Member-only story
VIGNETTE | FICTION | WRITING CHALLENGE
I Wish Not to Love
The Vignette Gazette Edition #38 | Deserve
People feared voodoo dolls for the black magic, but what if it was harmless? The doll I held in my hand wasn’t meant to hurt people. It meant to remove the pain. It would make me forget. Something I deserved.
The shaman gave me the needle. Only, it wasn’t exactly a needle. It was a porcupine’s quill, dipped into some blue coloured potion.
“Whenever you’re ready, dear,” he said.
Ready. Right
As if anyone could be ready enough to forget someone they once loved so deeply with all their heart.
I glanced at the Shaman, having second thoughts.
“Will it hurt?” I asked, hesitating. “Will it… kill me?” My voice cracked. The determination I had before slowly faded.
He didn’t answer right away. Yet he smiled. The kind of smile that was hiding lots more than he said.
“The minimum price,” he murmured, “is your memory itself.”
He paused, looking deep into my eyes. Searching.
“Unless you want something more. Something you haven’t said aloud.”
