The Coveted Stone of Garnet
Garnet, born Ruby Stevens, came from humble beginnings in London's East End. As a child, she was enamoured by the fine jewels and accessories flaunted by noble ladies that seemed worlds apart from her own bare tenement existence. Ruby vowed she would adorn herself in such some day.
As a teenager, she got work as a hotel maid - partly for the pay, but partly for the glimpse it afforded her into opulent guest rooms and jewellery boxes. She would pocket small brooches or rings when the chance arose, pawning them to afford pretty ribbons for her hair.
Ruby's petty theft graduated to bold burglary as she grew older and more daring. She kept her eye out for gossip of wealthy women flaunting new gem acquisitions. Then she would strike while they were out gallivanting, picking their door locks and cleaning out their jewels.
The sparkling stones, metals and settings reflected the life she felt she deserved. Each heist let her imagine she was an aristocrat getting dressed to attend lavish soirees. She took the name "Garnet" for these escapades, donning her pilfered finery.
Garnet's fateful undoing came in the summer of 1922 when she caught word of a newly arrived Countess flaunting an immense garnet and pearl necklace. Simply gazing at it around the Countess's neck from across an exclusive hotel garden party made Garnet ravenous with desire.
Through cunning and distraction, Garnet tracked which lavish suite was the Countess's. That night, evading security, she picked the door lock and crept inside. The necklace glinted at her from atop the vanity. The gems were even larger and bloodier than she imagined. Garnet instantly knew she must possess it.
As Garnet grinned and fastened the crimson beauty around her own neck, the Countess's voice rang out - she had returned early from the theatre. Garnet spun to see the outraged woman in the doorway, who charged forward.
They struggled violently over the necklace until Garnet seized a nearby silver hairbrush and struck the Countess unconscious. Garnet stepped over her prone body to flee with her prize.
In her haste, Garnet did not see the Countess's eyes flick open. But she heard the pistol shot and felt the bullet pierce her back. The necklace fell, scattering across the carpet. As Garnet's vision dimmed, the glinting garnet stones were the last earthly sight she witnessed.
Some claim Garnet's unfinished business led her spirit to haunt jewels she had stolen. A decade later, a series of wealthy women reported a veiled female phantom appearing at their vanities to caress their necklaces at night. The entity always vanished when screamed at, leaving only a faint red mist.
Perhaps Garnet could not rest without donning the lovely gems she coveted in life once more. But bullets finish aims that ghosts cannot, and the Countess's keen shot had forever cost Garnet that chance.
So now the thief's spirit remains confined in the very blood-red stone that spelled her end - admiring its shine for eternity, yet never again feeling the luxurious weight of gems embracing her skin. Our greed can open doors not easily shut again...even in death.
