Chapter 3-if the ring fits
Archie and Beau take a trip to Edythe's home town to find a long lost family heirloom
After the third jeweler in town, each which required an appointment, and all which sounded highly exclusive after we were shown to the private rooms in the back. Ironically offered champagne and other luxurious human foods.
"Archie, some help? Can't you just tell me which one I am going to get?" he scrunched his eyes and put his fingers to his temples
"Ugh Beau '' he flailed his arms dramatically "I can't. You still are undecided. I can't see anything. As soon as I find a flicker of possibilities it disappears" I sighed and looked at the time soon all the stores would be closed. I looked around through the tinted windows.
"Okay" Archie stated "I have a possibility but it's a long shot"
Before the sun rose we were in Chicago. Edythe's home town. Archie warned me that it would be sunny today so we would have to be fast. Whatever act that was. He still had not told me. As soon as we got to the city I was awestruck. I have never been anywhere. Furthest I've gone was California, I tried to remember the trip. I couldn't remember where the memories were too fuzzy. I looked all around as we drove through the dead calm city at 4am. The high towers.
"Wow" I muttered and Archie flashed a smile "You know I haven't been this far away ever"
"I thought you'd like this"
"So are you finally going to tell me where we are going?"
"Some distant relatives of Edythe, even though she is not quite sure how they are related. But they still have her mothers wedding ring. I've seen her make plans to get it back sometimes, but she never has"
"So what? We are stealing it from somebody's house?"
"Silly Beau, we are not stealing it. We are just picking up a friends long lost item"
"That sounds a lot like stealing"
"Not if it was Edythe's to begin with!" Which was partially true. Even if I did not use the ring for a proposal I'm sure she would still love to have it. She had already wanted it before after planning trips that never happened to retrieve it.
"Hmmm" Archie added, "I think you'll like it" he beamed. I couldn't tell if he was trying to make me more open to the fact of breaking into someone's house or was telling the truth. I opened my mouth to speak but before he held up one finger.
"Shh, now I need to concentrate. I don't actually know where it is." I looked at him befuddled. He opened his whole hand to stop me from my next words.
"I'm sure I can find it, I just need to see where Edythe was going to get it" After a moment, he took a sharp turn off the freeway and onto the downtown city streets.
The houses were older here. Made of brick and the windows were blurry with time. Each building having a unique structure to the next. All of which were extremely high up for buildings. I mentally calculated the heights. They were by far the tallest consecutive buildings I've ever seen. Staircases zigzagged up the sides of each wall adjacent to a window. Some rusted and painted over with black paint. Its industrial aesthetics were strangely pleasing. There were no plants or color but the intricacy was beautiful. As we drove further and further into the historic downtown Chicago I was picturing Edythe here. In her preserved seventeen year old body. What she would wear, what was her days like before?
Archie whipped the car into a parking space in an empty lot off a sidestreet next to a restaurant. His eyes glistened and his mouth turned into a wide smile.
"Are you ready?" he squealed out
"Let's do this" When I stepped out of the car, he placed his hands on my shoulders. I instinctively bent into a crouch and bared my teeth and threw him behind me in a protective fashion. I searched for any sign of danger and I saw nothing. Archie let himself be thrown behind me which I thought was strange. He then slipped under my arms.
"Beau relax, I was going to say prepare yourself, there is a women sleeping in the room" I looked at him perplexed
"You are not going to hurt her" I said defensively before he could shush me
"Let me finish" I nodded "I am not going to hurt her, just be aware there is a human in there. I don't want you to be caught off guard" he repeated. I processed what he was warning. I had a possibility of hurting the women. I did another strong nod and paid specific attention to the burn in the back of my throat for which I had been carefully ignoring. I cringed as I tried to concentrate and evaluate my emotions. I must've looked discouraged.
"You weren't going to do anything" he said quickly after noticing my dismay
"I wasn't?"
"No" he said surely
We jumped from the parking garage to the brick buildings. I was cautious of being seen by humans. But I was reminded that Archie would see, and it would be far too dark to see either of us. Even with the dim yellow street lights. I followed as Archie flung from brick to brick and mimicked his motions.
We stopped at a zig zag staircase attached to the brick building. I listened carefully and heard one even heartbeat and low shallow breaths. Archie moved closer to the window and rattled the lock to the window in a specific maneuver and the lock slightly gave and the window pane slowly swung open into the apartment.
'This way' Archie mouthed. I followed him to the womens bedroom, and we both silently opened the door. The woman was sleeping peacefully. She had deep wrinkles and a pink bonnet with pin curls rolled up underneath. I slightly peered over the women. Our faces were now just a foot apart. I could feel the heat coming off her skin. And the air from slightly parted mouth hit my face. I was reminded of the dry burn. But quickly returned to my original curiosity. I searched for any hint of Edythe in this old womens face. This is what Edythe could've been today. But I couldn't find any. She shared no relation to the perfect face. Not the vivid bronze hair, the natural angle of her brow bone, the arch of her lips so perfectly shaped. I couldn't adknowledge any possibility of relations.
While I was deep in thought analyzing the sleeping woman. The scent of old dust, aged wood, rusted copper filled the room as Archie had removed many old boxes from her closet. Swiftly he pulled out a small purple velvet box from a larger wooden one. He darted to my side in an instant and placed the box in my hand. I opened the box to see the most dazzling ring I've seen yet. I know this because this was the one I could imagine on her finger. It was not nearly as beautiful as her of course. The face was a long oval, set with slanting rows of glittering round stones. The band was gold - delicate and narrow. The gold made a fragile web around the diamonds. I imagined this was the ring of her time. One as timeless as she was.
I could do nothing but nod at Archie as I admired the ring.
'Thank you' I mouthed. He had the array of boxes identically organized to the original formation, as if we were never here.
I wasn't quite done with my curiosity. I was already breaking an entry. Might as well indulge my curiosity. I browsed the women's house. Looking for some form of identification that would lead to her relation with Edythe. But I didn't see anything promising during my scan. Archie realized what I was doing and squinted his eyes. He then smoothly pulled two damaged and aged pictures from the boxes he had just returned.
