Page 99 of Broken Princess

Last week I tracked down a woman I believe is the neighbors daughter. She lives in Italy and agreed to meet me with me. I can’t pass up this chance to finally get answers.

“Jordanna, you want me to bend, but you’re the inflexible one here. Just as tightly as you think my friends are holding on to their grudge. That’s the same thing you’re doing, now. I’m not gonna let them tell me who I can be with, but I won’t let you do it either. You need to trust me and let this irrational fear you have go, or we’ll never be able to move forward.”

I cross my hands over my chest. “What makes you think I want things to change from the way they are now?”

The vein in his jaw throbs. Turning he walks across the floor. Pausing with one foot on either side of the door, he says, “You know what? You’re right. We need some time apart.”

I may have overplayed my hand, but I’ll have to worry about that later.

Daniella Rossi reminds me of Grace Kelly. It’s the slope of her nose, the set of her eyes, and her poise. I fully expected to hear her say she’s married to a prince. It turns out she’s not. But her husbandwasan aide to the former Italian Ambassador.

“You said you had some questions about a missing heirloom?” She asks, offering me a seat.

“Yes. I’m researching an item that was purchased at an estate sale. I was able to track down the name of the designer, William Coultier, and I was told your family owned the space he rented for his business and was wondering if you knew of any families that may have done business with him.” I shuffle through my papers, and the picture of the ring floats to the floor. “Sorry, about that.”

She scoops the picture up and frowns.

“Beautiful isn’t it?”

“You mentioned a compact over the phone.” She looking up at me. “Are you also researching this ring?”

“I promised a shop keeper I’d come back and talk to him if I solved the mystery of the makeup case. You haven’t happened to see a ring like this before, have you?”

“I haven’t. Not in person, but I may have heard stories from my granny Judith.”

My ears perk up. “What kind of stories?”

“Back when my family lived in America, there was a boy.”

“A boy?”

“Yes. He was from one of the local families. They grew up together. The best of friends, and eventually, he came to see her as more than a friend.”

“Did she feel the same way about him?”

“I believe she did. From what I hear, they were to be married.” She strokes the picture with her thumb. “If I’m correct, this was supposed to be her wedding ring.”

“Was. I’m assuming it didn’t happen.”

“No, it didn’t. When her father found out, he refused to give his blessing, because in his eyes, she was already promised to someone else.”

An arranged marriage? Isn’t that the way these stories always go? “So the ring, she gave it back?”

“I was always under the assumption that she kept it, but I never paid much attention to the ending of the story as a kid, because it didn’t have any unicorns in it. Where did you say you saw it?”

“I actually stumbled across the ring, by accident. It was in a little shop I visited while researching the compact. I thought it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, so I took a picture.” Looking at her, it’s my turn to frown. “Mrs. Rossi, this doesn’t make any sense. If you think this was your great-grandmother’s ring, and she lived in California, how did it end up in a small town in New York?”

She points to the bookshelf behind me. “Hand me the blue book with the gold leaf lettering.”

I locate it and place it in her lap, once again taking my seat beside her. “Let’s see if we can find pictures or any mention of the ring.”

She flips through a few pages, and I point to a picture on the left side of the book. “Wait. This guy looks familiar. I feel like I’ve seen this photo before.”

“Perhaps in an old newspaper clipping or a movie? I’m told Great Uncle Bartholemew was quite the accomplished actor.”

“Maybe.”

Shaking her head, she closes the book after getting to the last page. My shoulders deflate. I’m not sure why I got my hopes up. Nothing about this has been easy since the moment Pepper showed me that shiny clamshell. But, I came here for more than the compact. I’m also trying to track the history of land ownership in Kingsley Hollows.

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