Seer today gone tomorrow, p.1
Seer Today, Gone Tomorrow, page 1
Seer Today, Gone Tomorrow
Ada Bell
Contents
Seer Today, Gone Tomorrow
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Epilogue
Pie in the Scry Preview
Author’s Notes
Also by Ada Bell
A Shady Grove Chronology
About the Author
Books Written as Laura Heffernan
Just when Aly finally identified her sister-in-law’s killer, they got away—and they’re not alone
* * *
While visiting an estate sale to pick up new items for Missing Pieces, Aly gets hit with a surprise: the elderly homeowner didn't have a heart attack--she was murdered. Aly's got the evidence in her hands, and the killer is offering to sell it to her. Time to make a deal, then call the police.
* * *
If only anyone believed her. Miriam Peabody was in her 70s and appeared to die of natural causes. Police found no evidence of foul play, but Aly knows what she saw. Worse, she’s pretty sure the killer has powers of their own. As she seeks evidence to support her vision, someone is watching Aly’s every move. They’re always one step ahead. She needs to find concrete evidence to give the police before someone Miriam trusted gets away with murder.
The attached novel is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, places, or events is merely a coincidence.
* * *
Copyright © 2021 by Laura Heffernan. Cover image by Victoria Cooper. Mystic crystal ball image copyright @2020 by simply whyte design. Used with permission.
* * *
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
Created with Vellum
To Cassidy
* * *
Because you’d read these books even if your mom didn’t tell you to.
Chapter One
Early mornings were the best part of the day at Missing Pieces. Soon I would have a steady stream of customers, but right now it was just me and the type of quiet that was scarce when living with a toddler.
Shady Grove’s premiere (okay, only) antique store sat in the middle of Main Street, the perfect place to watch the town wake up. The early morning rays combined with that hush you never found later in the day gave everything a magical feel.
Of course, inside the store, I was in the presence of actual magic. My boss, Olive, read objects in order to find their true owner. People who shopped here wound up uniquely satisfied with their purchases. Olive hired me after discovering that I, too, possessed psychic powers. That came as quite a shock to both of us, believe me. After years of studying science, I wasn’t exactly thrilled to embrace the idea that extrasensory powers not only existed, but I had them. Like it or not, they manifested.
When I used an object, I sometimes had a vision of a prior user. Over the past year, Olive and I had been working on learning to explore and control my powers. This morning, though, I was on my own.
The store had become a well-oiled machine over the years, so opening was a breeze. Other than pulling the cash out of the safe to put it in the register and making sure my coffee cup was full, there wasn’t a ton to do until eight o’clock when the early morning bargain hunters started to arrive.
My best friend Rusty knocked on the back door. I let him in, taking in his greasy black hair and the bags under his normally bright blue eyes. “Did you get run over on the way here?”
“Very funny,” he said. “I’ve been up all night on a stakeout.”
“Sounds miserable.” I gestured to the pot on the back counter. “Do you want some coffee?”
He shook his head. “Nah. Let’s just do this so I can go home and get some sleep.”
“Sure. What do you have for me?”
Rusty worked as a private investigator, and when he needed some help with a case, he often came by to get a little boost if I could give it. His bosses didn’t know, so we couldn’t exactly meet at his office.
“Who’s your best friend?” he asked.
“You are,” I said automatically. “Why does that question scare me?”
“Because I only remind you how much you love me when I bring you something you don’t want,” he said. “I’m really sorry about this.”
Rusty pulled a blue and purple paisley scarf from a pocket of his cargo shorts.
I stiffened. “Another affair?”
“Honestly, I’m not sure. She’s young and gorgeous. He’s old enough to be her father. You know how it goes—his kids are mad because she’s younger than they are. They’ve completely shut him out. Now she’s acting secretive, and he’s worried that he’s jeopardized his relationship with his children for nothing.”
“That’s so sad.” Although I really enjoyed using my powers for good, this was why I didn’t go into PI work myself. There was a world of difference between bringing criminals to justice and catching cheating spouses. Whatever happened to romance and happily ever after?
“What do you think?” I asked.
“To be honest, she seems to care about him,” Rusty said. “The way she talks about him, the way she looks at him. I haven’t caught her going anywhere other than the golf course and mundane errands.”
“She married him so she’d have more time to practice her swing?”
“She’s starting a charity. I’ve never actually seen her on the course. She mostly hangs out in the dining room. But her stepchildren think she wants their father to fund the whole thing so she can fritter away their inheritance. He’s worried she’s hooking up with a caddy.” Rusty shrugged. “I’m just hoping you can get a reading. If she is cheating, he deserves to know. If she’s not, I hope they’re very happy together.”
