The Blue Diamond Box

By Mrs. J. Young

The Blue Diamond Box is a wholesome romance and mystery story--suitable for all ages of teens.With the heart of Mystic Mar stolen, Queen Nona's jeweled secrets were hidden on the grounds of Mystic Mar, the Argos' family castle on Serenity Sea, until Jenna, a runaway betrothed princess awakens its magical past. The shy Princess Jenna, longing for true love, quickly finds Mystic Mar to be the perfect place to escape from her betrothal. What she hadn't anticipated was the handsome Prince Grayson and the castle's secret jeweled past drawing her into a mysterious treasure adventure.As Princess Jenna's betrothal closes in, she must make a decision of true love. The Blue Diamond Box forged from magical love will be her guide. But will she learn the truth about the Argos family before it's too late?Don't miss the DIY Blue Diamond Box ideas, love discussion questions and Bible verses. Whether you are a teen, teen mentor, small group member at a church or at a school, this book is for you!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Histria Christian
• Release date: Apr 18, 2017
• ISBN: 9781632132413

Book preview

The

BLUE DIAMOND BOX

MRS. J. YOUNG

eLectio Publishing

Little Elm, TX

www.eLectioPublishing.com

The Blue Diamond Box

By Mrs. J. Young

Copyright 2017 by Mrs. J. Young. All rights reserved.

Cover Design by eLectio Publishing.

Cover artwork includes a drawing of Saint Joseph by Lt. Juliann Plank.

ISBN-13: 978-1-63213-240-6

Published by eLectio Publishing, LLC

Little Elm, Texas

http://www.eLectioPublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

5 4 3 2 1 eLP 21 20 19 18 17

The eLectio Publishing creative team is comprised of: Kaitlyn Campbell, Emily Certain, Lori Draft, Court Dudek, Jim Eccles, Sheldon James, and Christine LePorte.

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as unsold and destroyed to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for the stripped book.

The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

Publisher’s Note

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Dear Jason,

Thank you for the day you left the flower petals in my mailbox and for every day after. I never knew how remarkably wonderful love could be until I met you. Your steadfast love, encouragement and total acceptance is a true gift that I treasure always.

Acknowledgments

My Savior, Jesus Christ – for divine inspiration

My grandmother – for the day she asked me the Key question

My mother – for being a true confidant and prayer warrior

My Aunt Jeanette – for being my champion

Aletta – for fighting the good fight with me

Jackie Cross and her granddaughter, Claudia Koontz – for heartfelt support and feedback

Connie Headdy and her granddaughter, Mikayla Deckard – for review and encouragement

Kaity Schill – for reading a rough draft all the way through

Pastor Chris Philbeck at Mount Pleasant Christian Church – for his divine teaching

Prologue

Dirt chunks flew through the misty night air. The hooves of the horses raced on a dirt path deep in a forest.

Hurry, we don’t have much time, yelled a maid.

The carriage driver whipped the horses. Hurry up!

The carriage bobbed along, swaying from side to side, into a large meadow that shined in the moonlight. The driver pulled on the reins and stopped the horses. Queen Nona Argos opened the door and slowly fell out of the carriage as the maid caught her. The queen was holding two very small weeping willow trees, and a diamond necklace dangled from her fingers. She pointed to a place in the middle of the meadow where the moonbeams shined brightly. They walked slowly as she breathed heavily. She stopped and kneeled on the ground. She ripped grass up with her fingers. The moist ground broke as she clawed at the earth, digging two holes.

She cried, Why, Rose? Why?

Then she planted one weeping willow tree and covered its roots.

She leaned down and kissed its leaf and whispered, Hope.

She planted the second weeping willow tree and kissed its leaf. She called it Faith. She shook her head and sobbed. Tears streamed down her wrinkly face and onto the trees. Her shaky hand matted in mud dangled the diamond necklace onto the trees to hold them together.

If only Rose, my beautiful daughter . . . why? I love you.

The maid yelled to the carriage driver, Hurry, the Queen!

A dark shadow hung over the castle grounds at Mystic Mar, leaving the earth and time to cover its past.

Chapter 1: The Heart Cries

Many, many years later in the Highland Realm, a great stone castle stood. It towered in the middle of green fields and snowcapped mountains. The Highland Realm was the central entry for all trading among the north and south kingdoms.

Ruled by King Redmond Oakden, the kingdom never wanted for delicious foods, building materials, cloth, and fine silk. He had married in his older age and was blessed with one daughter, Jenna. While the Highland Realm had progressed, it, like many kingdoms, still held onto older traditions, such as betrothing their sons and daughters to marriage.

One day in the spring, Princess Jenna, a petite girl blooming into womanhood, skipped into the large stone throne room

Father, you summoned me? said Jenna.

King Redmond, a short, tubby man with a gray beard, sat on a tall wooden throne. He smiled affectionately and clasped his hands together.

Jenna quickly sat at his feet and laid her hands on the arm of his chair. Oh, Father, what is it? Her eyes glowed with anticipation and two dimples popped on her rosy cheeks.

Queen Fawna, a pleasant woman with a small nose and kind eyes, lightly touched Jenna’s long brown curls and twisted them through her fingers. My dear, I’m not sure this news will be as exciting to Jenna as it is to you, said Queen Fawna.

Oh, Father, please, please tell me.

Summon the Royal Scribe, said King Redmond. We must make this exciting time official. Jenna, please stand.

Oh dear, can’t we find another way to tell Jenna? Maybe more private? The queen sighed.

No, this must be official, he said.

Jenna stood up and bowed her head. King Oakden raised his arms high in the air as if to rain down a gift from the sky.

I proclaim on this day the betrothal of my daughter, Princess Jenna Oakden, to Prince Gordon—

No! Jenna yelled, her voice echoing in the throne room.

