Visions of Destiny (Complete Series) Read online

  “It is, yes,” Daisy answered absently as she picked up a few hors d’oeuvres and set them on a plate. “Remember how Woods said if you talk about it, you forget faster? Brett just wouldn’t stop talking.”

  When she turned back to take a seat, she realized everyone was looking at her and froze for a second, wondering what was going on. She didn’t have to wait long before Mike asked, “So…you heard him?”

  His eyes were gleaming with a greedy light. She could already guess what his next question would be.

  “I heard part of it, yes,” she admitted, cautious, as she sat down.

  She already regretted having said anything, and regretted it even more when Mike rubbed his hands together. “Excellent! You can tell us then!”

  She looked at Brett. He hadn’t said a word yet and was clutching a half full glass of wine like it was a life line, although he wasn’t drinking from it. He barely seemed aware that he was holding it. His expression was one of confusion and she had a feeling that he didn’t know whether he wanted to hear about his own vision or not.

  Thinking back to how agitated he had been earlier, upset enough to say he wanted to forget, she instantly made up her mind.

  “I don’t think it’s my place to say anything,” she said warily, looking away from Brett. “I mean, I just heard a few words. Maybe they made sense to Brett when he was saying them, but it was gibberish to me.”

  Before she even finished, she could see that they weren’t convinced in the least.

  “Come on!” Brad said, “It’s not fair to him that he did this and can’t remember what he saw!”

  Trying to defuse the tension, she looked at Mike and grinned. “There’s one thing that was pretty clear. He didn’t mention you. At all. Are you sure that you remember your vision?”

  Mike smiled and raised his glass, toasting her. “Touché.”

  Brett seemed to wake from his torpor and frowned at him at once. “I knew you were joking!”

  Everybody else burst out laughing, and eventually even Brett smiled.

  To Daisy’s relief, the conversation now shifted toward safer topics: work, new cars, family news, people they knew from college. Every so often, though, Daisy’s eyes returned to Brett. He looked calmer but a small frown creased his usually affable features. Had he truly forgotten everything? Or did he remember bits and pieces, isolated elements that did little more than confuse him?

  As Joan stood to pick up some hors d’oeuvre, Daisy realized that the table was all but empty.

  “Looks like those visions are making you guys hungry,” she said, standing up. “I’ve got some canapés in the fridge, I’ll go get them.”

  “I’ll help you,” Rachel said at once, and when Daisy flashed her a grateful smile, she followed her to the kitchen.

  Rachel was often very quiet during such outings, laughing and enjoying herself like the others, but usually from a step away. Joan was good at helping her open up and chime in; they had been best friends since childhood. It was Joan who had introduced Rachel to the rest of them. They had welcomed her with open arms, but she had always clung to some reserve as though there were parts of her she didn’t care to share with anyone. Daisy wasn’t surprised that Rachel was accompanying her to the kitchen and away from the animated voices and boisterous laughter, but she soon realized there was another agenda.

  Daisy had just opened the fridge to pull out the first tray when Rachel said, “Daisy?” Her voice was hesitant, and so was her expression. “About Woods… I was wondering… How well do you know him?”

  Better now than I did three hours ago, Daisy thought, but it wasn’t what Rachel was asking about.

  “Not that well, really,” she admitted as she handed over the tray of canapés. “This is only the second time I’ve talked to him.”

  Although the first time, Daisy added silently, they hadn’t really ‘talked’ so much as argued with forced smiles and hushed voices. Neither of them had wanted to make a scene at her sister’s wedding; on this, at least, they had agreed. It had been very different tonight, to her great surprise; after actually talking to him she felt like she had learned a lot about what he did and why.

  Rachel set the tray on the table. She was biting down on her bottom lip, looking a little uncomfortable.

  Pulling the last tray from the fridge, Daisy popped both of them into the oven to quickly warm them under the broiler. “Honey?” she said softly, turning back to Rachel and drawing her eyes up again. “Is something wrong?”

