Medium
Visions Of Mary
by Lyda Mae (RavenDove) Jeppesen-Huff
Chapter Two: Lapis Lazuli
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Lapis Lazuli simply translates to Stone of Blue. The Egyptians said that the Bull of Heaven's Horns were made of the prized mixture of blue Lazurite, white Calcite and shiny Pyrite. Joe's Great Aunt had told him this when he was a boy of eight. When she had told him and several of his cousins about the pendent she always wore. An unusual wire wrapped cabochon or domed piece of blue and white stone that seemed to have gold glitter embedded in it.
This pendent was now sitting in the window of the Phoenix Pawn on Fifth street, and Joe wasn't quite sure if he should be shocked or amazed. After all the necklace had last been seen around the neck of his Aunt while they were closing the casket.
Joe walked into the shop and up to the counter.
The owner of the shop was going over some books when Joe rang the bell. He was a round little man of about fifty with an unruly ring of gray hair about his ears and only about five strands coming out the top of his head that were in need of a trim. He had thick glasses hanging off the end of his nose that were held to him by a worn string. His shirt was a rumpled brown and red cotton tartan with a few stains, but it clearly smelled of starch and detergent.
The man limped to the counter and smiled at Joe. "May I help you?"
"Does that Lapis pendent in the window happen to have a heart and an infinity symbol carved into the back." Joe asked.
The man's eyebrows shot up and the glasses fell off of his nose. "As a matter of fact it does."
Joe scratched his head. "That means someone stole it off my aunt's neck just before she was buried."
The shop owner pulled a set of keys from his pocket and slowly went over to the window display to remove the pendant and held it out to Joe. "If you want to fill out a report with the police I think you need to know that I've had it in this shop for over ten years."
"The woman it belonged to has been dead for over twenty."said Joe.
The shop keeper put the glasses back on his face. "It must rightfully belong to someone you know then." he said. "Promise me you'll make sure it gets to them and you can just take it."
Joe smiled "I think it belongs to my daughter Bridget," he pointed to the calcite lines on the front of the stone which made a capital B, "she was named after my Aunt."
"Makes perfect sense to me." said the old man with a smile.
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