We stood there gaping in boundless surprise.

The safe was empty

Akash: This can't be. It felt really heavy when I cracked it open this morning. An empty trunk couldn't possibly be so heavy.

Samarth: What if it's the wrong safe then?

Anu: This is the only safe I know of in the attic here.

I couldn't say anything. I paced around the trunk and noticed something unusual. The trunk was indeed three feet deep....but it looked no shallower than a foot.

Me: Guys, I think I know something here.

The three of them spun towards me

Anu: What? What do you know?

Me: Hold on, turn on the big central light.

Akash: Maitreyi, what if mom and dad see? They could walk up-

Me: Just do it.

Ticked off, he goes and turns on the light.

My suspicions were further confirmed. The base of the safe was of a slightly different shade of grey than the rest of the trunk and the effect was quite convincing in the low light of the attic.

Me: Turn off the central light quickly. And could somebody get me any machine oil or grease?

Samarth: What in the world are you up to?

Me: You'll know in a while

Anu: There's a pint of grease in the garage. I'll get it.

She scuttles down the stairs and returns with the grease in two minutes flat.

I walked up to the safe, hoping my idea would work.

I plastered the edges of the base with grease and pressed my palms down to it. Eureka! The base began to crack from the sides.

Everybody gasped in astonishment

Anu: A false bottom?!

Me: Mm-hmm.

Akash: Hey you're a genius! Guys come over quickly and help her get off that thing.

Everybody pulls apart the broken remains of the false bottom.

Everybody: Wow..... Can't believe it.

Lights on

'What? What happened next? I want to know!'

'Sorry honey. You gotta come back tomorrow.'

'Why? Why not today?'. It's Saturday, so I could definitely manage a couple of minutes more.

'Sweetie you can't sit here all day long. I handle about eighty clients every day. Other people are waiting for their chance too.'

'Okay then. Book this time slot for me.'

'Agreed.'

'One last question. Why is this crystal ball showing me things I remember? I came here to seek  answers I don't know of.'

'Dear child, the Crystal Of Amethyst never lies.'

'But will I get what I want?'

'To get what you want child, you'll have to believe you'll get it.  And the Amethyst never lets down people who believe in her.'

Sounded like the advice I'd need in life, but my instincts told her to trust her. Maybe she was a little tasteless and domineering at times but she always helped me without creating any fuss or boasting over her work as other people do. Why even the electrician is so proud of himself just because he can change a light bulb! 

'Oh by the way, what's your name? I'll have to tell my friend when she comes back.'

'You believe she will?'

'I don't know. But I'll definitely hope for the best, as you said' 

'I like that. I'm Esperanza. Esperanza Thomas.'

'Thank you, Esperanza. See you tomorrow'. Maybe this woman wasn't so bad after all.

'Sure. Make haste, child! Your mother must be worried now.'

I left, counting the hours down till tomorrow.

*****************************
A/N: Yep. I gotta drop in for a chat isn't it? 😉

Anyway, like I said before, I had to make sticky notes for this dedication. So here it goes. 👏👏

This chapter is dedicated to:
1.RubiaMargot
2.thescarredsoul
3.Mellow_Supernova
4.@gultiryakisi
5.justinincorabi
6.@chandan555

As I said, I had to make sticky notes for this. But still, in any case if anybody voted on the first three chapters and I haven't dedicated to you so far, please feel free to PM me for you guys deserve it. ❤️❤️

Anyway, all I had to say is that I love you guys and I hope I'll live up to your expectations. I promise to entertain you well enough through my stories and the reason why this note sounds so poorly scripted is because I don't have words to describe you people 😘😘.

Keep up your support please so I can win the Wattys this year!