Eternal (5)

Mirra relayed last night’s events, leaving out only the part where she jumped out of the car and portrayed the scared psycho chick. When she finished, Jamie had her hand out expectantly, waiting to see the cameo. Mirra looked dumbly at her outstretched hand, and then realized what she wanted.1

“Oh, shit, I left it in the car. I’ll go get it,” Mirra said as she turned. It took her a minute to locate it because it had slipped up under the passenger seat. When she handed the cameo to her best friend, Jamie’s face took on a worried look.2

“What?” Mirra demanded.3

“Either this is a damn good replica, or this piece is really expensive. It has to be a fake,” she reasoned. She was walking absentmindedly to the back of the store to get her jewelers glass. “Let me look at these stones, no one would put diamonds in a fake,” she reasoned. “Holy shit, Mirra,” she whispered in awe, “these are the highest quality diamonds I’ve ever seen… every one of them is almost perfect. And look, this piece isn’t marked.”4

“What does that mean, they aren’t marked?5

“Well,” Jamie explained, “Now days we mark all our jewelry, you know, 10K, 12K, you know, so we can tell the quality and the customer can see exactly what he’s getting.” She mused, “I don’t get this… These look like F1 diamonds...”6

“So what are you telling me? This thing is real, and it’s so old when it was made they didn’t do stuff like that? Somebody broke into my house, didn’t steal anything, and left me a piece of jewelry that’s got flawless diamonds in it? That’s crazy.”7

“That’s what I’m telling you. Mirra, just one of the tiniest stones would sell for at least three grand, minimum.” Jamie stared at her. “Really, where’d you get this?” She held up the cameo which sparkled in the artificial light.8

“I told you.” Mirra dropped her head, “I think he left it for me to find.”9

“Well, who the hell is he?” Jamie almost screamed, “Give him my fucking address. I can stand a little spookiness for a piece like this.” She shook the cameo. “Mirra this thing is genuine. Its intricacies are amazing. Look, it’s not pieced. It’s all carved from one stone, like by a master craftsman. No molds, do you understand? It’s agate. But something’s weird about it…” She was examining the piece and really talking to herself. “Can I keep this for a while? I want to study it some more.”10

Mirra stared at her dumbly and nodded. “I feel sick. Can I go to your place and lay down?”11

Jamie looked at her incredulously. “Yeah, if that’s what you want. Here’s my key.” She took it off of her keychain. “I’ll close at five and see you then. Are you OK?”12

“Yeah, I just need some time to think.” Mirra took the key and turned toward the door. “I just need some time by myself.”13

Mirra unlocked the door to Jamie’s house and walked in. Ice cold air was forced into her lungs, and she reveled in it. She needed something to wake her up. This must be a dream… or a nightmare. She couldn’t tell which just yet. The refrigerator offered a fine selection of wines, but Mirra grabbed a Bud Light instead. She wondered over to the couch, flipped on the TV, and lit a cigarette while she channel surfed and drank. She tried her best not to think about what was happening to her. It was incredible. Unbelievable, really. The man’s image seemed to haunt her. Something about him scared her, but at the same time drew her to him. It had to be her mind playing tricks on her, but he seemed to ooze that masculine sensuality that she found so attractive. She found herself trying to remember exactly what he looked like. How tall was he? He seemed to be seven feet tall in her memory.14

Stop it! She told herself. Why do I always daydream about men? Why do I always make them out to be better than they are? I should despise them all. She grinned sheepishly to herself as her old saying slid from her lips, “Love is a myth.” It should be. She thought. Lord knows, I have exactly no luck with men.15

Mirra’s eyes clouded over with tears that threatened to spill over their fragile boundary and snake down her face. She should be glad that she didn’t have Brad in her life anymore. Hell, she was the one who’d made the decision, but somehow, she was still ready to bawl and she didn’t know why. He wasn’t worth a damn. Just like all the other men in her life. Boy, could she pick ‘em! She didn’t know if any of her ex boyfriends would ever be able to hold a job for more than a year. They had all had one thing in common, though. They knew how to use her to get what they wanted. Chris wanted someone to possess like a bird in a gilded cage. Jim wanted the younger girl to show off to his buddies like a fucking trophy. Bo wanted social stature. Rush wanted money and someone to build up his self esteem. The list was endless and with every man and every break up, Mirra lost a piece of herself.16

It seemed with all the pieces broken and scattered, the holes in her heart and in her soul would never mend. And it was always the same. She was always the one to end the relationship long after she knew it was over and she always felt like warmed over dog shit. She couldn’t figure out how it was possible to know for sure what you were doing was the right thing and still feel so drained and depressed and lonely.17