A thought occurred to me. “How did you get that scarf? Did you tell your client a psychic was going to do a reading on it?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” he said. “Thaddeus thought his wife was acting weird on Wednesday. I told him that, if he could bring me something she was wearing, we could use a bloodhound to trace anyone else the scarf was in contact with.”
Raising one eyebrow was a skill not granted to me, so I glared at my best friend. “I’m a bloodhound now?”
“Hmmm. Not so much. Bloodhounds are wicked fast. You’re more of a… well, I want to say tortoise. But it feels like I shouldn’t call you that right before asking for a favor. Tortoises are smart, right? You’re a smart, beautiful tortoise.”
“You’re a wise man. Usually.” With a wry grin, I shook my head. “It’s a good thing I’d be lost without you.”
He pulled a paper bag from another pocket. Cargo shorts were the best. “I brought you muffins.”
“I will tell you anything you want to know,” I said. “Hold on to those so I don’t get crumbs on your evidence.”
I held out my hands, and Rusty draped the scarf across them. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. My powers rarely triggered when I handled an object; I had to use it in the manner intended. Since he’d given me a scarf, I wrapped it around my neck.
Instantly, Rusty and my bag of muffins vanished.
I was in someone’s kitchen, a sleek marble-topped island in front of me, a stool beneath me. My hands gripped a coffee mug emblazoned with “Everything Tastes Better with Dog Hair in It.” As I lifted it to my lips, I realized someone was speaking.
“I promise, this is the last time.”
“Yes, it is,” I said, “because the answer is no. Not happening.”
“Why not?” A whine entered the tone, and I turned my head to catch the speaker. A-ha! A man of about medium height with dark hair tumbling around his chin, oval brown eyes, and an air of desperation. The feelings inside me ranged from disappointment to frustration.
With zero clues as to this man’s identity, I felt pretty sure the woman in my vision was not sleeping with him. Not given the jumble of emotions.
I rubbed my temples before meeting his gaze. “We’ve gone over this. It’s not my money.”
“Thaddeus adores you. He won’t care.”
“I care.”
“And that’s why I’ll pay you back,” he insisted. “Listen, Tory, I’ve changed. My business loans are coming in soon, and I’ll repay every penny. Scout’s Honor.”
A sardonic smile crossed my lips. “You were never a Boy Scout.”
“But not because I didn’t have honor.”
I’d had enough. Draining my mug, I placed it on the island with a resolute thud and pulled myself to my feet. “The answer is no. No more money. We’re done. I’m not coming here again.”
“What if I tell Thaddeus?”
“Tell him what? He knows I’ve got a deadbeat brother.”
“I’ll tell him that you only married him for his money.”
I f ixed my brother with a steely glare, strong enough to make him take a step backward. “You wouldn’t dare.”
Reaching up, I removed the scarf from around my neck. Over the past few months, I’d gotten a better grip on how to end my visions once they started. As soon as the fabric slid away, my world returned to normal.
“Tory isn’t having an affair,” I said. “She’s been meeting her brother. He wants money for some reason. She doesn’t want to give it to him. She’s trying to keep him from hounding her husband. Sounds like there’s a history.”
Rusty kissed my forehead. “You’re amazing. That’s exactly what I needed to hear. I’ll think of something to tell Thaddeus. Maybe I can question the brother, get him to give a statement.”
“Speaking of needing to hear, any news on Mary Towne?”
My brother initially moved here to be near his sister-in-law after his wife died. He thought my nephew should have a stronger connection to his mother’s family. Unfortunately, a few weeks ago I’d learned that either Mary or her cousin might have been the ones who caused Katrina’s death, and they’d both fled town. Kevin and I had been looking everywhere for them, and Rusty had been helping in his spare time.
He shook his head. “Sorry, Aly. I’ve got an ear on the ground, and I’m tracking both of their credit card statements.”
“I don’t understand how they’ve avoided spending any money since July.”
“They probably haven’t. They might be using cash, or they could have accounts we don’t know about yet. I’ll figure it out. Eventually.”
“Before they come back?” We believed Mary and her cousin Priscilla were involved in a plot to kidnap my three-year-old nephew that resulted in the death of my sister-in-law. I’d do everything in my power to protect Kyle from another attempt, but having some advance notice would be nice. Although like Tory’s brother, I’d never been a Boy Scout, I also believed in being prepared.
“I’m working on it. If there is anything else I can possibly do, I’ll try it. Promise.”
