The Memory Witch Read Free Page A

from a line of very powerful witches.”
    “What?” I choked out. I waited for my mother to deliver the punch line. It was unnerving to see both Stella and my mom as somber and as still as statues.
    “At this time, I was desperate. Your father had just died and you seemed to retreat into yourself. You wouldn’t eat and you refused to speak to anyone. The nightmares were the worst. You would scream for hours at night and thrash like you were possessed. One morning, I woke up from your screams and found a chunk of your own bloody hair in your hands.” My mother swallowed audibly and I could tell this was difficult for her to talk about. To me, it didn’t seem real. It was as if she was talking about another Quinn and not the girl sitting next to her.
    “I had no idea what to do and I was so afraid I would lose you too. My cousin told me to contact Stella to see if she could help in some way.” The elderly woman was impassive as my mother told her story. As if they were talking about the weather and not witchcraft.
    My mother continued. “I met with Stella and told her everything about your…past. She agreed to perform an enchantment that would erase your memory. It would be as if your first eight years of life never existed. None of the pain or the horror of that year would haunt you.”
    Stella cut in to answer my unspoken question. “The enchantment wipes away everything in the person’s head to that point. The magic doesn’t heed to a specific timeframe.”
    “Stella came to our home while we still lived in New Jersey. She gave you a potion to drink that promised to give use the fresh start we desperately needed. When she named her price…I hesitated,” my mother mumbled, “but I thought it was best to accept the terms for the greater good.”
    “Not that I’m buying any of this, but what exactly were the terms?”
    My mom didn’t seem to hear me. “After you drank that potion, I never felt so blessed. It was like you were reborn. You turned back into an eight year old kid again. We moved and you made new friends and we both could forget about all of the awful things that had occurred.”
    Tears were falling freely down my mother’s cheeks. She said in an urgent whisper, “Quinn, you were dying. I just wanted my little girl back. I swear to you, I would’ve never made the deal otherwise.”
    “Your mother seems to lack the backbone to break the news to you, so I’m guessing the honor falls to me,” Stella said crisply. “When someone makes a deal with a witch, there must be a payment of some sort. It has to be something of great value—otherwise the spell upsets the balance of nature. You can’t just hand over a bundle of cash and expect that to be enough.
    “What I asked for was a year of your life,” Stella explained.
    “What?”
    “You are to come to my estate and live with me for one year. During that time, I plan to teach you everything I know about my craft,” Stella elaborated.
    I felt a whoosh of air leave the room. As my mother began to openly weep, I realized that the two of them were serious. My mother believed this woman was a witch and I’d be living with her. I couldn’t explain my memory loss, but I was certain it hadn’t resulted from drinking some sort of magical potion.
    “And if I refuse?” I prompted. One thing was certain, I wasn’t going anywhere with this woman. The next year of my life would feature me leaving Harveys Lake and starting my freshman year at Lehigh. I hadn’t stay up hours each night studying in order to spend a year with a deranged woman. When I got my degree, I was hoping it would mean an easier life for my mother and me.
    Stella gave my mother a sly smile as if she anticipated my response. “Well then your mother would be responsible for paying the debt.”
    “You would make her leave her home and job to train with you as a witch?” I asked with unmasked disbelief.
    “No, I want someone young that can carry on my work for years. I have no