Lockwood had put the DEPRAC documents beside my jacket. The papers formed a neat rectangle on the darkness of the counterpane, gleaming white in the fading light, but also softly sparkling.
Sparkling…?
I bent close, frowning. It was only then that I saw the beautiful golden necklace curled on the papers, with the sapphire glinting at its heart. Lockwood had taken it out of the old crushed box that his mother had kept it in. Even in the dusk, the gem was glorious, undying and undimmed. It was as if all the light and love it had gathered in the past was shining on me.
I stood gazing at it for a long time.
Slowly, carefully, I picked up the necklace and hung it around my neck. Then I put on my jacket and ran for the stairs.
I rushed down trying to catch Lockwood before he left. As I neared the door I saw the familiar dark brown messy hair and his sparkling eyes that shone, creating a sort of light near him. "Come on Luce" he said greeting me with one of his smiles. Then, he held the door for me as we walked out into the chilly night.
We walked in silence, away from Portland Row. We walked for quite some time, before I broke the unnerving silence: "It's beautiful, isn't it?" I asked him referring to the bloodshot red and deep yellows that were so brilliantly mixed together in the sky.
He looked at me and then broke into a grin, quickly placing his eyes towards the ground. "Yes, it is," he replied his face still pulled into a grin. I looked down, searching for what in the world could have possibly made him smile like an idiot. There it was, the beautiful sapphire necklace glittering in the sunlight. It was the most beautifulest thing I had ever seen. "Hey Luce," Lockwood pulled me out of my thoughts, " Why did you go by yourself to fight Marissa?" I sighed, how was I possibly supposed to give Lockwood an answer when I didn't know myself? What was I going to tell him? I must have zoned out because Lockwood was shooting me weird looks, I could avoid this question, could I? I sighed again before I replied.
"Lockwood… I don't know, I just thought that it was what had to happen, when we were escaping I ran the wrong way, and it seemed like I had to do it. Me versus Marissa, listener versus listener. I thought I could do it, but I obviously needed help…" I looked at the ground, my cheeks were getting flushed. I was ashamed. Then, I felt a hand on my shoulder, I looked up to see Lockwood smiling at me. My knees felt like jelly, I swear an ice cream cone would melt under that smile.
"Luce you are right, you did need help. That's why I am here, to help you when you need it," I smiled Lockwood always made me feel better. We just stood there watching the sunset for quite some time . Soon the ghost lamps, awakening us from our trance. "Come on Lucy, we better get going, otherwise we might be ghost food!" I laughed and nodded, we did have a lot to do, with all the cases we had tonight. The remaining people, were scurrying like mice back towards their houses and locking their doors as we walked back together towards 35 Portland Row.