark irises. Silently, Goldalynn begged Shirley to tell her it wasn’t William, and if it was him, that he was all right.

  Shirley, with tears glistening on her cheeks, shook her head in response to Goldalynn’s unspoken question. She hurried over to Goldalynn and held her tightly in a hug, then turned with her arm still around Goldalynn’s shoulders and led her toward the horrific scene her family had been warning her about ever since she could remember.

  More sirens drew closer as she laid her eyes upon the only man she had ever loved.

  Her William lay on the cold tile floor with blood blooming like blackened flowers from the bullet wounds in his chest. The dark stains spread across the floor, pooling around his body.

  Her knees buckled beneath her and she crumpled over his body. Droplets of crimson splattered against the pale yellow sundress, leaving behind morbidly cheery spots of bright red. Her own shouts of denial mingled with the sirens outside as a loud “Noooooo!” erupted from within her.

  Not a minute later, even more policemen and paramedics swarmed the place, asking people to leave and adding to the chaos that already took place in the tiny market. When one of the policemen asked her to move aside, she clutched William’s body harder, refusing to let go of her love. Her shoulders heaved as her panting sobs shook her frail body. Unable to speak, she continued to cling to William.

  “Please ma’am, we need to work here,” the officer gently urged.

  “Get away!” she screamed. “Just go!”

  “Ma’am, this is a crime scene and we need to examine the area.”

  “I won’t leave him, I won’t!”

  It took several policemen to remove Goldalynn from William’s body. They loaded her into an ambulance and took her to the nearest hospital. Once sedated, she was held until her mother arrived.

  And so we arrive at the secondary life changing event for our Goldalynn.

  She would never see him again. She would never hear his laugh again. She would never trace her fingers over his freckles and give him a playful kiss again. He would never call her Goldie again; no one would call her Goldie again.

  He was gone.

  Her mother allowed her to lie in the bed in her old room for days. She understood the pain and hurt her daughter was going through. Her light was gone, she knew William was what had driven Goldalynn in life, and she deserved to be able to mourn him however she chose.

  Goldalynn, on the other hand, her tears had cried out. Where there were once tears shed for love, there was now an emptiness for which she could not weep. And, as the days and nights passed by, that emptiness was replaced by a dark hatred of life. Why would the fates be so cruel, she thought. How could they take him from her?

  If only there were a way to bring
him back.

  Suddenly, she sat straight up in bed. Maybe there was a way.

  Chapter Two

  Goldalynn entered the shop quietly and pulled her hood away from her head, letting her dark hair fall loosely around her. She had worn the cloak in hopes that no one would recognize her when she entered the shop.

  “Hello,” she called out, not seeing any one around. “Is anybody here?”

  The shop did not have windows to let in any light and was dimly lit by candles scattered throughout the place. Above the glass counter hung several necklaces with what appeared to be charms made of bone. Clear glass bottles with cork tops filled the wooden shelves covering the west wall. Although the contents of each were visually different, the hand printed labels on the front helped to identify what was within. In the center of the shop, a large rack held various books about magic, voodoo, and other similar topics.

  Nearing the counter, Goldalynn called out again, hoping someone would hear her. “Is anyone here?” She fingered one of the stone charms on a tiny spinning rack, wondering what it was used for.

  “Probably best not be touchin, less you be buyin it.”

  Goldalynn snatched her hand away from the necklace, letting it clink against the other charms. “I’m sorry. I was just waiting for … someone.” She turned to see a woman pull aside a beaded curtain and enter the shop. She slid her eyes over the woman, who had skin the color of milk chocolate and eyes so black that in the dim light you couldn’t differentiate between the irises and the pupil.

  “This kind of magic, it is specific to the person, those be no good if they not be your own.” The woman was suddenly by her side, her burnt orange tank dress sweeping the floor over her bare feet. “I am Sabine. What is it you be needin today, child?”

  Goldalynn extended her hand. “I am Goldalynn. I have come here in search of something to find my love.”

  Sabine accepted her hand, then quickly grasped it with her other hand as well. “Child! I feel the magic inside you. You’ve not come to find your love, you be looking for that what’s dark.”

  Not knowing quite how to respond, Goldalynn nodded. “My William was murdered. I want him back.”

  Releasing her hand, the woman shook her head, “No, it cannot be done. It be too dark.”

  “Please,” Goldalynn begged her. “I know there is a way. If you don’t help me I will have to find someone else.”

  Moving behind the counter, Sabine continued to shake her head. “You be grieving, that is all. Takes time to move on.”

  Having known that this might happen, Goldalynn was prepared. “Fine, I’m sure that someone around here will take my payment in return for the spell.” She began to turn away, lifting her hood.

  She had guessed right and watched as Sabine’s eyebrows lifted. “What payment? How much?”

  Goldalynn took a check out her purse and placed it before the woman so that she could see the numbers written in the payment line and the blank space where the payee name should be written. “I’m positive that would be more than enough,” she told her.

  “Girl, where you getting this much money? I accept cash,” Sabine declared, pushing the check back toward her, not believing that Goldalynn could in fact obtain that much money.

  “My family has money,” Goldalynn explained. “We all have access to it, but we are encouraged to live our own lives and earn our own money. Which is why the family has so much of it.” She tilted her head while giving the simple explanation. “Not that I need to explain it to you. Either you want the money or you don’t.”

  Goldalynn was careful to hide how much hope she had. This woman knew of a way to bring William back and she didn’t want to ruin any chances of obtaining the spell.

  Sabine appeared to contemplate. Glancing around her shop and then down at the floor before meeting Goldalynn’s eyes again. “All right. I shall give you the spell in exchange for that,” she pointed at the check on the counter, “and one other thing.”