  “Well… I was just wondering…” Rachel took in a deep, shaky breath. Color was slowly rising in her cheeks. “I mean, Brett said he forgot and Woods said if he told him what the vision was about, he’d forget again right away. But this is all very private, what he shows us.” She lowered her voice to a whisper and finally met Daisy’s eyes. “Does he really see it too?”

  Daisy couldn’t imagine lying about this, or even refusing to answer. It was such a large part of what Woods did—such an important part—that Rachel and anyone else who asked deserved the truth. Maybe Daisy should have told them as soon as she realized it herself. Then again, it seemed that they did know now. Or maybe it had been implied from the start.

  “Yes,” she said slowly. “He does.”

  Rachel nodded. “I thought so. I mean, even before Brett mentioned it, I figured… It makes sense that he would or else how would he even know he gives people visions?” Her smile seemed strained, pulling tight lines at the corners of her mouth without touching her eyes. “I guess I’m just wondering… Do you think he shares what he sees? I mean, if he sees something really private about me, I don’t want it to end up in a book or on his TV show.”

  “I’m sure he wouldn’t,” Daisy said at once, hoping she sounded as certain as she truly was. “I asked him why Lydia was so upset earlier and he wouldn’t say a word. He seems very firm about not sharing.”

  “Oh, that’s good.” Relief was thick in Rachel’s voice but the tension tightening her shoulders did not abate. “Very good.”

  She still didn’t seem convinced. Daisy gave her a reassuring smile.

  “Rachel, if you don’t want to do it…”

  “I…I do,” Rachel said, stuttering in her haste, and she shrugged. “I mean, I think I do. Everybody else has so far. And I… I want to know but…at the same time…”

  She gave a helpless look. Daisy guessed Rachel was still worried about Woods talking about her vision; she’d have to ask him and decide if she wanted to trust his word.

  “Think about it,” Daisy said gently. “Ask him about it, if that’ll help. And just remember, no one will force you to do it.”

  Rachel smiled. “Thank you.”

  It was a few more seconds before the canapés were warm. Hands protected by oven mitts, Daisy and Rachel brought them over to the dining room, where the guests immediately praised the food. Before they could eat it all, Daisy filled two small plates, one for herself and one for Woods, and poured two glasses of water. Just as she entered the living room to check if he and Cathleen were done, she met Cathleen coming in.

  She kissed Daisy’s cheek, said “thanks” with a wide smile and returned to the dining room before Daisy could even ask what she was being thanked for. Cathleen’s steps seemed much lighter than they had been earlier and Daisy couldn’t help but grin at her retreating back.

  As she struggled to open the window with her full hands, Woods heard her and came to help. He pulled the door open, took a glass and plate from her, thanking her as he sat back down in a chair. He waited until Daisy was seated as well before he took his first bite and let out an appreciative little hum.

  Daisy also took a couple of mouthfuls, thinking of Cathleen’s unexpected thanks. “So let me guess, I was in her vision too?”

  Woods chuckled. “You know I won’t say anything.” He ate another canapé before remarking, “But five out of six so far�
� Are you sure you don’t want one of your own?”

  She rolled her eyes at him but couldn’t help smiling at the same time. “Very sure, yes.”

  “It’s weird,” Woods said after a few seconds, peering at her curiously. “I’ve never had close visions like these before. Visions where one person keeps popping up in other people’s lives.”

  Daisy hid her surprise. Was he actually volunteering information about his visions? “Popping up how?” she asked, as casually as she could.

  He arched an amused eyebrow at her, clearly seeing right through her.

  She raised her hands in front of her, surrendering. “I’m not asking for specifics,” she said quickly. “I just wonder if I’m only passing through in the background or really helping. I don’t…”

  She hesitated, wondering how much to reveal about herself. Woods had told her a lot about himself all throughout the evening. Did he even realize how much he had divulged, bit by bit? She wasn’t one to tell others all about herself, especially someone she had just met, but this felt fair somehow.

