Page 77 of Destiny

I take the bracelets off, set them each in front of the tarot spread that still sits on my table.

Three cards. Three bracelets.

Three golden rings.

Rings symbolize commitment. Eternity.

Then I pull out my grandfather’s future lawmakers ring.

Gold, like my bracelets.

I pick up my bracelets one by one, look at them.

On the inside, something is etched. Probably 14k or 10k for gold. Mom did say they were real gold, though not worth much. They’re lightweight, so that’s probably what she meant.

I run my fingers on the inside of them, and I feel…

I feel something else etched on the inside.

I take a look, but whatever it is isn’t visible to my naked eye. I need a magnifier of some sort. Maybe a jeweler’s loupe, but I don’t have one.

We don’t have a jewelry shop here in town, but Lucy at the antique shop probably has a loupe.

I leave the apartment and head to the antique shop.

“Ava!” Lucy looks up from a magazine. “Such a slow day today. It’s good to see you.”

“Hi, Lucy.”

“Are you looking for anything special?”

“I actually was wondering if you had a jeweler’s loupe I could borrow,” I say.

“Sure.” She pulls a loupe out of the drawer and hands it to me.

“Thanks, Lucy.”

First I take my grandfather’s ring out, take a look at the ridiculous symbol that Wendy Madigan created. Creative as well as evil. A painter, she said. Taking credit for Gina’s artwork.

Then I see the GPS coordinates etched inside along with my grandfather’s name. Bradford Steel.

Time to take a look at the bracelets. I grab one, view the etchings.

Turns out they’re just scratches. Nothing.

Then the next one.

The same. Simple scratches.

The third one then.

And I nearly drop the bracelet.

Clear as day, there are initials.

WM.

This doesn’t make any sense. These came from my mother’s mother, not Wendy Madigan.

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