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“We got so excited to come in, we probably should have checked the door first,” Jensen apologizes with a smile.
The man's smile widens as his eyes warm. “No, no. We aren’t closed. You are more than welcome to come in and have a look around. Maybe something will catch your eye.”
“I’m sure that multiple things will,” I admit, my gaze already on the fantastic things around us.
“Alright, I’m going to set an alarm on my watch for when we have to be back at the car, because we’re both going to get happily lost in here,” Jensen suggests as he glances at me.
The man chuckles, “You’re definitely my kind of people. I’m Marcel.”
He holds his hand out to us, and I see a flash of challenge cross his eyes, which is weird, but it's gone before I can be sure that I’m identifying it correctly.
I reach out and grasp his hand, smiling warmly. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Ever, and this is Jensen. Hopefully this won’t be the last time that you see us.”
“It’s very nice to meet you,” he replies.
Jensen doesn’t wait and immediately holds out his hand. “It’s great to meet you too.” He says as he shakes Marcel’s hand enthusiastically, making Marcel chuckle. Jensen pulls back his hand and asks, “Weird question, but do you have any weapons here?”
Instead of tensing or becoming suspicious, Marcel simply replies, “Have a look in the back corner of the store,” he points in the direction that he means. “I’m pretty sure that there were some back there last time I was over there. It’s quite difficult to keep track of everything in a place like this.”
“Awesome, thank you,” Jensen replies, rocking on his toes and trying not to bounce.
“I’ll leave you to it,” Marcel smiles. “Let me know if you need anything.” He points to an overflowing desk that holds a cash register, whether it’s a working one or something that is being sold in the store, I don’t know, but I love it either way. He says, “I’ll be over there.”
Chapter Twenty
Ever
“Thank you,” I reply, excitedly.
Marcel wanders off, and Jensen immediately looks down at me. “It’s a lot bigger in here than it looked from the outside. Do you want to come with me or see what treasure you can find?”
He knows me so well. “I’m going hunting for treasure. Come and find me if the alarm goes off or if you find something really awesome.”
“I will, you too,” he replies.
I nod and then dive through the rows to see what I can find, going in the opposite direction to Jensen.
There is so much to look at, and it’s all mixed together. Books on the same shelf as old toys and jewelry. Kitchen appliances, with shoes in them or next to them, which seems unsanitary, but the kitchen appliances are probably hundreds of years old and would most likely be just decorative at this point. It’s a real mismatch. There are stacks of paintings leaning against the shelves that you need to flip through in order to see properly. Some of them are in beautifully ornate frames, and some of them don’t have any frames at all.
Weird metal things that I’m not quite sure what they are, stand in the same stand as umbrellas. Huge gorgeously carved chests of drawers are dotted all around, and the drawers are actually full of all sorts of random things.
I lose myself in exploring, and it brings me so much peace.
As I explore, I add things to my arms. A little silver ring box with foxes carved on top, a vase that has a snowy night scene painted on it, a book full of ancient herbal medicines and tinctures, which I find absolutely fascinating, and the pictures in it are all hand-drawn and so breathtakingly stunning I couldn’t help but pick it up. It’s coming home with me. I didn’t even check the price. I don’t care. It’s mine, and it’s as simple as that.
It comes as a very close second to my actual favorite find though.
Jensen is going to be so stoked, and I can’t wait to show him, but I also don’t want to waste time going to find him so I can show him right now. I’ll show him later.
So far, my favorite find is a sword.
Weirdly, I found it with a load of other random things in a wooden coat rack, hidden behind a fur coat, a bright yellow rain jacket, and next to a fire poker.
I love the absolute chaos of this place.
The weight of it feels great in my hand, and the blade, although it does need sharpening, isn’t damaged. There are no chunks or anything taken out of it, which is surprising considering its obvious age. The thing that attracted me to it the most was the fact that it’s not flat silver, like nearly all swords I’ve seen before. I am by no means an expert on them. I, in fact, know very little about swords, but I can confidently say that I have never seen one like this.
Going all the way from the handle right to the tip of the blade and wrapping around the entire thing are strands of bright copper, dark bronze, black, and there’s even some gold threading through the design. The base color is still silver, and it makes the other colors pop. The handle used to be carved with something, but it’s so old now and so worn by the hands that have held it before mine that I can’t make out what the pattern was.
