Page 12 of Bargain with Fate
Valerie leaned forward. “Fragments of what? The hair? A puzzle? Something broken?”
“Pieces. Parts. Fractions,” Vanessa said, still enthralled.
“Those are but synonyms, sister dear. Of what?”
“Small but not insignificant. Even fragments can be weaponized.”
Valerie shook her sister’s shoulder. “You’re not making sense, sister.” She looked at me. “See? This is why I’m the better seer. Vanessa spews lemons and expects the listener to make the lemonade.”
“I’m sure you’re both equally skilled,” I said, not wanting to choose sides in a war I couldn’t win.
“Nonsense,” Valerie said. “You’re not as clever as I thought if that’s your takeaway.”
“Suppression breeds transformation, not destruction,” Vanessa intoned.
Valerie snapped her fingers in front of her sister’s white eyes. “Come back to us. You’re not helping, as usual. I don’t know why you bother. You should’ve become an actuary like I suggested last century.”
Vanessa’s pupils reappeared. She blinked twice and gazed at her sister, confusion rippling her brow. “What happened?”
“You rambled like the senile biddy you are.”
Vanessa gazed at me with a hopeful expression. “Did that help you at all, Maya?”
“I’m sure I’ll put the pieces together at some point, no pun intended. My brain is more of a tortoise than a hare.”
“She’s being polite,” Valerie said. “A toddler could’ve done better. Here. Let me try.”
“You’ll only confuse her with multiple messages,” Vanessa argued. “Let her leave with mine. She can come back in a week if nothing clicks.”
Valerie whipped an arm sideways. “Does she seem like she has a week to play the waiting game? She said demonic spirits, Vanessa. Bad omens. She wouldn’t have come to us for guidance if the situation wasn’t urgent.”
The seer was on the money. My skin crawled at the thought of asking for help. I only did it because of my job, and the fact that the Neighbors’ safety might be at risk.
Huffing, Vanessa crossed her arms. “Fine. I’d like to hear you say anything of value. Go on then, sister. Relay your vision.”
Valerie glared. “I’m not a performing monkey.” She stood and crossed the room to retrieve an object from the coat closet. She returned with a picnic basket and set it on the coffee table between us.
“I’m not hungry, but thank you,” I said.
Valerie snickered. “You don’t want to snack on these, trust me.” She flipped up the lid and removed the contents.
Bones. They were bones.
“You keep these in a picnic basket?” I asked.
Valerie looked at me, wide-eyed. “Where else would I keep them?” She set them in a neat line across the table.
“Are tea leaves not an option for you?”
“Tea leaves have their place,” Valerie replied, “but I find their accuracy less than desirable. It’s like reading inkblots. My horse is your butterfly. It can render the whole experience meaningless.”
“What we do is not an exact science either,” Vanessa added. “More of an art form.”
“I know.” Like with any other professional, I’d had both good and bad experiences with seers.
“And now for the final component.” Valerie set her phone on the coffee table next to the bones and tapped the screen. I immediately recognized the sound of Enya’s “Only Time.”
“She needs relaxing background music,” Vanessa explained. “It helps her focus.”
