Jane's Melody by Ryan Winfield

Author:Ryan Winfield [Winfield, Ryan]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Birch Paper Press
Published: 2013-06-15T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15

AS HE PEDALED UP THE DRIVE, he saw her standing at the sitting room window, looking out through the fogged glass as if she’d had news of his coming and was waiting for him.

By the time he dismounted the bike and climbed the stairs to the porch, she was gone from the window and the door was standing open. He took off his jacket and shook the rain from it, then put it back on, stepped inside, and closed the door. He stood in the dark and crowded foyer and listened to the creaking from above as she plied her rooms. filled with untold ancient treasures. When she finally descended the stairs again, stepping carefully and using the handrail, she couldn’t hide the smile on her face.

“You found it?” he asked

“I did,” she said.

She alighted from the last step, bustled past him, and led the way down the dim hall to her living room.

The coal remnants of last night’s fire were still glowing in the firebox, and he stirred them with the poker and added fresh wood while she retreated into the kitchen to fetch them tea. When she came out again, he had the fire going, and they sat in front of it in matching chairs—the fabric of hers worn to threads from years of sitting alone, and his with upholstery that was nearly new. They sipped their tea in silence.

“So aren’t you going to show it to me?” he finally asked.

“Oh, all right,” she said, setting her teacup down loudly on the end table. “Lord, help us when your impatient generation is actually running this country.”

She dug a claw deep into the pocket of her sweater and hauled out a small box covered in blue felt. He reached to take it from her, but she pulled it away, wagging her long and bony finger at him. She held the box out in her palm and lifted the lid. Inside was a beautiful yellow-diamond engagement ring, set in platinum and surrounded by smaller white diamonds. The square-cut canary stone shone like a miniature sun in its bed of blue silk. Caleb reached out and plucked the ring gently from the case. He held it up and turned it to catch the light coming in through the window. It was obviously an antique, the quality of its craftsmanship giving away its age, but it looked to be in mint condition, as if it had hardly been worn.

“That diamond was mined in Australia,” she said. “Almost three quarters of a century ago. It was cut and set in Paris.”

He took the box from her hand and carefully set the ring back inside. Then he held the box up and looked underneath it.

Mrs. Hawthorne shook her head.

“Not everything has a price, young man. My sweetheart purchased it while he was overseas in the navy. He came home and surprised me with a proposal. He was a romantic boy. And he made me a great husband. He never would say how much he’d paid for it, but I know it set him back all his savings and likely half his inheritance, too.

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