Carmel had been pushing at the boundaries of her mind all morning, just little tests here and there. She would picture a fly buzzing around Gretel’s ear and watch for her to shoo it away. She would push to make the witch think that her shoe lace was untied, that there was a strand of hair in her face, or that there was a burner on the stive that was going. She watched Gretel react to these things and not get suspicious of anything off. In Gretel’s mind, these things were real. Carmel was mastering the subtle art of “Glamour.”
When they heard John coming up to the door, Carmel put her hands and feet together, as if they were tied. She concentrated on Gretel, picturing the old woman tying her up again, before starting to apply the youth and beauty potion to herself. Carmel also vividly conj