Mirra couldn’t pinpoint the reason the tears began to flow, but they had and she knew from experience there would be more to follow. She drained her beer, wiped the tears from her eyes and walked to the fridge to get another. Mirra decided she just needed to get drunk. Just like the old days, before the reality of grade point averages and entrance to Med School had straightened her out. She laughed out loud. Straightened her out? Who was cutting class, as a matter of fact, who was blowing off a test right about now? She was, and she didn’t give a damn. Mirra felt her old attitude returning. Fuck the world. Fuck men. She’d just turn lesbo if she thought she could stomach the sex. Mirra shook her head unconsciously at the thought. “Not me. Find ‘em, fuck ‘em, and forget ‘em. That’s the attitude I need to get back.” She told the silence. “I need to start taking care of number one again.”18

Mirra decided to take a nap until Jamie got home so she found a bedroom and lay down, waiting for sleep to come. When it did, he was in her dreams, smiling. Not that throat slitting smile, but a seductive subtle movement of this upper lip that parted just enough to show his right canine. It was ivory white. So sensual, so masculine, so charismatic, that in her dream she went to him with open arms. His powerful body enveloped her and held her in an iron clad embrace of satin. He lifted her chin, and looked deep into her wanting eyes. Fiery passion flew from his steel blue orbs and seared a path directly to her heart. When he bent to kiss her, she realized she could never want for a better lover. No man could see to her desires like he would. His kiss was deep and possessing, yet soft and caressing. Mirra knew she had never been kissed like this before. It was utterly perfect. Her knees began to go weak and her mind floated above her as she thought of nothing else but making love to him. Sweet, long, hard, soft, love.19

Mirra awoke to Jamie sitting on the bed shaking her. “Hey, what… Oh, hi.” Jamie laughed at Mirra’s groggy voice.20

“Long night, huh? You slept all day. Well, you just wake your ass up and tell me what the hell is going on. I called a buddy of mine and sent him digital pics of your cameo. He thinks the same thing I do. Mirra, I really think you’ve got an authentic Hellenistic cameo on your hands. The only thing is, there are no known cameos from that era with diamond insets like yours. If I’m right, you have a one of a kind. A piece that will change what we know about the history of jewelry!”21

Mirra looked at her stupidly. “What’s Hellenistic?”22

“Shit. This cameo is from a period from about three hundred years before the birth of Christ! Do you hear what I’m saying? We thought the Etruscans who were in Tuscany in Northern Italy about the late 8th Century BC mastered granulation… gold adheration on jewelry. You know, attaching the gold frame to the agate stone relief? This thing is from the time preceding Alexander the Great! Do you understand me? I really think this thing belongs in a God damn museum. We, John, my jeweler buddy, and I, think the image is of an Egyptian Queen... maybe Arsinoe… or someone even older. The only thing that makes me think it’s not what I think it is, is because of the diamonds. I just don’t know of any pieces jeweled like that from that time period. Shit, what if it was in a museum and it’s stolen?” Jamie drew a breath, red-faced from her tirade.23

It was too much for Mirra to take in. “Jamie, I’m scared." She took a deep breath. "You know how I’ve always said it would be cool to be a vampire?”24

“Hell yes. Why the hell else do you think I was your friend? Everyone else thought you were a nerd.” Jamie laughed, trying to lighten the situation. Then she looked at her friend in a whole different light as Mirra’s face didn’t crack a smile. “You’re not serious are you? What… you think that weirdo who left you the cameo was a vampire? Come on.” Jamie laughed a little nervously.25

Ever since Mirra was a little girl, she had been infatuated with vampires. Mirra had what her friends thought of as a slightly odd collection. She owned every vampire movie ever produced. She bought every vampyric novel that she came across at the bookstore. Her library at home was filled with every book on the subject she could find, fiction and nonfiction alike. Some people collect angels and unicorns; Mirra collected vampires. Of course, no two books or movies on the subject agreed exactly on the extent of their powers. Some claimed they could fly and some said they could only fly as bats. She loved to read about them. They were her escape from reality. They were truly free. They had no boundaries. No everyday worries. They could do whatever they wanted and answered to no one. In the movies, they had no money problems, and the opposite sex dropped to their knees at their command. She loved the complete power vampires possessed. 26

She dressed up like a vampire at Halloween. Not that she was a “Goth”, those people who dressed entirely in black, painted their nails and hair black, and seemed to have a wish to lie down in graves. She was the normal American girl, but she liked the idea of the incredible, decadent world of vampires. She loved the very idea of creatures of the night that remained beautiful forever, unbound by the laws of conventional society. Free to do what they wanted, unstoppable, limited only by the darkness of night. The lure of the power of darkness intrigued her. Mirra always thought it would be cool to be a vampire.27

