Alicia didn’t like his silence. There was no way Max could have given him the Tear. He’d have to be in his nineties if he had. “You aren’t going to tell me you gave his wife the stone are you?”
“No. But it could have been my grandfather. Many say I’m the spitting image of him. I didn’t know he had any of the Tears, though. He never mentioned it.” Max looked contemplative. “I always thought the Tears were a great bedtime story until I found the first one. As children we were taught the Tears were sent to the ends of the earth to make sure no one could gather them easily.”
“Then why did we find them all in America so far?”
“I’m clueless. My guess is most of those who have a Tear ended up migrating here. Look at Mr. O’Connor. He said he was from Ireland. Remember, the first Tear was in an old statue from South America.”
“What made you look for it in the first place?” It had been in the back of her mind to ask this question for a while, but for some reason she never did.
“I found it accidentally. One day I happened to see a picture of the statue in a magazine and inquired about it. I guess I was drawn to the thing. I never suspected it to hold a Tear, I just liked it. The lady who owned it was more than willing to sell it once I helped her find her son. She felt it was bad luck, but I told you the story on that when we first met. Once I had the statue in my hands I found out something important. The darn thing rattled. When I had it x-rayed is when I saw the stone inside.” He crossed to the chair. “That’s when I realized the Tears were real.”
Alicia sat in her chair and pulled her jacket off. Max stepped behind her to help her with the coat. Her heart beat a little harder with his nearness. When he didn’t move away she grew nervous. “Um, I’ve got some research to do.”
“Do it at my house.” He gazed deep into her eyes. “You can change clothes and be really comfortable.”
“I’m being paid to work here in this office, not your home. Your laptop makes it possible for me to do this.”
“True, but I am the eccentric millionaire.” He placed his hands on hers. “I’m sure Mr. Duncan will let this slide.”
She sighed as she nodded. Can werewolves glamour people?
***
“Move in with me.”
Alicia’s jaw dropped. “Are you out of your mind? I just get used to your last little bomb and you raise the bar.”
“Why not?” He glanced at her before turning his attention back to the traffic.
Good question. “Because I like my apartment. It’s a haven to run to when you are being a pig.”
He laughed. “I didn’t say you had to give up your apartment. But we’ve run to your house every other day getting your clothes.”
“That’s because you’ve been holding me captive,” she teased. Then she sobered. “I’m not sure I’m ready for it.”
“Okay. Pretend you’re on vacation and you have to pack for a couple weeks. Whatever it takes.”
“Can I have my Jeep? It’s been parked in front of my apartment building for a while and I miss it.”
“Yes, you can.”
She mulled it over for a moment. “Okay, but don’t think this means I’m saying I’m moving in. I’m just bringing stuff to make our working together easier.”
He smiled.
“Don’t be smug because you think you got your way.” The Hummer slowed and pulled to the curb near her apartment. “You coming up? Or do you trust me?”
“I’ll always trust you, but I get bored waiting so I’m coming with you.”
She shook her head and headed to her apartment. Max was two steps behind. “Let me know if there’s some assassin hiding behind a trash can. I want to be able to run and scream like you expect me to.”
“Don’t be rude,” he grumbled.
They walked into the building and climbed the stairs. She opened the door of her apartment.
“What the hell?” The place had been trashed. She wanted to cry when she spotted her favorite coffee cup in pieces on the floor.
Max barged into the room in front of her, moving from room to room, making sure no one was still in the apartment. “No one is here.”
“I could have told you that.” She stepped over the smashed television and went to her room. Alicia feared what she would find.
The bedding pooled at the foot of the bed. Closet doors hung open, clothes strung all over the room. She dove for her closet, digging through her trashed stuff piled inside. Under it all she found the old leather bag her mom had given her. Clutching it to her heart she let out a pent-up breath. “Thank God, they didn’t hurt this.”
Max stood in the doorway. “What’s that?”
