Another box had matching necklaces and bracelets. Coralyn
let out a growl of frustration, but it quickly turned into a squeal
of delight when she lifted the lid of the next ornate wooden
box and saw it.
Her mother’s necklace. Carefully folded in on a square tray.
Not displayed prettily or proudly but tucked away.
She wouldn’t have missed it if she’d leant it to me for half an
hour. She just keeps it in here. Probably hasn’t looked at it in
months. It’s in the dark. In this box like it’s worth nothing.
Coralyn lifted out the treasure so very carefully. The weight
of it in her hands felt like lead. Like more than precious
stones. Like a handful of boulders that was going to weigh her
soul down for eternity. Even touching it felt like a sin.
I’m a terrible person. I’m doing something unforgivable.
A tear trickled down her cheek, and then another. She
reached up with her left hand and wiped them away with her
knuckles. She couldn’t break down now. Not here. Not in the
stupid closet. She shouldn’t even be up here. She shouldn’t
have left Giana alone in that bathtub while she poked around
into her life. Coralyn allowed herself a few more seconds to
reverently hold the necklace that told her parents’ love story,
her heart aching and drenched in grief, before she tucked it
into the pocket of the coat she was still wearing.
She realized now that she was sweating underneath. Her
clothes felt drenched, her skin clammy. Of course she was.
This was more than light breaking and entering. This wasn’t
petty theft.
A storm ripped through her, her virtues dying a hard death
under necessity. She shut the jewellery box, turned on her heel,
and left the closet. She was careful to put the mirrored door