She even found the vampire network on the internet. The first time she logged on, she stayed on the chat board all night long. It felt weird to know that so many others felt the same way she did. Of course, the people on there that claimed to be real vampires made her wonder about their sanity. It was one thing to dress up at Halloween and another to actually think you were a real blood sucker... and those people really believed they were vamps. Mirra had logged on under several different names and held several different stances on the subject. She played along with their little fantasy games a few times and even asked if someone would come baptize her in their blood and bring her over to the dark side. A few times, she pretended she was already one of the living dead and was looking for someone to become her new fledgling because her old one had been staked. Once she had been a complete non believer and had pissed a few of them off. Her email was full of threats for quite a while. It was then that she decided not to deal too much with those psycho types.28

“Jamie, you’ve got to admit this whole situation is completely bizarre. What kind of person would break into a house and leave a fabulous piece of jewelry? Most thieves steal. Get it? I don’t know what is going on, but I’m getting pretty worried,” Mirra took a deep breath, “Jamie, I dream about him. I see him when he isn’t here. I don’t know what’s going on. I think I’m losing my grip.”29

“Mirra, you’re just stressing out. You need a break. You’re not any crazier than you ever were. Just chill out a while and let’s think this out rationally. There is no proof that any of this has to do with the guy you saw at the stop sign. It could be one of your old boyfriends trying to get back together with you or something. Maybe Brad is trying to be sweet.” Jamie knew she was lying, but said it anyway.30

“Oh, yeah, Jamie, clue in. None of my ex’s has a pot to piss in, let alone a window to throw it out of. You know no one I know has the type of money to buy a piece of jewelry like that.” Mirra’s retort was sarcastic.31

Jamie smiled, “I never said they bought it, did I?”32

Mirra cracked a grin. Her luck with men wasn’t what you’d call spectacular and she wasn’t the best at facing the facts. Her friends would tell her the men she dated were losers, but she wouldn’t believe until it was too late. She dated a drug addict for almost a year before she finally found out the truth the hard way. Yes, she was definitely a bum magnet. She had even had one guy tell her that her life wasn’t worth fifty bucks to him. He knew a black guy who would blow her away for that price. At the time he had broken down her apartment door and was waving a gun in her face. It wasn’t hard to believe that one of her ex boyfriends was a thief. But it was hard for her to believe that they had enough balls to pull off a theft of this magnitude then leave her a piece of jewelry like that without a note or something to give credit to themself.33

“Jamie, who do you know that is smart enough to pull off a crime like that, and at the same time dumb enough to give it to me?”34

“Well, I never said any of your men were in danger of winning the Nobel Prize, did I? Hell, I don’t know. Maybe it’s not what I think it is at all, but those diamonds are sure as hell real. I’ll have to call someone to come down and give me an appraisal on it. I don’t even know who the hell would know anything about it, though.” Jamie’s face took on a thoughtful look. “But I do know one thing. If it was stolen, it would sure as hell make the papers. Want to go get one?”35

“Sure,” Mirra said, “Maybe we could grab a bite to eat before I get arrested for trying to fence stolen jewels.” She laughed, “You know that’s what they’ll think if they catch me and you with it.”36

Jamie looked at her, truly worried for the first time. “Oh, shit, you’re right. I gotta go get that thing out of my safe! Hurry up, let’s get outta here.”37

They took Jamie’s Lincoln Town Car back to her store and Jamie grabbed the cameo out of her safe and gave it back to her best friend. “No offense, but I really don’t want to go to jail. Let’s go get that paper, and if it’s in there, let’s take it to the cops, OK?”38

“Sure,” Mirra agreed. “It was fun being a millionaire while it lasted.”39

They left the jewelry store and stopped at a Quick Mart to grab the Dallas paper. “Let me see it,” Mirra snatched the paper from Jamie’s hand and opened it up. Neither of them found a reference to a jewel heist or any reference to the mysterious cameo. “Maybe they don’t know it’s stolen yet,” Mirra surmised. “What should I do? Turn it in anyway?”40

“I don’t know. Yeah, probably. Hey, if you turn it in and no one claims it in thirty days, it’s legally yours, and it’ll save your ass if it does come up stolen. What do you think?”41

