Page 102 of The Neighborhood Witch

Johanna approached Alice like a stalking predator savoring every step. Her smile grew wider as she drew closer. The fear grew on Alice’s face. Johanna tried to place the amulet of witch’s fire over Alice’s head. Alice struggled, moving her head back and forth. She buried the back of her head into the tree so Johanna could not put it on.

Johanna jabbed her with the wand. Alice screamed in agony asher head lurched forward. Johanna slipped the gold chain over Alice’s purple hair. The amulet dangled around her neck.

Alice sobbed. “Please. Please don’t do this.” Her tears rolled down her face and fell at her feet. “Why are you doing this?”

“Oh, I’ve been where you’re standing. I know that fear. The frightening helplessness as people condemn you to die a gruesome, painful death you didn’t deserve. And it is painful.”

Johanna pointed toward the amulet with the wand. Alice glanced down before returning to Johanna.

Johanna continued, “I’ve lived more lifetimes than anyone should. I’ve lost more loved ones than you will ever know. I’ve felt more pain than humanly possible all because a witch bound me to the fate of that amulet. It was because of a witch like you that I was condemned to this lifetime of pain, torment, and suffering. I’ve made it my vow to never forget. Never forgive.”

A darkness fellover the cabin. The late afternoon sun was now obscured by the engulfing trees. Smoke rose from the diminutive stone chimney, and a light flickered in the window. It seemed peaceful. Quiet. Unassuming. A hooded figured emerged from the shadows of the trees. Footsteps crushed the wet grass as the evening dew set in. The figure never broke stride as it approached the cabin.

Johanna pulled back the hood of her cloak as she stopped in front of the door. She stood for a moment to prepare herself for what was to come. She lingered on the door in front of her. A thin layer of moss had overtaken the wood. The brief thought of turning and running away entered her mind. She hesitated, but the anger of the past drove her forward. Johanna knocked three times.

“Who is it?” a once familiar voice said from inside.

“It’s Johanna Newes. May I come in?”

The voice replied without hesitation, “Yes. Yes. Please enter.”

Johanna lifted a latch and swung open the door. The cabin wassmall. It had been many years since Johanna first set foot in here, but it remained largely unchanged. The room smelled of musty dirt. The cabin was illuminated by a set of candles that floated in the air. Plants and cutting tools covered the very same table which had held her lifeless body. Shelves held jars and other assorted bottles. A fire smoldered in the hearth below a black cauldron.

An elderly woman sat in front of the fire within the confines of an armed chair. Time had not been pleasant to Willow the witch. Her fingers withered and gnarled with age. A cane rested to one side. She wore a shawl to warm her frail body. Her skin was even more weathered and wrinkled than when Johanna last saw her. Her hair was thinned and short to remove the tangled mess that had once adorned her head. She smiled at her visitor.

“Come closer, my dear,” Willow said. Johanna approached, looking over the room to make sure they were alone. “It’s been so long since I last saw you. You haven’t aged a day.”

Johanna’s youthful appearance betrayed her true age. It had been over thirty years since that fateful day. Thirty years since she was condemned for practicing witchcraft. Thirty years since she was sentenced to hell for a crime she never committed.

“I need your help.”

“I can try the best I can, but my bones are tired and weary. Magick becomes more difficult for me.”

“I need you to fix me.”

Willow closed her eyes and slumped in her chair. “That’s something I cannot do.”

Tears welled in Johanna’s eyes. A fierce anger smoldered and wanted to erupt from deep within her soul. “Why not? I… I need your help. You’re the only one who can fix me.”

“The only way to save you was to tie you to that amulet. Your father knew that, but still insisted I bring you back.”

“You lie!”

She pointed to the very spot Josiah had stood years ago. “He was right there. He looked me in the eye and begged me to bring you backbecause you were all he had left. There was a pain in his eyes. How could I say no?”

Johanna clenched her fists and buried her mouth behind them to hide the gnashing of her teeth. “You lie. You can fix me.”

“I cannot.”

“Do you know what I go through? How people question why I don’t age? Why I can’t answer them? Why I have to move to avoid questions before they condemn me yet again for being the horrific abomination that you are?”

“I’m so sorry. I truly am, but there is nothing I can do.”

“You lie. This was your dark magic. You can fix me, but youchoosenot to.”

“My dear, I can’t. I don’t have the knowledge or the spell to undo it. You are tied to that amulet. As long as it exists, you will remain frozen in time. I told that to him, and yet, he still wanted you to live. It will only end when that amulet is destroyed. A task I don’t envy.”

Tears flowed down Johanna’s face. The thought that she was forever trapped to the very thing that turned her into this monstrous creation ripped apart her soul. The inner fire erupted in a barbaric, soul splitting scream.

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