She could not hear another word spoken. She fell to the floor and kneeled at her father’s feet.

She stayed silent for a minute, streams of tears rolling down her face. She thought about the way she wanted to be engaged to a prince.

What would it be like to hold his hand for the first time? Or laugh at something seemingly ridiculous, just to giggle? Will I ever know what true love means or is? Will I never dart from romantic glances or gaze into his eyes?

Please, Father. Please reconsider. If you love me, please reconsider! I have no idea who Prince Gordon is! said Princess Jenna, whimpering.

The king deepened his voice and raised his hand in the air as though the matter was settled. This wedding will occur in three weeks hence, said King Redmond.

I don’t want to marry prince whoever. I want to marry for something you don’t understand, Father, for true love! she cried.

But the prince is very honorable. Besides, this is the way. You will do so! he yelled and sat down in his chair.

Mother, please, please, said Jenna.

See, dear, we should have told her in private. The queen sent a snarling glare to the king. We can’t change his mind, Jenna. He already signed the betrothal scrolls. It’s official.

No! Jenna sobbed. I can’t and I won’t.

She ran out of the throne room, out of the castle, and to the stables. She threw a saddle on Beauty, her white mare.

Frantically she said, Beauty, I knew this day would come. We will escape the way we planned. Take me away from this horrid place. I will never marry Prince Gordon!

Beauty galloped out of Highland Realm and into the bordering forest. Tree branches scraped Jenna’s face and ripped her dress hem. Beauty ran fast and for many hours. The sun set and darkness hovered over them.

We must never be found, she said to Beauty.

She pushed Beauty to run even faster. Surely the palace guards would never catch up with them.

They don’t think I know about this area, but we do. We’ve been planning. They will never find me, said Jenna as Beauty charged out of the forest and into green fields that stretched for miles. Small houses dotted the fields, providing enough light to continue running.

Keep going, Jenna sobbed. I don’t want to stop.

They ran for several more hours until they arrived at a beach.

I don’t think we went the right way, said Jenna.

Waves crashed along the shoreline. Jenna smelled the fresh sea air. It was heavenly. The moonlight reflected off the sea and gave more light for them to ride. Beauty kicked up chunks of sand as she found her footing along the curvy shoreline. Jenna’s plan to escape had not been as well planned as needed. But she knew the further away she was, the less chance she would be found.

All of a sudden, Beauty reared up. The momentum of her stop launched Jenna off the horse. Jenna went flying in the air and landed on the beach, unconscious.

When the sun came up later that morning, two fishermen found Jenna on the beach.

Oh no! Who is this? Is she alive? said the younger fisherman.

Yes, she’s breathing, said the older fisherman. We must take her to the Master.

They carried Jenna up a large hill to a gray stone castle accented by blue stone edges. It was a modular castle facing the sea. A main balcony extended out quite far overlooking the beach. Purple flags waved in the sea breeze from five towering pillars. A stone path curved around the side of the castle, which led to a main entrance. They walked into the castle, greeted by a tall glass dome archway. A tubby old maid ran down a grand white staircase that curved around to the left. She wobbled her way on the purple marble steps.

Land sakes, what do we have here? said the maid.

We found her on the beach. She’s breathing, but unconscious, said the older fisherman, rather panicked.

My, my, look at that angelic face, said the maid. She turned Jenna’s face. She’s got a natural, innocent kind of beauty. And look at her dress, must be of importance, she said as she examined Jenna’s purple satin dress with puff sleeves.

The maid noticed Jenna’s skirt was plain with pearl-green leaves accenting the hem.

She’s been through a few scrapes, said the maid. Look at the hem of her dress. Ripped to shreds in places. Mighty pretty hair.

Jenna’s long brown curls fell down to the middle of her back.

The older fisherman said, Look at these shiny gold slippers. She’s got to be royalty. I wonder if she’s a brat or a nice one. You know how royalty is. He chuckled.

Well, never mind. We’re examining her when she needs to be in a bed. Let’s get her in a bedroom and tell the Master, said the maid.

A few days passed as Jenna lay unconscious. Then, on the morning of the third day, Jenna’s eyes fluttered. Her eyes opened. She felt drowsy and noticed she was lying in a bed. She saw a canopy hanging over her head and red satin curtains draping down the side of the bed. The room seemed endless. A dome skylight above her let in natural light, almost soothing. Beside her was an old tubby maid who was asleep in a chair. Her thick wire-frame glasses had fallen down on her nose. The maid was holding Jenna’s hand. In a chair, across from her bed and next to the door, was a young man asleep in a high-backed red chair. His arms were crossed and his head was leaning to the right. Jenna didn’t know what to say.

Jenna was nervous. The only thing she remembered was the beach. What had happened to her? What had happened to Beauty?

Should I wake them?

For a moment, she enjoyed staring at the young man. He had brown hair that was slightly spiked. His tie was undone and it hung around his shoulders and down his pressed white shirt. He wore blue suit pants. His legs seemed rather long. He must be tall. She admired his face, as he breathed lightly. His skin was very tan, no doubt from living on a beach. He had a slightly narrow nose. His thin sideburns seemed to capture the dreaminess of his high cheek bones that led to his narrow tapering chin.

In that moment, everything seemed perfect for the first time in her life. While he was formally dressed, he didn’t look to be much different in age than she was. She didn’t need to know his name or who he was. No doubt he looked a little mystical, which was rather intriguing for Jenna. She could hear the sound of the waves washing against the beach.

Should I really wake them? Have they been here for me? Maybe I’ll enjoy it a little longer, she thought.

Then her stomach began growling.

How long has it been since I ate?

She whispered lightly