Dark Memories

Wolf Charm

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I have a lot of jewelry.

Friendship bracelets and a silver heart-shaped friendship pendant from Ginny Jansen, horse hair bracelets from her brother Paul, and lanyard bracelets from Joshua Houton. Strings of beads and braided bracelets from Josef- his friend Daja taught him how to do them from embroidery floss and plastic, neon cheerios.

When it comes to fancy, dress up jewelry, I have a a silver and garnet pendant that Tempest Trine, my aunt, had picked up at a pawn shop for Desari and found out from Darius that Desari didn't like silver jewelry. I had a diamond necklace in the shape of a gothic S from Francesca and Gabriel, and rose-blossom ruby and gold ring from Jaxxon. I have several diamond studs for my ears from Gabriel as well, when he turned my tears to diamonds and had Josef's uncle, Byron Justicano, set them in silver and gold.

But I only have one piece of jewelry I wear always. It is the black stone wolf pendant given to me by Dimitri, the Carpathian male who claims to be my lifemate. It is one of three gifts he has given me. He's basically completed the standard set, according to what Ginny told me online once: a boyfriend should always give his girlfriend a stuffed animal, a piece of jewelry, and his sweatshirt. I didn't think Dimitri wore sweatshirts, but the cape was close enough.

I remember him asking me to wear it. He looked so lonely and sad, that even though everything in me was screaming, RUN! I had to stay by him, to give him that one small thing. It was just a necklace, after all. The Carpathian males were more likely to pay attention to the fact that he'd exchanged blood with me.

Josef only paid attention to the time Dimitri had licked me. His eyes had been focused on my face- and of course, I'd been blushing- and they'd been as blazingly ice cold and piercing blue as the jewel eyes on my wolf pendant.

My parents, Gabriel and Francesca, hadn't said anything about me wearing the pendant. I know it upset Gabriel, but Francesca thought it an "appropriate first step in the wooing of a lifemate." I had to wonder if Gabriel had never given Francesca anything pretty like that. Perhaps I ought to suggest it to him.

The two of them had been even more surprised when, while posing for the fifth of my five formal portraits, I'd brought out all three of the gifts Dimitri had bought me. I'd wanted to take at least one picture especially for him, as a thank you for all the things he'd given me, and for saving my life, and dancing with me but not being a jerk about it. So I'd gotten prettied up. When everything was zipped and my hair was styled and my makeup done, I'd looked as pretty as my friend Cordelia.

Cordelia... well, Cordelia would have been the one to tell me I looked gorgeous. That's what she always told us- that we were gorgeous.

I wondered about Cordelia and the others. The pendant reminded me of Amaranth, who had a sea shell pendant that she wore constantly and held tight in her grip, the way I held my wolf pendant. Why was I thinking of them?

Suddenly, the door bell is ringing downstairs. Our housekeeper gets it, and suddenly she calls my name. What on earth could she want me for?