Twenty minutes later, they pulled up in front of the police office and marched their way in. They waited forty-five minutes for Detective Willis to take their statements. He had an astonished look on his face when he heard their story. “You found this cameo in your house and you think it may be stolen? And you,” he said gesturing toward Jamie, “are a jeweler who says this thing is worth what?”42

Jamie choked. “If it’s what I think it is, a rare one of a kind antique that can revamp all of what we know about the time period development of jewelry making. The value is beyond what I can say, but I know for a fact that the diamonds alone are worth about a quarter of a million dollars.”43

“If you two are jerking my chain…,” Detective Willis’ voice trailed off.44

“No, honest, officer, I found it just lying on my pillow. It kind of scares me that someone broke into my house and didn’t take anything.” Mirra looked at him pleadingly.45

“Well, how did they get in?” the detective asked.46

“I don’t know,” Mirra replied, “The doors were locked and so were the windows. They didn’t break anything to get in.”47

“All I can tell you about that is to file a report in… Where was it you said you lived?”48

“Oklahoma City.”49

“File a report with the Oklahoma City police for breaking and entering, but without forced entry, I am inclined to believe it was someone you gave a key to.” He looked thoughtful. “Do you rent a place where a past tenant could still have a key?”50

“I guess they could. I do live in a rent house, but I haven’t given anyone a key that would do this.”51

As they walked out of the station, Mirra and Jamie were both pissed off. “You try to do the right thing and people look at you like you were crooks. That asshole didn’t believe a word we said. If this thing does come up stolen, which I’m sure it will, the first place he looks will be at us. He probably thinks we stole it and felt bad or thought we’d get caught and tried to look good and turn it in.” Jamie was livid. “That asshole!”52

“Aw, fuck it, they can’t do anything. Let's go grab a bite to eat. I’m starving.”53

“Where do you want to go?” Jamie asked.54

“How about the Olive Garden? It’s been a while since I ate there.”55

Mirra forgot her troubles for a while as the two reminisced the old days and caught each other up on the latest gossip. Jamie always could make her feel better. She was hilarious and she knew just when to throw in those old colloquialisms that hit home. Mirra was so happy for Jamie that her marriage to Clinton was going great and her store was thriving. If anybody deserved to be happy it was Jamie. She was the epitome of what a best friend should be, and she and Mirra were linked. Months could go by where they never spoke a word, yet one phone call, and the two could pick right up as though they had never been apart.56

Mirra got Jamie through a few classes in high school and Jamie got Mirra through a few hundred crises in life. There had never been two better friends. They laughed about Mirra driving Jamie and her boyfriend of the month around in the backseat while Mirra sat up front and called out time limits. “Ya’ll got fifteen minutes till we gotta go home!” Talk about putting pressure on a guy.57

In high school, what better proof of friendship was there than letting your best friend break in your backseat before you got to? Mirra and Jamie had had more than their share of fun. Their favorite place to party had been the grave yard. What better place could there be?58

Mirra was feeling a lot better by the time they downed two bottles of red wine and finished their meal, but she still hadn’t forgotten her problems completely. Jamie still held fast to her notion that one of her old boyfriends had left her the cameo. “Even if it was this freak guy, Mirra, who says he’s a fucking vampire? Come on. I mean, really, I know you’ve always said you wanted to be one, but you never really thought you would, did ya?”59

That question really hit home. Mirra had always said she’d jump at the chance to have immortality and would gladly pay the price by sucking a little blood, but did she ever in her heart expect her dream to come true? She answered herself and Jamie in a hushed undertone, “Not until now.”60

Jamie just looked at her best friend. She knew this guy was playing a major fucking mind trip on her, but she didn’t know how to stop it or make Mirra feel better. It was slowly dawning on her that her best friend really and truly believed that a God damned vampire was after her. Always before it had been fun and games, and Mirra had kidded and joked around and Jamie had found it fun to egg her on, but now??? She changed the subject. “Come on, let’s get out of here before they have us back there washing dishes and Clint thinks I’ve run off with a Harry Krishna.”61

Mirra smiled and slid out of the chair. Jamie didn’t believe her. For the first time in her life she was completely alone. Even Jamie wasn’t on her side. She had never felt this way before. Always, Jamie had been there to help her through her problems, if not give her the answer to them; but now she was utterly alone. 62

Mirra spent the night in the guest bedroom and tried to think rationally. No sane answer presented itself. She must be flipping out. She was awarded some comfort that night by the fact that he didn’t invade her dreams. By some odd miracle, she found sleep and the rest she so needed.63

When Jamie left for work the next morning, Mirra went home. She couldn’t believe she’d actually blown off her classes yesterday. She’d better come up with a damned good excuse. Here I am, she thought, a first year med student, having a nervous breakdown thinking I’m being stalked by a vampire. Wonder if I could get financial aid for the psychologically underprivileged? 64

