Siren Song

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.”

The penny dropped with a bang. “You own my office?”

Vicki threw up her hands in joy. “Yay! You got it in one. Surprise! The office is also yours. You’re the new landlord. Promise me I get to be there, at least in spirit, when you tell Ron.”

I laughed out loud. I couldn’t help it. God, he was going to hate that. “What does ‘C and S’ stand for, anyway?”

She grinned and tipped her head. “ ‘Chips and Salsa.’ In honor of all those late nights at La Cocina with you, Emma, and Dawna. I’m also giving Emma’s apartment building to her. But I knew she wouldn’t be able to be here today, so Barney will send her a letter to let her in on the secret. Now, don’t spoil my surprise and tell her early. She won’t believe it without the official letterhead. Dawna’s getting a surprise, too, but I’m not telling you what, so don’t ask.” She winked at me.

How well she knew us. She was absolutely right about Emma Landingham. Everything had to be by the book with her. And wow . . . I knew how much our nights at the cantina meant to me. Apparently they’d been just as important to Vicki. “You are . . . were an amazing woman, Victoria Cooper.”

She gave a little bow at the waist. “Yes. Yes, I was.”

I heard Jason chuckle. His face was entranced at seeing his daughter like this, so animated and happy. Maybe he’d never really known what an awesome person she was. He hadn’t spent much time around her. More’s the pity.

“So, that’s all my real estate. Now comes what Barney calls the residue. I’ve split my estate into four parts . . . well, technically, five. Sadly, it’s going to take a fifth of my total estate to fight my mother’s lawsuit. Pity. But there’s no helping it. I know you won’t be able to step back from this and let it go, Mom, so, I’ve planned for it.”

“I cannot believe you think so little of me.” There was no hurt in Cassandra’s voice, only rage.

“I don’t think little of you, Mom. I actually think quite highly of you. You’re a shrewd businesswoman and a talented actress. But today, here, anything you show us is just that—an act. You can’t help it and I can’t blame you for it. I pray you’ll stop before you completely drive Daddy away, but that future is unclear even to me. It’s all about choices. Celia was right. If you can just see past your anger and your hurt, you’ll know that what Grandma did she did for you. Denying you the inheritance money forced you to go out and earn it. She knew it would spur you on. She might not have been a clairvoyant, but she was smarter than you and me put together. And she knew that my talent had helped her earn a good part of her fortune, as much as you hate to admit it.”

I wished Vicki hadn’t invoked my name, because it turned Cassandra’s attention back to me. “I knew it! I