Determined to find clarity, Hannah searched intently until she spotted a faint line beneath the ring’s accumulated grime. She took it back to Miller, who said he would deep-clean the mounting using an ultrasonic bath. Decades of built-up dirt, grease, and polishing compound dissolved away, exposing the hidden interior curve of the yellow gold band.
Under a ten-power loupe, Miller found a tiny, hand-engraved inscription that had been completely obscured before. It read: To M.E. – With eternal thanks, 1968.
“Clara’s mother was named Evelyn Vance-Wright,” Hannah noted, staring at the microscopic letters through the lens. “Her initials were E.V.W. And her great-grandmother’s name was Sophia. Neither of those names matches ‘M.E.’ ” The heirloom story was collapsing. If the ring hadn’t belonged to Clara’s family, where had Evelyn gotten it?