The Missing Stairs

Previously

…It was heart-shaped, delicate and intricate, just as Elias had described. The filigree work was exquisite, and at its center, a single sapphire, the color of a midnight sky, gleamed with an inner fire. Etched onto its surface, almost too small to see, was the Thorne family crest. Clara lifted the locket, its coolness a welcome sensation against her skin. It felt heavy, not just with its physical weight, but with the weight of history, of love, of sacrifice. This was Elias Thorne’s legacy, a tangible link to a love story that had defied time and circumstance. This was what Eleanor had wanted her to find. This was the heart of the secret.