“Something from my grandmother. I heard the tale of the legend from her. When she passed she left me something she thought would remind me of the stories she used to tell me.” Alicia stood. “Don’t faint, but you’re right. I can’t stay here anymore. I’ll grab what I can and figure out what to do with the rest later.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
Normally she would fight, but not now. All the damage took the fight out of her. “They broke my favorite mug.”
“We’ll get you a new one.” He wrapped his arms around her. “I’ll make sure the broken things are disposed of. Anything I’m not sure of will be packed.”
Alicia leaned into him for a moment. “Let’s get most of the important things I need.”
“I have boxes in my Hummer.” Her odd look made him continue, “I was hoping you’d say yes to my asking you to move in.”
She could almost think he had the apartment ransacked to get her to move in, but she knew him well enough to know he’d never do this to her. He understood her need for independence too much. She gave a quick nod.
They filled all the boxes and suitcases with whatever she wanted to take. It broke her heart to have her haven violated this way. “Who would do this?”
“You have to ask?”
“I can’t believe she would do this.” She picked up the old bag and another suitcase and headed out to her car. By the time she wrestled her big bag into the back, Max had brought down all the boxes and bags and stacked them in the Hummer. “Show off.”
“Let’s go.”
***
Alicia sat on the floor in her new room at the mansion, going through the boxes. She doubted she would end up spending a lot of time here, knowing Max, but he was kind enough to give her her own space, which was something she needed. Most of her clothes were already hung in the closet. Memories washed over her as she went through her belongings. Scenes of her childhood danced in her head.
The old leather bag sat next to the bed. She hadn’t looked in it in years. It held a beautiful mirror of her grandmother’s. She remembered admiring it as a child. Inside the bag she found the heavily weighted wrapped package. The soft cloth seemed familiar but she couldn’t place it.
Gently, she lifted the cloth. It reminded her of a baby blanket. When she saw a monogram in one corner she recognized it. “This was mine!”
Inside the cloth lay a heavy silver box with a huge Celtic cross engraved on the cover. It took her a while to find the lock, but it didn’t take a simple key. It had to be something she owned. “So what is it? And why did Grandma lock this thing up so tight?
A knock on the door made her jump. Max’s doom and gloom speech was starting to affect her. “Come in, Max.”
“Hey. You’ve made some headway,” he said as he looked around.
“A little.” She looked around. “At least with the clothes. That pile over there can go. I’m still working on the rest of my items.”
“What do you have there?” He hunkered down beside her.
“It’s a puzzle box, I think. But I can’t figure out what the key could be.” She offered the small box to Max. “This is the first time I’ve actually looked at it.”
“You hang onto it.” He stood up and walked around. “What else do you have that belonged to your grandmother?”
“Some jewelry. A couple of trinkets.” She got up and went to the jewelry box she had placed on the dresser earlier. “You think one of them might be the key?”
He looked at her. “It would be kind of silly to give you that box and not give you the key. You made sure there was nothing in the bag right?”
“Yes.” She made a face at him. “I looked there first.”
“Just checking.”
Alicia opened the jewelry box and rummaged around until she found the other items. “Here they are. It’s not a lot. A necklace, couple pairs of earrings and a comb.”
“Get the box and we’ll try them all.” He took the things she named and examined them.
She picked it up and deposited it on the dresser. “We’re wasting our time.”
“Stop being such a muddy duddy.”
“I’m not being a muddy duddy.” She rested her hands on the dresser. “None of those things look like they would fit.”
Max bent over and studied the lock. Alicia stood back and studied Max. “Nice view.” She slapped her hand over her mouth. That wasn’t supposed to be voiced.
He turned his head and smiled at her. “Glad you like it.”
“Stop.” She came to the dresser and picked up the comb. Running it through her hair, she smiled at a memory. “My grandma used to sit behind me in a fancy chair and comb my hair. Afterward, she would bring out an ornate but beautiful hand mirror. Tell me how pretty my hair was, how pretty I was. I miss her.”
