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I stepped out of the car and stretched my legs. The three hour drive had given me plenty of time to think about how to raise the jewelry topic with my mom. I’d taken pictures of the receipts with my phone, before carefully placing them and the silver jewelry back into their drawers.
I hoped Kai found the note I left for him. Was he on his way to Bishop’s Creek now? It was warm and still light out. I could look for myself. The creek was only a ten minute walk from home.
“Hazel, is that you?”
I sighed, glancing between the open kitchen window and the road that led to the creek. Meeting up with Kai would need to happen later, assuming he had decided to travel to me.
“I’ll be right in,” I said, making quick work of gathering my tote and other bags I’d taken to the lake.
Mom fussed over me as I walked through the front door. A smile lit her pale blue eyes. “How was your weekend?” she said.
“It was great. Pap even made me a mermaid cake.” I carefully observed Mom’s reaction, looking for clues as to whether she knew about the Perlnauts.
She brushed back ebony strands that had escaped her ponytail. “Oh, that’s sweet.”
If she knew something, she wasn’t dropping any hints.
I held out my phone to show her a picture I’d taken.
Her eyes narrowed. “This is professional quality. I never knew my father could bake like this.”
“Agreed.” I shrugged. “He said Grandma used to make this cake for guests.”
“Hmm. It would appear he paid close attention to her baking.”
I frowned, following her to the kitchen table where she was busily setting out sandwiches and glasses of lemonade. While Mom seemed genuinely interested in my weekend visit, I didn’t think she could provide information that would help me with the L’even pearl situation.
“Pap also gave me a gift,” I said. “A necklace that belonged to Grandma.”
She glanced at my bare neck.
I blushed. “I lost it, though, near the lake.”
“Oh, Hazel.” She sighed. “Was he upset?”
“No. In fact, he offered to give me another item from Grandma’s collection. I chose a matching bracelet.”
Mom looked at my bare wrists and frowned. “You lost the bracelet too?”
“Lost, no. But I left it with someone at the lake.”
Her eyes widened. “Who?”
“I, um, will get to that part eventually.” I sucked in a breath. “Mom, did you ever see any of Grandma’s silver jewelry with clusters of freshwater pearls?”
Her jaw dropped. “Your grandfather gave you some of my mother’s pearls?”
I nodded. Unease filled my chest. Mom not only knew about the jewelry, she’d confirmed how valuable it had been to Grandma.
Mom’s gaze shifted from my burning face to the open window. “I loved when my mother would wear those pieces. I’d always felt something special—majestic—coming from them.”
“You—you did?”
She nodded. “I was obsessed with the pearl jewelry. Your grandmother started the collection before I left for college. Each new piece felt like a celebration.”
“Why haven’t you mentioned them before?”
Mom shrugged. “At some point, she stopped wearing the pieces and stowed them away.”
“Really?” I said, more to myself. That was odd. I bit my lower lip. “Do you know why?”
“No. It didn’t seem a big deal at the time.” She sipped from her glass of lemonade. “I haven’t thought about this in a while.”
“But you said you were obsessed with the jewelry.” I stared at Mom, confused. “Doesn’t sound like something you could easily forget.”
She laughed. “Are you okay, Hazel?”
“Yes, but—”
“Maybe you should rest from your long drive.”
I sighed. “You’re probably right. Sorry for being intense.”
“It’s fine,” Mom said, gathering our empty plates. “But I am curious about what you’d mentioned earlier.”
“What’s that?”
“Who did you leave the bracelet with?”
“Oh, yeah.” I pressed my hands to the tabletop, noting the uncovered skin around my wrist—wondering if Kai was wearing the bracelet now. “You’re not the first person I’ve met who had an obsession with the pearl jewelry. But don’t worry,” I said, stalling. “I’ll meet up with him soon so I can ask to take it back.”
“Him? You met a boy? At the lake?”
A boy? If only it were that simple.