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Authors: Hannah Fielding
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tongue and personality to equal your beauty, eh?’ she said in her hoarse voice. ‘Quite a rare jewel!’
She paused and seemed to be pondering for a moment. Suddenly, under her untidy bushy eyebrows, her eyes lit up with a wild fire. She grabbed hold of Luz’s arm, clutching it tightly in her horny hand. ‘You want to know your bahi , your fortune? I will tell you. I have seen the simachi , the sign in the full moon,’ she whispered, pulling closer, her breath warm and garlicky on Luz’s cheek. ‘Gemini! You’re looking for Gemini! He is your sustiri , your fate. Many men covet you, but your bahi lies with him of the moreno , dark skin and the lion’s eyes, eyes as green and deep as African forests. A gypsy hidalgo de la mas pura ratí , of the purest descent. Do not try to avoid your destiny or the curse will come upon you. I tell you, I have seen the sign in the full moon this month. Every word I speak is true.’
Luz’s heart filled with a dark unease as the crone’s flow of words screeched to a halt. The image of Leandro’s face danced in front of her and while the old harpy’s description fitted him like a glove, nothing else made sense. It was one thing fantasizing about thehandsome gypsy, quite another for a sinister old gitana to tell her that she was fated to be with him and would be cursed should she choose to ignore her destiny. Again she tried to rid herself of the ensnaring fingers.
‘What are you talking about? What do you mean, “curse”? I don’t know any “Gemini” and I don’t understand a word you’re saying,’ she cried out.
Rolling her eyes, Paquita loosened her hold and released her prisoner. She did not reply immediately. A faraway look came into her jet-black irises and beads of perspiration rolled down her forehead. She began to chant a strange incantation in a cavernous voice while moving slowly away over the dunes as if in a daze. A sea wind started up gently. As it blew, the old witch’s haunting sing-song voice was carried back on its breath across the sands:
Gemini, Gemini … Deceptive Gemini.
You think you know them, blinded by their wit and charm,
Today they love you, tomorrow they may harm.
Chameleons of the Zodiac, they’ll lead your mind astray,
Into their murky waters, they’ll drag you as their prey.
One body, two people, one heart, one mind, one soul;
One total complete entity; two sides to the same coin,
Evil lurks in every shadow for mile and mile and mile,
Behind a friendly mask, behind the friendly smile.
Deceit is all around, the curse you cannot break.
And it will last forever because of the mistake.
Unless love and its power can repair and erase
The scalding pain of hatred, and good it will embrace.
Forever rid of malice, at last you will be free.
Dear child, the truth reflects in this duality.
A group of black crows shrieked as they took off from a nearby rock, adding their own final cadence. Luz stood for a moment, her wide eyes following the old woman, her hands trembling a littleas she rubbed her wrist where the gypsy had gripped it so tightly. A despairing sense of unreality swept over her and she let out a long, shuddering sigh. Suddenly, she felt vulnerable and afraid. What did it all mean? She could make neither head nor tail of those odd, chilling words.
Gradually, logic took over. This was just gypsy nonsense with the sole intention of intimidating her, she told herself. These people were renowned for their quick, dramatic language. As for Paquita’s predictions, the old woman must have seen Leandro bring her back to the camp the day she fell off her horse and had deduced that his good looks must have captured her heart – which was not far from the truth. Luz herself had witnessed female reactions to the young man’s charms; she remembered how the young gitanas had crowded round him after his bewitching song at the camp. Presumably the old hag had not been able to resist the temptation of spinning a yarn that she could
She paused and seemed to be pondering for a moment. Suddenly, under her untidy bushy eyebrows, her eyes lit up with a wild fire. She grabbed hold of Luz’s arm, clutching it tightly in her horny hand. ‘You want to know your bahi , your fortune? I will tell you. I have seen the simachi , the sign in the full moon,’ she whispered, pulling closer, her breath warm and garlicky on Luz’s cheek. ‘Gemini! You’re looking for Gemini! He is your sustiri , your fate. Many men covet you, but your bahi lies with him of the moreno , dark skin and the lion’s eyes, eyes as green and deep as African forests. A gypsy hidalgo de la mas pura ratí , of the purest descent. Do not try to avoid your destiny or the curse will come upon you. I tell you, I have seen the sign in the full moon this month. Every word I speak is true.’
Luz’s heart filled with a dark unease as the crone’s flow of words screeched to a halt. The image of Leandro’s face danced in front of her and while the old harpy’s description fitted him like a glove, nothing else made sense. It was one thing fantasizing about thehandsome gypsy, quite another for a sinister old gitana to tell her that she was fated to be with him and would be cursed should she choose to ignore her destiny. Again she tried to rid herself of the ensnaring fingers.
‘What are you talking about? What do you mean, “curse”? I don’t know any “Gemini” and I don’t understand a word you’re saying,’ she cried out.
Rolling her eyes, Paquita loosened her hold and released her prisoner. She did not reply immediately. A faraway look came into her jet-black irises and beads of perspiration rolled down her forehead. She began to chant a strange incantation in a cavernous voice while moving slowly away over the dunes as if in a daze. A sea wind started up gently. As it blew, the old witch’s haunting sing-song voice was carried back on its breath across the sands:
Gemini, Gemini … Deceptive Gemini.
You think you know them, blinded by their wit and charm,
Today they love you, tomorrow they may harm.
Chameleons of the Zodiac, they’ll lead your mind astray,
Into their murky waters, they’ll drag you as their prey.
One body, two people, one heart, one mind, one soul;
One total complete entity; two sides to the same coin,
Evil lurks in every shadow for mile and mile and mile,
Behind a friendly mask, behind the friendly smile.
Deceit is all around, the curse you cannot break.
And it will last forever because of the mistake.
Unless love and its power can repair and erase
The scalding pain of hatred, and good it will embrace.
Forever rid of malice, at last you will be free.
Dear child, the truth reflects in this duality.
A group of black crows shrieked as they took off from a nearby rock, adding their own final cadence. Luz stood for a moment, her wide eyes following the old woman, her hands trembling a littleas she rubbed her wrist where the gypsy had gripped it so tightly. A despairing sense of unreality swept over her and she let out a long, shuddering sigh. Suddenly, she felt vulnerable and afraid. What did it all mean? She could make neither head nor tail of those odd, chilling words.
Gradually, logic took over. This was just gypsy nonsense with the sole intention of intimidating her, she told herself. These people were renowned for their quick, dramatic language. As for Paquita’s predictions, the old woman must have seen Leandro bring her back to the camp the day she fell off her horse and had deduced that his good looks must have captured her heart – which was not far from the truth. Luz herself had witnessed female reactions to the young man’s charms; she remembered how the young gitanas had crowded round him after his bewitching song at the camp. Presumably the old hag had not been able to resist the temptation of spinning a yarn that she could
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