“How long ago did she die?”
“About five years ago.” She put the comb back on the dresser. “But I hadn’t seen her in ten.”
“And you feel guilty.” He took the necklace and tried it against the lock at different angles. “This one doesn’t fit.”
Alicia took the necklace and laid it back in its little niche. Taekwondo kept her from wearing it much, but it was her favorite piece. Grandma wore it every day. She remembered the day her grandma gave it to her.
“You still with me?”
“What? Oh, yes. Sorry. Just remembering.” Her fingers still rested on the necklace.
“How about I put that on you?” He took it out and held it out to her. She gave him her back so he could wrap it around her neck and close the catch.
She brushed her fingers against it as it rested against her skin. Inhaling deeply she fought the tears that threatened to fall.
“You okay?”
“I can feel her.” Alicia closed her eyes. “Her perfume of lilac is with me too.” She opened them back up. “Sorry.”
Max had picked up the comb and studied it. “This is beautiful.”
“Grandma always had beautiful things. This necklace was one of my favorites.” She touched it once again. “So was that comb. What I liked the most was the fake gems built into the handle.”
“I hate to say this but these aren’t fake. They look very real.”
“I’ve had them checked. It is what I do for a living. They’re made out of paste.”
“Come have a look.”
She walked up to Max and took the comb from his hand. “Your eyes are playing tricks on you.”
She held the comb up to the lights. It sure looked like the stones were real. She moved to a small lamp near the door. The gems looked like the normal paste stones she had seen before. But as she moved closer to the box the gems changed. “How very weird.”
“What?”
“Come here.” She walked back to the lamp and found the stones back to paste.
Max joined her and looked down at the comb. “I swear they looked real over there.”
“I know. Watch.” She started walking toward the box and the stones started to change. “What is going on here?”
“They’re enchanted.”
“There’s no such thing.”
“Oh? Then how do you explain the comb?” He pointed to the gems, which now glowed with a luster that made them look real.
“I don’t know. Haven’t had a chance to come up with a better excuse.”
“Since I don’t have a problem believing in things like magic I’m going to assume I’m headed in the right direction in thinking this is the key.”
“A comb?” She frowned. “Go ahead and try it. It’s not going to work.”
“You are so pessimistic.” The lock was an odd shape. He looked at the comb and the lock for several minutes before trying a corner. When that one didn’t work he tried the other end. He kept trying by using the side the tines. “Okay. I need to think this through.”
“I told you it couldn’t be the key.”
He waved at her to shush. She wanted to growl at him, but he studied the lock so intently she didn’t have the heart to. He studied the crown of the comb just as intently, before he flashed her a winning smile. He placed the comb against it at a particular angle and the lock popped open. “Still don’t believe in enchantment?”
“No. That opened because the comb fit and had nothing to do with the comb being enchanted. It would have done it with the paste stones too.”
“No, it wouldn’t, but you’re too pigheaded to see that.”
“Hey!” She jammed her hands on her hips.
“Don’t you want to see what is in this box?”
“Yeah.” She nodded. Alicia eased herself next to him and peered into the box. She couldn’t really see anything so stuck her hand inside. Bumping her fingers against something cold and hard she wrapped her fingers around it and drew it out. “Oh my God.”
It was her grandmother’s mirror, but there was no way it came out of the box. She laid the mirror next to the box to prove it was larger than the silver box. “How the hell did that come out of this little box?”
Max just shrugged.
“Oh shut up.” She looked at the antique mirror. The pewter handle and base gleamed in the light like silver did. She knew it was pewter. Grandma said silver was too expensive so a lot of people used pewter. “This just makes no sense.”
She looked into the box. It looked pretty standard. But when she sank her hand into the box she found no bottom. Her chest hit the box and still no bottom or sides for that matter.
Max put his face near hers. “Still don’t believe?”