  “What more do you want?” Goldalynn felt her pulse quicken in anticipation of Sabine’s answer.

  “I do not make dark magic, but often, I need certain ingredients which not be easy to come by.”

  “For example?”

  Sabine lifted a thin eyebrow, “Witches blood.”

  “I am not a witch. Witches are evil.”

  “Nonsense child, you carry magic within you! You are a witch and that doesn’t mean you are evil, good witches exist, too.”

  Goldalynn swallowed back the lump forming in her throat. “So, you want my blood?”

  Sabine nodded and set five tiny vials on the table in front of Goldalynn. “This is the amount I will be needing.”

  She had no other choice, it was only blood, after all, and if her blood would seal the deal, then so be it. She nodded. “All right, I’ll do it.”

  Sabine stretched out her hand to shake on it. “We have an accord.”

  As she reached out to accept Sabine’s hand, her heart felt as if a weight had been lifted. “Thank you,” she told the woman, her voice barely above a whisper.

  Sabine rubbed her hands together and gestured for her to follow. “Come, first things first. We will gather your blood into the vials.”

  Goldalynn followed her through the beaded curtain to the room in the back. While she waited for Sabine to gather the items she needed, she looked over her surroundings. A small kitchen occupied one corner of the room. Jars of herbs and other items Goldalynn could not identify sat lined up in rows and stacked on small shelves among the aged counter tops. A small single bed sat neatly made on the far side of the living space and unlike the cluttered shop, this side of the curtain was immaculate and organized.

  “Sit.” Sabine pointed to the little table and chairs.

  Pulling her crimson cloak off and setting it aside, Goldalynn approached the chair and tried again not to display any sort of nervousness. She was afraid that one wrong move would change the woman’s mind and Sabine would refuse to give her the spell.

  “A deal is a deal,” Sabine responded to her unspoken thoughts. “I will give you what you ask.” She placed a silver tray onto the table beside Goldalynn and reached for her arm.

  A piece of cord, a bottle of alcohol, some cotton balls, the little vials and a syringe all sat on the tray waiting to be used. When Goldalynn saw the items on the tray she wanted to yank her arm back and run from the shop. She was thankful, however, that the syringe was packaged in a sealed plastic container.

  Sabine stretched out Goldalynn’s arm and tied the cord tightly above her elbow. Goldalynn closed her eyes as Sabine tapped on the crook of her arm. She soon felt the cold swipe of the alcohol saturated cotton ball followed by the crinkling of a wrapper and then a sudden prick as the needle slid into her vein.

  What seemed like hours, but was only moments later, Sabine released the cord. “It is done.”

  Goldalynn blinked at the brightness of the room after having her eyes closed for so long.

  Sabine had already removed the tray and stashed the vials somewhere. She approached Goldalynn with a glass of amber liquid and some pastry. “Drink, eat and rest while I mix the ingredients for your spell.”

  Goldalynn shook her head. “I’m not hungry. Thank you, though.”

  “Nonsense. You eat and drink. We took a lot of blood and you be needin nourishment. ‘Sides, you must wait while I prepare your order.”

  Goldalynn lifted the glass with hesitation and peered down into it. It appeared to be apple juice. The tangy, sweet fluid flowed over her tongue with juicy goodness. Before she knew it, the entire glass had emptied. Then, she tore a tiny piece off the pastry and popped it into her mouth. To her surprise it was absolutely delicious. The sweet pastry spiked the hunger she thought she did not have and she polished it of in less than a minute.

  Sabine had busied herself with opening some jars and extracting a measured amount of contents into a small stone bowl that Goldalynn was familiar with, called a mortar. Little by little more ingredients were ad
ded to the concoction being created. She paused every few minutes to use the pestle to grind the mixture down into what looked like powder.

  Neither of them spoke during this time. After an excruciatingly long wait, Sabine finally poured the mixture into a fresh jar, stuffed a cork in the top, and held it out to Goldalynn. “Here.”

  Goldalynn rose from the table, reaching out for the tiny jar. “How do I use it?”

  “This be only part of the spell.”

  “What do you mean, only part?” Anger began to bubble beneath Goldalynn’s calm exterior. “You better not have conned me, woman.”

  Sabine shook her head and then pointed at the bluish purple contents in the jar. “This be the only part I can give. First thing you must do is find the spot where your love is buried and pour the contents onto the earth beneath which he lie.”

  Goldalynn nodded, mentally noting what she needed to do.

  “Before you recite these words,” Sabine extended a folded piece of paper toward Goldalynn, “you must obtain one more thing that I cannot give.”

  “What? What do I need?” Goldalynn could barely contain her excitement, but that was not to last long.

  Sabine’s dark eyes met with Goldalynn’s. “The spell requires the fresh pelts of three different colored bears to be lain across the grave after the potion is distributed.” She paused, “And then you can recite the dark spell. But, all this must be done under the light of a blue moon.”

  “What?” Goldalynn backed away from the woman, “Fresh pelts from three different colored bears? How in the world am I going to do that?”

  Sabine shook her head. “That I do not know. I give you the spell, that is all that I agreed to do.”

  Goldalynn felt her heartbeat quicken. “You gave me the spell, but it is impossible to cast without the pelts.”

  Sabine nodded and lowered her eyes, away from Goldalynn’s piercing gaze. “That be a problem I cannot fix.” She glided over to the beaded curtain and held it aside. “I did my part of the exchange.”

  Clearly, having been dismissed, Goldalynn slipped the jar into her purse and lifted her hood to cover her dark hair. She knew as well as anyone that you didn’t mess with someone who had access to dark magic.