Perfect Revenge by K. L. Denman Read Free Book Online Page A

forgot to do it. Sorry. Should we do it now?”
    She nods. “I brought some incense we can light. I find it helps.”
    â€œHow long does this take?” I ask.
    â€œNot long. Maybe ten minutes. It’s hard to stay focused for longer when you’re not used to it.”
    I don’t tell her that ten minutes seems way too long. Three would be plenty, but I’m learning that nothing happens instantly in magick. Stella lights the incense and it smells okay, sort of woodsy and flowery. I could probably just spray perfume if I decide to get into this on a regular basis.
    â€œNow sit down, cross-legged, and get comfortable,” Stella says. “Close your eyes and focus on a mantra.”
    â€œA what?”
    â€œA little saying,” she says. “The one I use is ‘I am light and peace.’ I just say it in my head, over and over.”
    â€œI am light and peace?” I repeat. How goofy is that?
    â€œThat’s it,” Stella nods. “And if you find your thoughts wandering, just bring yourself back to that and keep repeating it. The only other thoughts you might alloware creative ideas about the quality you’re going to give Rachel.”
    This is so lame. I am
not
going to be doing it on a regular basis. We sit there with our eyes closed, and I think,
I am light and peace
, and then I wonder about checking in on Facebook. Wow, the past couple days have been strange. I can’t believe I didn’t remember to check it earlier.
    I am light and peace.
As if. My foot has a terrible itch, and I scratch it.
I am light and peace.
That casserole Mom made for dinner was gross. Now my back is itchy. I look at the alarm clock by my bed and not even two minutes have passed. And can I really handle wearing a used hat? I’m wearing it right now, aren’t I? That was part of the deal. Wear the purple hat for magickal mastery and spirituality. Whatever.
    I’ve hardly ever thought about spirituality. I mean, what’s it for?
I am light and peace
. Like that’s going to help anything. It’s going to get rid of zits? I don’t think so. And it’s not as if saying it is going to make it true. But what if it did?
I am light and peace
.
    That’s actually sort of nice. For sure the light part is good. I don’t ever want to be overweight. Darn, I think my foot is going to sleep. I hate that. I shift around and take a peek at Stella. There she is with her eyes closed, her wild jumble of hair, her scrawny body. Omigod.
    â€œPsst! Stella!” I hiss.
    She opens her eyes.
    â€œDon’t say that part about the light,” I tell her. “You’re way too skinny already.”
    She blinks a few times. Then she just falls over on the floor and starts shaking.
    â€œWhat’s wrong?” I ask. “You’re not having a seizure or something, are you?”
    â€œI’m fine,” she gasps. “Omigod, Lizzie. You are unbelievable.” And she goes into this spasm of laughter. It’s like she’s totally lost it. When she can talk again, she says, “I can’t wait to tell Baba you said that. She’s going to love it.”
    In my coldest voice, I ask, “What did I say?”
    â€œBeing light,” she snorts, “means that I’m skinny.”
    â€œYou
are
,” I tell her.
    â€œYeah,” she says, “I know. Only the light I’m focusing on is spiritual, not physical.”
    â€œWell fine,” I sputter. “But maybe it’s like you said, all life is in tune. And your body’s been listening in. What about that?”
    Stella’s jaw drops. “Whoa! I never thought of that.”
    I cross my arms over my chest. “Maybe you should.”
    â€œI think you’re right,” she says. “And I really do think you have a natural talent for magick. I don’t know what you’ve been doing with it before now.”
    â€œI have a talent for picking hot