Mirra made her afternoon classes and then stopped by her other professor’s offices to make amends and get the assignments. She told them her house had been broken into and she had been too scared to stay there by herself so she went to a friends and filed the police report, etc., etc., In essence, it had disturbed her and she hadn’t gotten any sleep and couldn’t concentrate on school, blah, blah, blah. They didn’t give a shit.65

She didn’t either right then, so she went to a tavern and had a burger, cheese fries, and a six pack of beer. It was getting late when she left, and the only thing she really wanted was a hot bath. 66

Her house was just as she had left it, but she didn’t feel secure in it, no matter how much she tried to tell herself that she did. She checked her 9 millimeter handgun, made sure the clip contained all thirty-two rounds, and pumped one into the chamber. Then she checked her 357 magnum and her quick loader to make sure they were ready to rock and fire. She felt a little better, but not much. She promised herself that tomorrow she would find an apartment that allowed pets and move so she could bring Knight back from her parent’s house. She would feel worlds more secure with her three year old Rottweiler guarding the place. She wished she’d never taken this place, but it had been the best house she could find at the time.67

Mirra lay back in the hot water and let its steaming bubbles cover everything except her nose. Under its warm caress, she relaxed. The feel of the strawberry scented orbs exploding on her skin was titillating. She exhaled slowly, and her feet climbed the wall over the faucet reveling in its coolness in opposition to the near scalding water that caused Mirra’s skin to redden. Mirra slowly sat up in the water once again pulling her feet into its shallow heat. She closed her eyes and laid her head back on the chilly tile.68

Too soon the water cooled and the bubbles left the tub. Mirra climbed out and toweled off. She ran her fingers through her curly locks, now shining ebony, while she applied moisturizer and mousse to it. She brushed her teeth, flicked off the light, and strode into the bedroom.69

The room was the epitome of college life. Her box springs rested on the carpeted floor and on her queen size mattress, the covers were piled in knots. Her childhood dresser with a handle missing held her open jewelry box which displayed her few rings, necklaces, and countless earrings she seldom wore. The fossil watch she liked so much lay on her clothes from the day before which were thrown haphazardly on the bureau. On impulse she wound the music box Tony had given her. As the mirrored ring spun slowly, the tiny glass doves perched atop it caught the reflected light and sparkled as “Memories” flowed out.70

She thought of Tony and how horribly she had treated him. He had been the sweetest man she’d ever gone out with, and she’d dismissed him ruthlessly. Humiliated him. She couldn’t regret it. She told herself. It couldn’t work. Her friends told her she was crazy for treating a man so obviously in love with her like shit. Tony had been a huge man, the kind she liked to have around because he made her feel small. There weren’t too many men out there that could dwarf her six foot tall frame. His shoulders were broad and his chest was thick and manly. Tony’s demeanor was that of a great big loving teddy bear… sweet and protective. He just wasn’t good enough for her. She could never love a man she was better than, and she was better than Tony. That sounded cold and arrogant, but it wasn’t. Mirra couldn’t love someone who wasn’t her equal, and poor Tony wasn’t. She was ten times smarter than him, but worse than that, she was ashamed to admit, he’d had some bumps like pimples on his back that utterly repulsed her. She couldn’t touch his back. Sometimes, she wanted to regret not letting him love her. He treated her like a queen; he put her on a pedestal and literally worshiped her. Every woman wants that sort of admiration and unconditional love, but Mirra had deliberately turned away from it.71

She switched off the overhead light and slipped into bed. Mirra liked to sleep in the nude. She never could stand the feel of clothes choking her. She closed her eyes and tried to rest. She squirmed under the tangled covers and kicked to straighten them out. She looked at her alarm clock. It was just past midnight. Mirra sighed, knowing tomorrow would be a long day. It always took her an hour to fall asleep and she mentally counted the hours she could rest before the alarm went off. She thought about resetting the clock and skipping her two morning classes, but didn’t. Instead, she rolled over and pulled a pillow to her chest and hugged it tight. After several tosses and turns, sleep finally found her.72

Mirra’s eyes flew open, straining against the blackness. A cold chill was flying up and down her spine. She felt someone watching her from the darkness. Some semblance of sanity or self preservation reminded her of the nine millimeter resting on the milk crate by the bed that served as a nightstand. As she began to slowly reach for it while moving no other muscle in her body, her eyes picked out the dark form standing in her doorway. Instinct overrode fear and she grabbed the gun as the form spoke.73