Chapter 42
That's my laptop and arm. When I began writing my 1st novel there were no such things as PC's. I finally gave up because of all the crossing out and scribbles and writing between lines. I admire all the writers who accomplished their work without the internet and computers.
Hidden Secrets
Leona Palmer Haag
Chapter 42
It was afternoon before Jenn—Dia—had gathered enough
courage to leave the castle. She buckled Katie in her car seat and drove around
for more than an hour as she studied her surroundings and got her bearings,
finding every left and right turn into, out of, and beyond where she was currently
living. The castle stood in the heart of fancy neighborhoods with tall fences
and locked gates leading to swimming pools in the back. Nearby stores seemed to
cater to the rich—at least that's how the fronts appeared. She passed more than
one golf course that looked like it fell from heaven. Palm trees haughtily
pointed heavenward. Was she in heaven? Was this where it really existed?
Jenn felt out of place. She muttered a confession that
made Katie giggle because she didn't understand, "Hey, I'm totally out of
place." Jenn shrugged back. She was in a foreign country. Not dressed up
enough—not enough of anything, for that matter. And she hadn't found a decent
radio station. Jenn pushed buttons and arrows and AM and FM while waiting at a
stoplight, and still came up empty handed.
Finally, when Katie began squirming, Jenn pulled into
the mall parking lot. She'd left home with only one purchase in mind, but now
she had two. Buy a stack of CD's to go with the monstrous diamond ring she
needed.
It was stupid to need a ring, but for some reason,
Jenn felt like she had to have one. Kevin had taken her ring and locked it in
the office safe. He'd slid a simple gold band on her finger that was a little
too loose. "Here. Wear this. It will insure you're not identified by your
wedding ring," he'd said.
"Kevin, Nick gave me that and it never leaves my
finger," Jenn protested as he put her diamond and matching band into an
envelop with her name on the outside.
"And he'd hate to have you lose it, or worse, lose
you because of it," he'd replied without any sign of sympathy.
Oh, Kevin seemed to be good at his job, and she'd
heard both Nick and Matt sing his praises, but personally, Jenn didn't like his
style. Too businesslike. Callous. She could mentally see him holding a
clipboard as he ran down a list of items to check off. When he reached the
bottom he'd proudly turn it into his superior for a fat bonus. Jenn hated being
on Kevin's checklist.
"I need something a little…" Jenn said a few
minutes later as she glanced at the overly diamond-studded clerk behind the
shiny glass jewelry counter in the mall jewelry store.
"I see a love for real diamonds in your
eyes," the man interrupted her hesitant speech. His smile was Hollywood,
complete with a sparkle on his teeth. His tie—pink silk.
Jenn gulped. Diamonds weren't a big deal to her. She
glanced at Katie, then back to the eager man. "I—I just… Well, I need a
big diamond, but my husband only gave me enough for…" Jenn glanced at her
thin gold band.
The man eyed her up and down. Katie too. A look darted
across his face saying: Cheap. Inexpensive. In a flash she'd been sized up.
"Diamonds are an investment that will last forever. They never devaluate.
Let's see what we can get for you in your price range. How much has your
husband…"
Jenn turned around and marched out of the store.
Failure number one. But lucky for her, there was a store directly across the
wide walkway. She hitched Katie up on her hip and boldly approached, planning
her tactics a little better.
"Aren't the diamonds beautiful?" the overly
endowed jeweler with big blond hair and ultra-shiny eye shadow said, looking
Jenn up and down as if trying to use x-ray vision to see inside her
wallet—clear to her bank account and borrowing capacity.
"How much is that one?" Jenn asked, pointing
to the largest stone in the case.
The woman reappraised Jenn, hesitated, then slowly
slid out a key and held it near the lock. "Just what kind of price range
do you have in mind?"
Jenn glared at the woman. She wanted to say, "Nothing
as inflated as your ego," but bit her tongue. And she wasn't mad enough at
Kevin at the moment to whip out a credit card to buy that ring, along with ten
others just to spite him. She simply shook her head and left the store.
New tactic. Jenn stopped at a clothing store. She marched
in and said, "I need a new outfit."
The clerk looked around like that wasn't a hard
request.
