Gemotions

The air in the shop hung heavy, thick with the scent of dust and something metallic. Sarah's shoulders were rigid, her back stiff. She touched the smooth surface of the counter, feeling the chill seeping into her skin. Her legs trembled slightly. This was a place of forgotten memories and lost treasures. Her grandfather, after his wife’s passing, had been lost, and with him, the ring.

She swallowed hard, trying to moisten her dry throat. The shopkeeper, a young woman with multiple piercings, looked at her with an air of indifference.

“I… I think I saw it,” Sarah managed, her voice cracking. “The ring. It’s… important.”