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PROLOGUE
Crape Myrtle
Cora Mathis held her head high as she strode
past the postoffice. There was no way in the world she was going to
allow the town or its inconsiderate residents to deter her from her
errands. She felt their eyes upon her but she heeded no reason to
acknowledge them.Having dealt with close-minded people her entire life, Cora was on high alert. The only reason she felt cautious today was because Sadie, her granddaughter, was accompanying her. It was a rarity that Cora permitted Sadie to go into Hanford Vines. She had a strict belief that the people of the town were prejudice and with good reason. They had ridiculed her for years and whenever the chance arose that Sadie ventured into town, she was scorned and gawked at. Cora despised the narrow-mindedness of people. They just wouldn’t accept that someone was different. They couldn’t comprehend that not everyone was like them or that some people expressed their religious beliefs in other forms. Not everyone was a Methodist or Baptist. But when these self-righteous people, mainly the womenfolk, needed guidance and words of encouragement they always came to Cora. Never giving their visits a second thought, in her mind they were all hypocrites. She was a proud and private woman and when it came to Sadie, her built-in maternal instincts kicked in. Cora had never married and that was the primary reason for her shunning from the general local populace years ago. Having a child out of wedlock was unheard of and looked down upon in that day. Cora knew how difficult it was to protect her young. Her daughter, Sibley, made protection difficult. Always in trouble. Always seeking trouble. Then Sadie came along. A blessing from deep within Sibley’s soul, Sadie was a true gift. But after Sadie’s birth, Sibley’s soul seemed to wither. She became drained and desolate until the day she died two weeks after Sadie’s birth. Cora’s mind drifted back to days gone by and a special Harvest Day many years ago. She’d consumed the ritual bread served with broiled lamb and white rice. She could almost smell the aroma as if it permeated into her mind. A gentle breeze was blowing from the north. The sun had just set behind the great oak trees. It was a perfect evening. Dressed in a traditional black cloak, she took her asthame - a blunt knife, and the oak apple she’d picked for this special occasion and ambled towards the small bassinet. The cherub inside was bright eyed and smiling. “Soon, we’ll know, my child,” Cora whispered to the babe. She gently caressed the baby’s delicate cheek. “Shhh, sweet Sadie,” she soothed the baby as she wiggled and her tiny hands grasped at the air.Cora smiled down at the heavenly child left in her care. Whispering a mantra, Cora took a step towards her alter adorned with a yellow candle for happiness, a white one for purification and a brown candle served as a protective shield. In the center of her outdoor alter was a metal bucket filled with water. Cora began whispering a mantra. Shutting her eyes and raising her head to the heavens above,
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