To continue with the prompts I’ve been working on… Marian (welcome to Something She Wrote!) gave me this one:
A plain wooden box, with hinges. Across the lid are carved the words DO NOT OPEN.
She found it among her great-aunt’s old things in the attic. She’d been digging for that elusive file of important estate paperwork, but when her hand grazed the small mahogany box, the document search was forgotten.
“Interesting,” she said aloud, her otherwise-meek voice filling the large space. “And quite mysterious, to boot.”
She traced the hand-carved words DO NOT OPEN with her forefinger.
A plain wooden box, with hinges. Across the lid are carved the words DO NOT OPEN.
She found it among her great-aunt’s old things in the attic. She’d been digging for that elusive file of important estate paperwork, but when her hand grazed the small mahogany box, the document search was forgotten.
“Interesting,” she said aloud, her otherwise-meek voice filling the large space. “And quite mysterious, to boot.”
She traced the hand-carved words DO NOT OPEN with her forefinger.
So should she, or shouldn’t she?
“Of course I should. Who finds an amazing old box and doesn’t open it?”
Following a firm nod of her head, she used her thumbs to crack the lid. Realizing she’d closed her eyes against the anticipation, as if worried over what she would find, she laughed at herself.
A look at the now-open box revealed a ring – a diamond solitaire, dainty and held atop a tarnished setting – and a small creased and yellowed strip of paper. Her hands trembled as she smoothed the handwritten note.
My dearest Arabelle,
By now you’ve learned of my demise, and I only wish it could have been some other way. It’s with sorrow for our future lost, our love forgotten, that I leave this token of my love. Wear it always, and know of my deepest devotion to you.
Love always,
Earnest
She gasped as her heart wrenched over the words written to her aunt so long ago. Her mind spun. Who was Earnest? Did great-uncle Bernard know about him? And to what demise was the note referring?
How she wished there was someone to ask, someone to answer her questions…