Jenn added, "You look like someone who can dress
me to look like I belong in Scottsdale now that my address is here."
The woman smiled. "Certainly. What do you have in
mind?"
"Just one outfit—to go. Please make me feel like
I'm not underdressed when I meet my husband for lunch at the clubhouse."
A whirlwind of activity followed. Jenn left looking
like a million bucks, and gave the clerk—her suddenly new best friend for
twenty minutes—a twenty-dollar tip for her efforts. It was something she'd
never done before in her life—and kind of enjoyed, now that it was over.
The third jewelry store was as glittery as the first
two, but Jenn wasn't in ordinary jeans and a t-shirt this time. And her little
gold loner-ring was in her pocket. "I lost my wedding ring and need to
replace it," Jenn sadly told the jeweler as he approached her.
"That's terrible, but I'm sure I've got something
you'd like. What do you have in mind?"
Jenn sighed. "Something exactly like my last
ring, but I'm sure you don't have it."
The jeweler laughed and shook his head. "Probably
not, but we've got some nice platinum settings, white gold, yellow gold or a
combination. Once you find a setting that grabs you, you can choose any stone,
or combination of stones, you'd like."
"I knew I'd come to the right place," Jenn
said, dishing out a smile. She looked over several rings, moving from the
smalls ones that made her brow crease, to the larger ones that made her eyes
sparkle. "I like that one," she finally said, pointing to a huge
diamond.
The jeweler smiled appreciatively. "You've got
great taste. It's got bling, but the stone isn't genuine. It's synthetic. Two
carats. We can order in a real diamond for you. It takes about two weeks to get
it here and set." His key was out, and before Jenn knew it, the ring was sparkling
on her finger.
"Wow," she softly breathed, twisting her
hand under the lights.
"Wow," Katie sighed.
Jenn giggled. "Do you think Daddy will like this
one?"
Katie nodded.
Jenn pointed to a second ring. "Don't tell be
that's not real too."
The jeweler laughed. "You've got a good eye. Most
people can't see the difference. We sell the settings and our customers choose
the stones. Most put in real diamonds because of their investment value, but
some opt to buy the synthetic for the appearance. They seem to scatter more
light. Some will encrust real stones around the larger synthetic one. We always
give our customers exactly what they want." He slid the second ring onto
Jenn's other hand.
"Will Daddy like this one better?" Jenn
asked Katie.
Katie nodded.
Jenn browsed a few more rings, then said, "Samuel
told me to buy whatever I like, but I'm not sure he's ready for two carats,
even if I am. How much is this ring with a synthetic versus a real
diamond?"
Jenn thought she'd asked a simple question, but
instead, got a lesson in diamonds. She patiently endured it. When it ended, she
pretended she was debating over what to choose. Finally she said, "I think
I'll let Samuel decide. Can I buy the synthetic now and change out for a real
diamond later?"
"Absolutely. Most of our customers buy the
synthetic and wear it until the natural diamond arrives. They make an
appointment to have it set and drop it off and shop around while it's set. We
can do that if you'd like."
Jenn's eyes widened. "I can do that? Take it
today and come back next week with Samuel to look at real diamonds?"
"Sure. Which ring do you like best?"
Jenn tried on three more rings and finally settled on
one with a huge diamond in the center and two diamonds on each side. It had
more light-scattering power than anything she'd ever seen before. Radiantly
blinding! The midnight sun!
Kevin will kill me, Jenn thought as she plunked down
the credit card.
As the jeweler rang up her purchase she spotted a
bracelet with real diamonds. She added it to the bill. If she was going to hear
about it, she might as well go out in a blaze of glory.
"Bring your husband in when you're ready to
choose your stone," the jeweler reminded Jenn as she turned to leave.
When Jenn reached genuine daylight she held up her
finger. Light shot out in glorious rays. Her bracelet sparkled. "Katie,
bug, do we look like we really might belong in this town? Have we begun to
blend in better? Is our façade believable?"
"Petty," Katie said, grabbing at the
bracelet.
Jenn laughed. Pretty was nice, but protection from
detection was better. It was something someone had said in an off-hand manner
at the training program she'd just completed. Yes, she was good at putting her
new knowledge into practice.
End Chapter 42
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