His words made me feel bad. Rusty was clearly exhausted, burning the candle at both ends. He worked long hours studying to be a private investigator, then spent his off-hours trying to help Kevin and me. I pulled him into a hug. “Sorry. I know you’re doing your best. I’ll keep trying to get a lead for you.”
An alarm chimed on my phone, reminding me that I had a job to do. As I shut it off, I checked the time out of reflex. Seven-fifty-nine a.m. One minute to opening.
“Sorry, I have to go,” I said. “I’ll text you later. Get some rest.”
“No need to apologize. Thanks again for your help,” he said on his way out.
“No problem,” I said.
And it really wasn’t. Having visions? Saving marriages? Easy-peasy. Just another day in the life of a psychic.
Rusty headed out the back while I went to the front of the store to finish getting ready for the day. Hopefully he’d manage to get a few hours sleep before he needed to be back at work.
As I turned the sign on the door to “Open” and flipped on the overhead lights in the front room, I stopped to revel in all the amazing treasures in this room. They might be just antiques to most people, but to me, they held stories. These items breathed and lived memories. They held hope and dreams and love and more. In time, I wanted to unlock all of those treasures.
Most of our early morning antiquers preferred to poke around on their own, without my interference. (Patti from the diner even said that once. I wasn’t helping, she’d rudely informed me.) While they browsed, I sat on the stool behind the register, sipping my coffee and people watching.
Today’s first guest was a woman with gray-streaked hair cut into a sharp bob around her face. I’d seen her around town before but didn’t know her name. Usually I ran into her at the bakery. She carried herself regally. Something about her impeccable clothes and pearl necklace made me wonder if she was looking for antique furniture, and I mentally patted myself on the back when she headed off that way.
After a while the crowd thinned out, and I found myself mostly alone in the store. Other than a middle-aged woman with long, rainbow-colored hair wearing a matching poncho and perusing our antique books, no one was here.
My phone dinged with a text from my boyfriend Sam.
Good morning! I know you’re at work, just wanted to say I’m thinking about you.
As always, his thoughtful messages made me smile. Dating someone in New York City wasn’t easy when the train took three hours and I couldn’t afford parking within about fifty miles of the city. We didn’t see each other nearly as often as either of us would like.
Me: Morning. :-) Only fifty-six hours until your last final, right?
Sam would be graduating with his master’s degree in accounting at the end of the year. Then he’d be back in Shady Grove. Home to take me on dates and play with Kyle with me and resume the odious task of keeping the books for this store, which belonged to his mother. Helping with the money stuff was my least favorite part of the job, but after seeing the way Olive had destroyed Sam’s record-keeping system after he left, I’d banned her from touching it again.
The bells over the door chimed, jolting me out of my texting bliss. A medium-sized man with fawn-colored skin, longish dark hair, and an air of authority entered. Although he wasn’t tall, he carried himself with a presence, taking in the room with determination. From the few lines around his eyes, I guessed he was about thirty-five.
And he was the man from my vision.
Chapter Two
For a long moment, I couldn’t speak. As the man approached the counter, I forced my facial muscles to curve into a smile so I wouldn’t scare away a customer.
“Hello,” he said. “Is something wrong?”
“Good morning!” I greeted the stranger with feigned enthusiasm, sternly reminding myself that he didn’t intend to star in my vision. But what was Tory’s brother doing here? “Can I help you?”
“Good morning,” he said. “Do you have an electronics section?”
I pointed toward the near wall. “All sales are final, so if you find something you like, there’s a testing station. Make sure it works before you leave the store.”
“Thanks,” he said.
“Can I help you find something specific?” Knowing that this man needed money made me want to follow him, but Olive told me once she had quite the security system in place. I hadn’t asked for details. Sometimes, it’s better not to know.
“No, I should be okay.”
I eyed him until he moved out of sight.
Another woman came in looking for a vintage bridesmaid dress, which I happily helped her find. By the time she checked out, the man from my vision had returned to the front counter, holding a bunch of black plastic devices that were probably older than me.
“Did you test those?” I asked uncertainly when he placed them on the counter. A plume of dust puffed out from under the one on the far right.
He leaned closer and lowered his voice. “I actually don’t need them to work.”
“Okay.” Picking up the first item, I rang it up, then examined it. A small, old-school video camera. Several of them. “Are you putting on a play or something?”
“No.” He glanced around the room before speaking again. “I want it to look like I have a security system in place. The company coming to set me up can’t get out here until after Labor Day.”
Ahhhh. Interesting. Was he really waiting for the security company, or did he realize he couldn’t afford to pay them after Tory rejected his request for money?
