Coven

By Brian K. Bolen

We stood, eyes closed. Twelve in a circle.

I felt the woman next to me begin to levitate, her cries becoming shrieks of pain. Breaking our code, I opened my eyes and reached for her, but an invisible force prevented me from moving any further.

Footfalls approached from behind me. I tried to crane my neck but couldn’t. Without warning, a hand clamped onto my shoulder, bringing me to my knees. I tried to say something, but the word “Cut” dissuaded me.

“Okay,” the director said. “Let’s do it again. This time, Bella, I wanna see more teeth when you grimace.”