The Secret Within The Locket - Miscellaneous - http://maxpages.com/buffyspage/The_Secret_Within_The

Peter Mallet’s boots sloshed and squished from the rain that had cascaded down from the
sky like silver bullets. Puddles littered the ground, glittering under the gas lamp’s light. Peter’s
head was covered with a black fishing hat. His long, tan duster scraped the ground as he stalked
into the sinister night. He had a mission to accomplish.

* * * *

“Mom, can I have some more salad, please?” asked a twelve year old Sarah Cappelli.
“Sure, honey,” came her mother’s voice. Gabriella Cappelli grabbed the cracked pottery
bowl that held the salad. The salad was nothing more than a few pieces of lettuce and small
chunks of stale cheese, but it was a luxury to poor families like the Cappelli’s.
Gabriella served her daughter a little bit of this mixture, not enough for a starving mouse,
and then took some for herself.
“So, what did you do today, Sarah?” she asked as she returned the bowl back to its
original place, right next to the water and the bowl of fruit. A very healthy family.
“I cleaned under my mattress and found all sorts of stuff. See?” Sarah said, taking a
lovely locket from around her neck.
“That’s beautiful, Sarah,” Gabriella replied. She was staring at the necklace in awe. It was
a silver locket with an exquisitely ingraved rose. It hung on a delicate gold chain.
“Do you know where it’s from, mom?” Sarah asked, looking quizzically at her mother’s
facial expression.
“No, I have no idea,” said Gabriella, still looking at the necklace.
“How about you, dad?” asked Sarah, turning to face her father at the other end of the
table, eyebrows raised.
“I’ve never seen it before. Maybe it was the person who lived here before us,” Alan
Cappelli suggested.
“I wonder. . .” Sarah left her sentence unfinished. She stared at the locket, thinking about
the possibilities.

* * * *

Peter stopped in front of the small, red brick, shack size building standing before him.
52 Old Spring Road, he thought to himself.
He saw a light go off, off towards the left of the house. He would return in the morning
for what was his.

* * * *

That night, Sarah couldn’t sleep. She had a feeling that someone was watching her. She
tossed and turned all night. She had nightmares and woke up in a cold sweat. She squinted at the
sunlight that flowed into her room from the window.
Sarah found herself breathing hard and gasping for air. She put her left hand to her head
and closed her eyes.
It was just a dream, she told herself. It was just a dream.
Sarah repeated this several times, but still could not shake the feeling about someone
searching for her. Watching. Waiting.
She brought herself to her feet and walked from her small room to the bit larger room the
family used as a kitchen and a dining room. Their house was not that big.
After having a slice or two of bread for breakfast, Sarah shuffled her way to her parents
room. They had already left for work.
“It must be around eight o’clock,” she mumbled.
She walked back to the room she called her own and sat on the bed. Dispite all the sleep
she didn’t get, she didn’t feel tired in the least.
Sarah started thinking about the feeling she had. A little tick, nagging the back of her
mind. She couldn’t place what it was or why she would feel it, but it was there. She was in such
deep thought that a strong knock on the wooden front door startled her.
Once again, Sarah got to her feet, groaning as she did so. She wasn’t tired, but her body
was exhausted.
She stumbled toward the door, almost knocking a chair over. The knock from the door
came again, louder.
“I’m almost there,” she complained in an agitated tone, and regretted it as soon as she did.
Sarah stopped dead in her tracks. She had no idea who was behind the door. If it had been one of
her parents, they would have said something. A sudden wave of fear swept over her. She didn’t
want to answer the door, but she had made her presence known to the person on the other side of
the door.
Sarah walked the next two feet to the door. She reached out her hand and grasped the
door knob. Then she yanked the door open, shivering violently.
With her eyes closed, she said hello in a shaky voice.
“You have something I want,” came the deep voice from the body covered by a black
fishing hat and a tan duster.
Overcome with fear, Sarah collapsed, unconscious.

* * * *

When she awoke, Sarah found herself back in her bedroom. She snapped to a sitting
position. Jerking her head from side to side, she looked around her room.
A figure appeared in the threshold, holding a cup.
“I’m sorry if I startled you,” said the man, in a surprisingly pleasant tone.
“Who are you?” Sarah asked, still very afraid.
“Someone who knows that you have something I want.” The man took a sip of the liquid
which occupied the cup he was holding.
“And what might that be?” Sarah asked, feeling anger start to take the place of fear.
“It’s hanging around your neck,” declared the stranger, a grin forming from his lips.
Sarah’s hands flew to her throat.
“The necklace,” she half whispered, half gasped as fingers grasped the smooth silver
locket.
“Yes. Very good. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll take it and be on my way.”
“No,” Sarah said firmly. “This is m necklace and I’m going to keep it.” She was not
letting anyone take her treasure away from her.
The stranger’s grin started to fade as he stared at Sarah with cold eyes.
“That locket belongs to me. It is mine. Do you understand?” the man said through
clenched teeth.
“Yes, I do understand. I understand that this is my necklace, which I found under my bed,
in my house and I would appreciate it if you would leave,” Sarah said sternly.
“Give me the necklace.” Whoever this man was, he wasn’t giving up without a fight.
But neither was Sarah.

Who will win the locket? Find out when The Secret Within the Locket : The Battle
comes out next fall.

aphrodite1111@hotmail.com

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Page Updated Fri May 7, 1999 4:50pm EDT