Death in the Cards Read Online Free PDF Page A

Cherry and Sally and me, although I guessed Skylar to be in her early twenties. Cherry and Sally had finally shuffled up beside us.
    â€œYou know, you have the most beautiful hair.” Cherry’s fingers waved near Skylar’s hair. “It would be perfect in braids.”
    Skylar lifted her eyebrows. “You’re good with braids?”
    I said, “She owns Paradise’s only beauty salon. Braiding’s her specialty—although she also does buns and blue heads.”
    We all laughed, except Karen, who kept a fretting look on her face. “I am her manager. But she never pays any attention to me, even though I’m the one who discovered her talent, which she inherited from my mother, God rest her soul.”
    â€œYou’re not a psychic?” I asked, surprised.
    Karen gave a twittering laugh. “Oh no, not at all. But Skylar—well—Skylar has a gift with dream interpretation. She also does Tarot reading—”
    â€œOoh, Josie, here, got mugged with a palm reading and a dream interpretation, on her way in! From a Ginny Proffitt,” Cherry chimed in. “You all know her? We’re hoping to find her. Or find out more about her.”
    The Smiths went stonily silent again. Uh oh.
    Then Karen turned to her daughter, “See? I told you. You should have protested your table assignment! But do you ever listen to me? Not about the brochures, not about that awful Ginny Proffitt! I hate that woman! I’m not psychic, but even I know this is going to be a disaster!”
    With that, Karen stomped off toward the curtained area. She thrust aside the curtain so hard the whole structure wobbled. She was surprisingly strong for such a petite woman. Skylar stared after her mom, looking at once embarrassed and worried.
    â€œWhat’s behind the curtain?” Sally asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence. “The Wizard of Oz?”
    Skylar looked back at us, regaining at least the appearance of composure with a quick laugh. “Right now, a bunch of boxes—participants’ brochures, a few items for sale at the tables. By tomorrow afternoon, when the psychic fair opens, it’ll be an area for specialty seminars. How to balance your chakras, things like that.”
    Sally grunted. “I don’t even know how to balance my checkbook.”
    â€œWell, don’t ask me about that—or about chakras. I know a little, but it’s not my specialty.”
    â€œPsychics have specialties?” said Cherry.
    â€œSure,” Skylar said, “like in most any profession. I mean, you do hair, but your real passion is braiding. My gift is in dream interpretation and Tarot reading, just like mom said. Ginny Proffitt focuses on palm and orb reading—”
    â€œOrb?” Cherry said.
    Skylar smiled. “What most people think of as a crystal ball. But Ginny also does dream-interpretation.”
    â€œI take it you two are competitors in the dream interpretation department?” Sally asked.
    Skylar’s smile faded. “My mom and Ginny are competitors—ever since a psychic fair last spring in Illinois. Ginny’s table was beside mine then, too, and she grabbed all the attention. I still did just fine—and I prefer a much more relaxed approach—but Ginny’s a real self-promoter.”
    She turned, pointing to the table that was next to hers. She and her mother had been blocking it from our view, and we’d been so focused on her mother’s stomping off that we hadn’t noticed the red tablecloth on the table next to Skylar’s.
    Now that Skylar had moved, we could also see the large clear crystal ball, on an ornate gold stand, with four dragons holding up the ball, displayed on a red tablecloth embroidered with gold stars, and the professionally printed display poster that read, GINNY PROFFITT, SEER AND PROPHETESS .
    PALM AND ORB READINGS . . . DREAM INTERPRETATION . . .
    YOUR FUTURE REVEALED !