  “I don’t have many friends,” she finally said. “These people you’ve seen here tonight, that’s about it. But when I do make a friend, it’s forever.”

  She stopped there, knowing she had said quite enough. He didn’t need to know that she hadn’t always had trouble making friends. When she had been younger it had been something easy, something natural, like breathing or smiling. Everything had changed during her teenage years. She supposed it was true for many people.

  It had been years since she had made a new friend. Every person who had come tonight had been in her address book for at least seven years, and one of them, Alicia, had been her friend for three times that.

  Watching Woods, she couldn’t help but wonder if she might have a new friend soon. After all, she already knew a lot about him.

  “I’ll say this,” Woods said, a slight smile dancing on his lips. “From what I’ve seen, they’re lucky to have you in their lives.”

  Daisy ducked her head, pleased. With so few friends, she tried to take care of all of them in any way she could; it was nice to know her help was valuable.

  They ate in silence a little longer, but as he finished Woods hummed again. “They’re even luckier if this is the kind of party you throw. Did you make this food?”

  She shook her head and grinned. Her talents in the kitchen were minimal at best but Woods didn’t need to know that. “Nah, I bought it. My job doesn’t leave me much time to cook. Especially around the holidays.”

  Woods nodded absently. “I bet antiques make nice gifts, yes.”

  Mild surprise flashed through Daisy. How much had her sister told Woods? “Helen told you where I work?”

  He shrugged. “I think she might have mentioned it. But I’ve seen it. Pretty place you’ve got there.”

  She blinked several time in confusion. He made it sound like…

  “It’s not my store,” she said slowly. “I just work there. Did you…” Excitement tingled down her spine and she was almost breathless when she finished. “Did you see me owning it?”

  Woods looked torn, and Daisy could easily understand why. She hadn’t asked him about her friends’ future but her own.

  “I thought you didn’t want to know what will happen to you,” he said, rather than answering.

  “I don’t,” came out before Daisy could even think, but it was only partly true. “I mean, I don’t want to know about my relationships. I’m asking about my job. It’s different.”

  Woods gave her an incredulous look. “So you’re more interested in your job than your love life?”

  “No,” she said at once, a little more forcefully than she had meant to.

  Woods’ eyebrows climbed a little higher. Any moment now, he would say she was protesting too much.

  “No,” she repeated, more calmly. “But like I said, it’s different. Knowing what’s ahead as far as my job is concerned would just save me from worrying. The rest…” She shrugged. “Whoever I’m destined to be with, I’ll meet him in my own time.”

  Woods observed her for a little longer, as though trying to decide if she was telling the truth then finally nodded. One corner of his mouth lifted, but he wasn’t teasing her as he had been earlier.

  “So, you do believe in destiny after all?”

  With a small grin, Daisy replied, “It’s my name, isn’t it? So wasn’t I destined to?”

  Laughing, he raised his glass for a toast. Daisy clinked her glass against his. The chime of the two glasses was nice, she thought, but not nearly as nice as his laugh.

  Seventh Vision of Destiny – Rachel

  As the night crept toward the arrival of the New Year, the air grew chillier on the balcony. The view over the ocean, on the other hand, remained just as lovely, and under the moonlight gentle waves glittered all the way to the horizon, broken up only where boats sailed in the bay.

  Daisy was glad she had organized this party at her parents’ cottage. She had thought of simply holding it in her apartment; after all, the main point of the soiree was for the seer Sam Woods to show Daisy’s friends their romantic futures, and she supposed he could have done that anywhere. Her apartment would have been a little cramped, however, while the cottage offered separate spaces for the party inside and the visions on the balcony.

