The Memory Witch by Heather Topham Wood Page A

can’t seem to get over it. It’s like he stole away my confidence and has destroyed my chances of ever finding someone else to love me.”
    “If you don’t want your fiancé to fall back in love with you—what do you want?” Stella inquired.
    “I want someone new. A man to make me feel loved and cherished. Someone who could make me forget all about that loser Steven,” Madeline confessed. I forced my eyes away from Madeline and turned to Stella.
    Conversation was halted with the only sound the tinkling of Stella’s bracelets as she moved her hands to rest under her chin. She closed her eyes for several minutes and I had no idea if I should shake her in case she had fallen asleep. My head turned back to Madeline and I shrugged my shoulders in response to her inquisitive expression.
    I almost jumped out of my chair as Stella proclaimed loudly, “I know just the spell for you.”
    Madeline leaned forward in anticipation. “What is it?”
    “I have a very powerful attraction spell that I can do for you. After using it, I’m certain you’ll find the perfect mate. This man will make you forget about your fool of an ex-fiancé.”
    Stella’s authoritative voice captivated us both. It was hard not to believe in her and the words she was saying. Madeline appeared hopeful as well. Her fiancé had hurt her enough to make her desperate to rid his haunting presence from her life.
    “What do I have to do?”
    “I will give you an infused oil to bathe in. The oil will help draw that special man to you. Before leaving for a night out, you’ll also rub the oil over a rose-colored candle placed upon a mirror. You’ll gaze at the mirror and say exactly what I tell you to,” Stella explained. With a kittenish smile, she said, “I promise by the end of the night, you will have met the man of your dreams.”
    “Yes…please…that’s exactly what I want.” I was a little surprised at the depths of Madeline’s desperation. I almost wanted to suggest online dating before she made the decision to use a witch’s spell to attract a mate. After swallowing hard, she whispered, “What’s your price?”
    “As I told you on the phone, nature demands everything stay in balance. If we do this spell for you, you need to give up something that’s equal in value to you.” Stella warned, “Otherwise, the spell will backfire completely and you’ll end up heartbroken again.”
    “I really thought long and hard about something that I would have a hard time parting with.” Madeline wiped at a few stray tears falling from her eyes and reached for her purse. Pulling out a ring, she gripped it tightly before prying away her fingers. Displaying it in her palm for Stella to observe, she said, “It’s my engagement ring from Steven.”
    “Oh my god…are you serious?” I blurted out.
    Stella cast me a withering gaze and I swore she would smite me right then and there if she could. I was apologetic for interrupting her meeting, but I was also flabbergasted. The diamond solitaire had a huge princess cut gem in the middle of it. It must have been worth thousands of dollars. I was shocked at how easy this woman was just handing it over for a second shot at love.
    Madeline sent me a pitiful expression. “You’re so young…you’ve obviously never had your heart broken.”
    I bit back my reply. I was rankled by this woman’s assumption that I was naïve. It was true that I never had a boy break my heart, but I was well acquainted with other kinds of pain. I longed for my father and the ache his absence left in my life could never be dulled—even with the help of magic.
    “Quinn, you’re no longer needed here,” Stella said. She walked over to a table and picked up an old-fashioned pen and parchment paper. I had to stifle my giggle over the props that Stella used to send out a mystical aura. She handed me the paper and continued, “I need you to go to the workshop and gather these ingredients for the attraction spell. I expect them