“Thank you, Vicki.” Arons’s voice was calm but leaked a bit of nervousness that said that this might not have been on the schedule. After taking a deep breath, letting it out slow, and then wiping the fog that had appeared on his glasses, he picked up the phone receiver. “Becky? The confrontation phase is concluded. Please bring in our next guest and the refreshment for Ms. Graves.”
Wow. So Vicki had foreseen even this? Damn, she was good. But who was the next guest? I didn’t even expect half the people already here.
The door at the far end of the room opened and a slightly disheveled brunette woman stepped in the door. I’d seen her around the office before, so I presumed she was Becky. She held open the door and waved someone inside, then brought me a large thermal mug filled with what smelled like French onion soup.
The young man she’d ushered in had skin that was pale, and freckles stood out in sharp relief under a shock of carrot orange hair. Mr. Arons stood and held out his hand across the table. “Mr. Murphy? Barney Arons. We spoke on the phone last month. Thank you for coming. I hope you had a comfortable trip. Is your hotel satisfactory?”
I’d never seen him before in my life and apparently nobody else in the room had, either. Jason and Cassandra were exchanging confused glances, as were Alex and Sybil.
“Yessir. I’ve never flown in a private jet before and Molly and the girls are loving the hotel room. But you really didn’t have to put us up in a suite. A regular room would have been just fine.” He had a light southern drawl but with a sophisticated edge. I couldn’t quite place the location.
“Not at all. Ms. Cooper was very clear in her wishes for your stay here. You were to have the best of everything, with no expenses spared. So, please . . . enjoy it.” He waved toward a seat between Cassandra and Jason. “If you’d have a seat? We’re ready to start.”
Mr. Murphy stopped in his tracks, jaw dropping when he actually got a look at the people he would be sitting next to. I watched him swallow hard and pull himself together enough that he wouldn’t act starstruck and embarrass himself in front of everyone.
Arons had said five new people. So, Creede, Gran, Dr. Scott, and Mr. Murphy. Was Vicki the fifth, or was there someone yet to arrive? I put down my soup to ask, “Didn’t you say five people, Mr. Arons?”
He nodded. “Vicki was the fifth. Oh, that reminds me—” He turned to Mr. Murphy. “Mr. Murphy, do you have any problem with ghosts? Or vampires, mages, or psychics?”
Yeah, that was probably a good thing to find out. We had sort of a weird bunch here today.
“Well . . . I’ve got a cousin who’s a mage and my grandma stayed in the house for a bit after she died, until we found her Will. But I’m not a fan of bats, and psychics sort of creep me out. Why?”
“Ah. I see. Let me make formal introductions, for those who don’t know each other.” Arons took a moment to identify each person gathered at the table and ended with, “Finally, if you’ll direct your attention to the ceiling, you’ll see a sparkling formation.” We all dutifully looked up. The gaseous cloud that was Vicki’s normal state in this realm sparkled in the remaining cool air. “The deceased has elected to attend this reading. I hope that doesn’t bother anyone.”
Mr. Murphy eyed the cloud with an odd look but finally shrugged. “I suppose there’s not much to be done about that, is there? Ghosts do what they will. But if she starts throwin’ stuff, you’ll find me somewhere between here and the hotel. Try to keep up if you want to talk.”
Laughter erupted from nearly everyone. It was just what we needed.
Arons checked his watch again. “Excellent. We’re right on schedule. Let’s begin.” He picked up a remote control and pointed it toward the wall. The lights dimmed and the blinds turned to block out the sunlight.
With a press of a key on his laptop, the big screen in front of the windows flickered to life. I couldn’t help but smile as Vicki looked out at us. She was sitting in a comfortable-looking chair in front of a bookcase filled with legal volumes, so probably she’d taped this somewhere in these offices. She looked directly at me and smiled, as though she knew right where I was sitting. Then she turned her gaze to each person in turn, ending on Alex, with a wink and a blown kiss. Alex burst into tears anew.
Seeing the screen was a little tricky, so I moved my chair until I had a clearer view.
“My family, friends, and guests,” Vicki began. “Thank you all for coming. And thank you, Barney, for going to all the trouble to gather everyone together. I know it wasn’t easy in some cases.”
Arons looked up at the ceiling rather than the screen. “That’s our job. We’re here to serve.”
The Vicki on the screen smiled. “Yes, but you do go above and beyond the call. Thank you.”