  So far, Woods had ‘read’ six of Daisy’s friends, and it seemed that after every new vision he needed a little more time to prepare for the next. Either that, or he liked Daisy’s company. She had to admit she hadn’t expected she would enjoy talking to him and discovering what it meant exactly for him to be a seer.

  The first time they had met, she had all but thrown it in his face that he was nothing more than a crook, preying on people’s hopes of finding real love. After seeing her friends go to him one by one, after seeing their reactions to what they had seen—and Woods’ reactions, too, as he saw everything they did—she was ready to concede that it wasn’t the sham she had made it out to be. She still hadn’t changed her mind about the necessity of such visions, though, and she didn’t plan on asking for a vision herself.

  “You’re shivering,” Woods said suddenly as he turned to her. “You should go back inside. And I’m ready for my next ‘victim,’ as you say.”

  A smile brightened his dark eyes and softened the teasing in his last words. It seemed like a long time had passed since Daisy had made that acerbic quip instead of a few hours. She glanced at her watch. Woods had been hard at work for three hours already; he wanted to be done by midnight, which meant two more readings in a little less than an hour. That ought to be easily doable.

  “Are you done with your food?” she asked him as she stood from the iron chair across from him, her own empty plate in hand. “Would you like more? Or something else to drink?”

  He handed her his plate and glass. “Maybe after this next vision.” He passed his fingers through his hair, messing up the spikes a little more. “Something warm again? It’s getting a little chilly.”

  She more than agreed with him. At least, he was wearing a jacket, while she had bare arms and shoulders. She had worn a heavy shawl earlier, but she had offered it to Cathleen earlier, and hadn’t thought of asking for it back when she had brought refreshments out to share with Woods.

  “Would you rather do this inside?” she offered. “Maybe in the living room?”

  Woods looked at the room on the other side of the French windows; its sofa and armchairs were certainly more inviting than the balcony on a cool night. He shook his head, however. “No, thanks. I like it here. The sound of the ocean is a nice backdrop.”

  She nodded her understanding. The balcony had always been her favorite place in the house, in equal parts because of the sounds and the view.

  “I’ll go get the next one, then. I think Rachel is next. And then Brad and you’ll be done.”

 
The corners of his mouth rose, and she was sure she knew what he was going to suggest next; he had said he could read up to ten people in one evening, and that left room for Daisy to see her own future. She left the balcony before she needed to tell him, yet again, that she wasn’t interested.

  From the living room, she stepped into the dining room. All her friends, seated in a loose circle by the refreshment table, fell silent when she entered, and Daisy stilled on the threshold for a second before coming closer, more slowly now. The goose bumps prickling her arms weren’t due to the cold anymore. Her gaze drifted over her friends, and from the sheepishness on their faces, she had no doubt they had been talking about her.

  “What is it?” she asked as she set the plates and glasses down.

  “Nothing,” Mike and Joan replied together. They threw each other startled looks, and nervous laughs spread through the group.

  Daisy’s frown swept over all of them. “You’re all terrible liars,” she declared, and crossed her arms to wait for an actual answer.

  It was Brad who replied, and his tone turned almost apologetic. “We were just saying that you spend a lot of time out there with Woods.”

  Taken aback, Daisy replied without thinking. “What? That’s not… I do not!”

  Cathleen slipped the shawl off her shoulders and wrapped it around Daisy’s. “Yes, you do,” she said, gently patting Daisy’s arm.

  “You told us he was a fraud,” Joan added, “and that you couldn’t stand him, but you’ve been drinking with him, talking with him…”

  She finished with a smile and a waggle of her eyebrows. Daisy could feel her cheeks warm up suddenly, and she wished she could have stopped herself from blushing. It was hard to deny anything when her own body was betraying her.

  “So maybe I realized he wasn’t a fraud,” she said, more defensive than she meant to be. “I’m allowed to change my mind.”

  “Does that mean you’re going to do it?” Mike asked curiously.

  “No,” she replied, her voice as firm as she could make it. “I’m not.”