An Old Heirloom

“So, what’s the catch?”

The deal was much too good to be true. She had been in mourning for the last few days, then her grandmother’s supposed ‘lawyer’ showed up, telling her she was the only one included in the will. Caroline was conflicted, to say the least. True, out of the rest of her siblings and cousins it was Caroline who was closest to her grandmother. It was Caroline who visited the most often. It was Caroline who was with her grandmother when the elderly woman eventually did pass on thanks to organ failure. Old age finally caught up to Granny Enise. 

Enise was always there for Caroline. Especially on the days when the girl’s parents could not seem to deal with their daughter’s intense curiosity. The young girl’s constant, never-ending string of questions seemed to weigh heavily on the parents. But Granny Enise would answer every single one. The woman was a saint, at least to the younger girl. As Caroline grew older, so too did her respect for her grandmother. 

“What sort of ‘catch’ are you expecting exactly?” The sweaty man’s hands tightened on his briefcase. He was nervous, though he tried his best not to show it. 

“I mean, I expected to get something in Granny’s will for sure. Not to sound arrogant or anything.  The rest of the family never seemed to want to visit or never had the time, but I always enjoyed our time spent together. But something like this? I’ve never seen this before, nor did Granny ever mention having anything of the sort. Honestly, this thing looks like it should be in a museum. And for me to be the one to get it…like, why does it not go to my mom instead? She was Granny’s only daughter.”

On the table between the two of them lay a rather expensive-looking necklace. Despite being made of a style that seemed to originate from the 1800s, it held a quality as if it had been made just recently. It was shiny and seemed to have no scratches anywhere. The silver chain was made into a filigree-like pattern. At the end of the chain, it held a ruby. Throughout their conversation, Caroline would swear up and down that she could see some sort of liquid moving around inside of it. 

“Yes, well, you see, your Grandmother explicitly stated in her will that she wished for you and you alone to receive this heirloom. No exceptions.”

“So no catch then?”

“None at all, Miss.”

Seeing as the man appeared almost desperate to get Caroline to take the thing, and how she was tired of going in circles, the woman let out a sigh. “Alright, I’ll take it.”

The man’s entire body seemed to relax as if a burden had been lifted from his shoulders. “That is most good news! Most good news indeed. Now if you will just sign this paper and I may be on my way.” He pulled a paper from within the briefcase and placed it in front of Caroline. The paper itself was yellow with age. Caroline attempted to read the words it held just to be sure, but quickly gave up as they were in a fancy script that was unreadable to her. She had just finished her signature when the paper was whisked away and placed back into the briefcase. In a flash the man stood. “It was a pleasure meeting with you, Miss. Again, my condolences on your loss and I do hope you have a wonderful day.” Caroline barely opened her mouth to respond, but the man was already out of the house. 

The woman sat in her chair for a few more moments before her mind finally caught up with the situation and brought her attention back to the necklace. It was beautiful, though Caroline was still skeptical of it. Surely Granny would have mentioned something like this before. No matter how hard Caroline thought about it, she could never remember her grandmother ever mentioning or showing such a thing to her. Come to think of it, Caroline never saw anything like this in any of her grandmother’s old photos either. Perhaps it was something to deal with later, though, as Caroline still needed to go out and grab her groceries for the week. 

Gently, Caroline reached out and picked up the necklace. She expected it to seem frail, but instead it felt like any other expensive necklaces she had touched before. Without a second thought, Caroline lifted it above her head and brought it down to her neck. A glance in the mirror seemed to solidify the decision, as Caroline felt an ethereal beauty as she looked at herself in the mirror. Yes, she would wear it out today. After all, it was hers to do with as she pleased. 

The local grocery store was only about five miles away from her home. Once inside, Caroline swiftly took the nearest available cart and continued on. She soon found herself sorting through the yams. For a moment she found it odd, as she had never really enjoyed the vegetable. Then she remembered how Granny Enise always did love her sweet potato pie. Caroline discarded the thought for the time being before going on to finish her shopping. 

Back home, Caroline swiftly began making said sweet potato pie. After all, she had bought yams, so why not use them. While the pie cooked, Caroline sat down in her living room to watch television. Though she did not have anything in particular in mind, Caroline’s hand seemed to know what to do as she picked up the remote. The screen switched to something in black and white. It was a much older show, one Granny Enise used to love. Caroline’s mind seemed to drift for some time as she watched, unaware of the rest of the world around her. It was not until her oven’s timer went off that she was brought back. Though, she soon returned to the same state as she sat in front of the television, only this time with a slice of sweet potato pie and a smile on her face. 

Later in the night Caroline began preparing for bed. She dressed in an older-styled nightgown. A nightgown gifted to her by Granny Enise. As she lay in bed, slowly drifting off to sleep, Caroline muttered to herself with a smile. 

“Granny will look after you now, my dear Caroline.”