Whoa. That sounded like a direct response to what he said. The revelation caused me to lean forward so I could see the screen more closely. Vampire vision was good for a few things, and seeing in the dark was one. Yep, just as I suspected, Vicki’s eyes were glazed over slightly. She had been having a vision during the filming. She really was seeing us here, in this time, and was going to actually “talk” to us. Just to clue in the rest of the confused-looking people, I asked, “You’re really here right now, aren’t you, Vick? You’re seeing all of us, in the future, while you tape this?”
Her head turned and she looked at me—not where I had been sitting a minute earlier, but where I was now. “You always were one of the smartest people I knew, Celia. Yes, I’m here but in the past. If you look at the file for this recording, you’ll see it was taped at least a year ago. I say ‘at least’ because I’m not really sure what year I die. That’s the trick with this gift. You don’t always see your own life with any clarity. But I can see each of you sitting in front of me.” She sighed. “I’m really sorry that Dawna couldn’t be here. But it’s more important she get well.” She turned her head again, looking past Alex. “I like what you’ve done with your hair, Sybil. It’s a good look on you.”
My friend’s former body double gasped and put a hand up to her hair. “Um . . . thank you?”
Vicki’s eyes sparkled. The cameraperson must have thought she was nuts. Or not, since it was no secret that Vicki was clairvoyant. “Now, Barney has the full document each of you will be given a copy of. But I wanted to tell you the terms in my own way.” She turned to face David and Inez. “I don’t know if you two knew how special you were to me. Even after I moved to Birchwoods, you kept my house feeling like a home whenever I was there. I could think of only one way to express my appreciation for your years of hard work.”
“Pshaw,” David said under his breath. “We’d have done it for free . . . it’s a beautiful place.”
“I know you would have,” she interrupted, causing him to stare at the screen openmouthed. “And that’s exactly what you’re going to get to do for as long as you want to. David. Inez. Cooper Manor is yours. Take care of it. And yes, Inez, your mother is welcome. Please bring her home to live with you. I know you’ve been worried about her.”
Now it was Inez who burst into tears. She stared up at the screen with shining eyes that probably only I could see. “Miss Vicki, no. We can’t. It’s too much. That house . . . it’s so expensive.”
Vicki snorted and rolled her eyes to the ceiling. “And it does me what good now? I can float on the ceiling almost anywhere. Inez, please . . . accept this small token. Really, it is small in the scheme of things. And just so you know, I’m also leaving you enough money to take care of the taxes and such for as long as you live there.”
“This is ridiculous!” Cassandra apparently had had enough. She stood up and slammed a fist down on the table. “I will not watch my daughter leave a multimillion dollar home to a servant.”
“Mother, shut up.” Vicki’s voice was cutting as she half-stood from her seat. “It is not my fault that you could never make amends with Grandma, nor is it my fault that her estate was left to me. You’ve made your own way and I’m very proud of you and Daddy. But this is my money and my property and I will damned well leave it to whomever I choose. I already know you’re going to challenge this Will and have made appropriate arrangements to defend it. Just so you know, I win. Now . . . sit down!”
I couldn’t help but smirk. Vicki was finally able to do in death what she’d always wanted to do in life. “You go, girl,” I whispered. Gran elbowed me in the arm. But Cassandra wouldn’t be able to see my smile in the dark.
“Ms. Meadows,” said Arons, “you really do need to sit down.”
With a light growl, she threw herself back into her chair so hard the springs squeaked.
“Thank you.” Vicki sat back down and returned to looking at Inez and David. “Now, no more arguments. Plan for the house to be yours. Until the lawsuit is over, you’ll be renting it from the estate. Barney has papers for you to sign before you leave. It’ll cost you a dollar a year. No telling how long the suit will last, but the lease is ironclad, so don’t have any fear you’ll have to leave. Oh,” she continued, and pointed to me. “There’s one exception. I’ve asked Barney to hire a surveyor. The guesthouse is going to be split off from the main house into a separate parcel. That property will be yours, Celia. That’s surprise number one.”
Holy crap! She was giving me the guesthouse? “Um, wow. Thanks, Vick.”
“You need to live near the ocean. You just do. So the beach is going to go with the guesthouse. I hope you don’t mind, David.”
He shrugged and looked my way. “Nah. Never did go there anyway. I’ve got the pool if I want to swim.”
“Now, as for the rest of my real estate . . . Celia, did you know that I own a holding company called C and S Enterprises?” She stared at me, smiling, waiting for me to get whatever I was supposed to get. It rang a bell, but I couldn’t place the name. I shrugged helplessly and she finally sighed. “Okay, I’ll give you a hint. One of the properties is an old Victorian with a big old palm tree out front.”