Chapter 13
I make it as far as two steps outside of the stable before I pull the little black bundle from my pocket, though I can’t help checking over my shoulder a few more times for either Cypress or anyone else that might be on his payroll before I open it.
While it had been in my coat, I’d been able to feel the weight of it, note the hard smooth surface beneath the fabric to the extent that I already suspected what it is. But when I pull the cloth away, I have to lean against the outside of the stable to steady myself.
It is a pocket watch. But it is not my pocket watch.
This one is beautiful, a fine polished silver with delicate flowers and sweeping lines etched into its lid, the pattern almost appearing chaotic until you look at it close enough to make out the three distinct overlapping circles that act as its foundation.
And inside—well, this one certainly functions, the three small silver hands ticking along over the simple clock face telling me how long I’ve been staring.
There’s no question in my mind that this cost a fortune. Likely more than any other style in the shop that sold it. Just as she’d said it did.
About ten minutes later (I can’t be precisely sure because for some reason continuing to use the watch feels like approval), I walk into the jeweler near the hotel for the second time.
When I do, I find the same young woman behind the counter, who looks only slightly more enthused to see me now than she had the day before.
“Morning, miss.” She’s got a green dress on today instead of the yellow, and something about the color tugs at me in a way I can’t place. “I’m afraid I need to bother you again.”
“No bother,” she tells me as she places the broach she’d been polishing back in its case, and I’d like to believe it. “How can I help you?”
“You told me yesterday that someone had come in and bought a watch.”
“That’s right,” she confirms, watching me approach with a bit more interest. “A lovely piece.”
I sigh, reaching into my pocket and pulling out the watch. I set it carefully on the counter in front of her before unwrapping it from the black fabric. “Would this be the one?”
Her eyes widen when she sees it, and she looks quickly between me and the item as if trying to understand how we could appear together. “It is.” She places a hand on her chest, her expression turning worried. “Don’t tell me…did something happen to Cypress?”
“Something’s going to,” I mutter, even more irritated that they seem to be on a first-name basis. “What did he tell you when he bought it?”
She frowns, crossing her arms. “I don’t make a habit of freely giving out my customers’ personal details. However it is that you came upon this watch, I suggest—”
“He gave it to me,” I say, stopping her before she can finish telling me off. “He left it on my bed this morning.”
She looks surprised, but then she smiles, her tone softening. “Oh. I see.”
“No.” I hold up a hand to stop her again. “No, he’s a—we are not—”
“Partners?” she suggests. “Why not? I’ll bet you make an…
” She looks me up and down and it dawns on me that I had done no more to my appearance this morning than pull on clothes to take the horse out.
“An interesting pair.” A quick glance at the hay on my shirt confirms that I am indeed not at my best, though she’s kind enough to not explicitly point that out as she says, “Opposites can attract, you know.”
I cough, nearly choking on the quick breath I pull in. “No, there is no…attracting going on here.”
“I see.” Her shoulders sag a little, but her disappointment is brief. “You must know each other well, though, for a gift this…extravagant. Would you happen to know if he is otherwise spoken for? I mean, is he available? Your friend?”
“Sure,” I say, not bothering to correct her the way I did the boy. What would be the point? “Just save your commissions for bail.”
She laughs, not believing for a second that I’m completely serious. “Well, perhaps when you see him, tell him…” She trails off, waving a hand and averting her eyes. “Never mind. Was there something else you needed?”
“Yes,” I say, still irked. “How much did he pay for this?”
“Oh.” Her mouth presses into a thin line.
“It wouldn’t be polite to say. After all, it was a gift.
” She looks once more at the watch, then at me.
“Do you not like it? He was worried you might not, but he was hoping this one could serve as a replacement for the other. Although, I have to say, that one wasn’t near the quality or—”
“He showed you the other watch?” I ask, knowing I’m being bad-mannered by continually interrupting but unable to prevent myself. “You told me no one came in to sell one.”
“That’s right,” she tells me, her patience clearly just as thin as mine. “He didn’t come in to sell one. He came in to have one fixed. Said he’d been all over town, but no one had been able to help. When I told him I couldn’t either, he decided to buy another.”
I think back to yesterday, to all the shops I had visited looking for him and my watch. I hadn’t described Cypress to any of them, only asked if someone had been in to sell a watch. I’d gone to the right places. I’d just simply asked the wrong question.
“Did he tell you why he wanted it fixed?” I ask. “Why he was going to all the trouble?”
“He did,” she replied, sounding dreamy again. “It was quite sweet, actually. He said he didn’t think you deserved to have something broken.”
“He…” I swallow, the words sticking in my throat as I try to make sense of it all. He doesn’t even know me, I want to say. He has no idea the kind of things I deserve.
Instead, I only tip my hat as I turn away. “Thank you, miss. I’m grateful to you.”
“Hold on a minute,” she calls after me, and I think she’s about to guess at who I am again before I see her carefully slide the watch and the silk wrapping back across the counter. “Don’t you think you ought to take this with you?”
I don’t. But I take it anyway.