Miriam's Talisman Read Online Free Page B

who
not
to invite. Hey, listen to this: “Don’t let Hannah recruit her local vicar, I don’t want some Christian upstart chanting over my bones.” That’s Miriam all right.’
    â€˜These other tapes are music: Mozart and Rachmaninov and some traditional Irish harp tunes.’
    â€˜Yes, there’s a list of music here. And it says, “I don’t want anyone singing. Nothing worse than a room full of people singing hymns they don’t believe to a tune they don’t know in a key their voices were never designed toreach.” ’ We were both laughing by then.
    I shuffled through the other pages. ‘Where is this event supposed to be held?’
    â€˜Ah, that’s this one,’ he said, handing me a letter embossed with the crest of King’s College, Cambridge. It confirmed the use of their Great Hall for the pre-burial service.
    â€˜This is amazing, Uncle Greg. I called in at an undertaker’s this morning—you know, the one on Station Road—but it all made no sense, so I just left it.’
    â€˜That’s OK. An undertaker’s already been appointed and has received full instructions. They only need a phone call to move into action. Here’s their number. And these are the deed papers proving ownership of a cemetery plot. There should be a list of pall-bearers there, as well as the address of a florist and a choice of flowers.’
    â€˜Oh, you’re joking. This is incredible. What about a reception after? I suppose she’s already made the sandwiches.’
    â€˜Not quite. Here’s an estimate from a caterer for a small gathering at the cottage.’
    â€˜And look what she’s written on the bottom. “I don’t want any of this piddling sherry nonsense. Make sure they serve a full-bodied red wine in large glasses as befits a warrior.” ’
    I continued to search through the documents, hoping there would be a personal note for me, but I found nothing.
    â€˜She seems to have thought of everything. It’s like she knew.’
    â€˜She came to me six months ago and told me she needed my help to make plans.’
    â€˜But that’s awful, morbid. Fancy making plans for your own burial.’
    â€˜Not at all,’ he said. ‘She was like a kid plotting a surprise party. She really enjoyed stage-managing it all.’
    â€˜I wish she could have seen the end of the year. She talked a lot about living in two centuries, but she never made it that far. What a party that would have been.’
    â€˜And,’ he added quietly, ‘she didn’t want you to have to deal with any more conflict.’
    I touched the talisman and whispered a silent thank-you. Greg waited patiently while I continued to read and sip my brandy.
    â€˜Would you like a top-up?’ He waved the bottle towards my glass and I was shocked to find that it was empty.
    â€˜Oh, God, no thank you. I’m supposed to be driving.’
    â€˜OK. So is everything you need there? You know if there’s anything else I can do, you only have to let me know. I can take it all off your shoulders if you’d rather.’
    â€˜No, no. It’s what she wanted and I want to do it. It’s just so hard to imagine Miriam being so organised and practical. She seemed to live in a dream most of the time, hardly aware of what the rest of the world was doing.’
    â€˜And most of the time that was true. All that eccentric, mystical stuff. But underneath lurked a hard-nosed and very astute businesswoman. She was very wealthy, you know. She made a lot of money from her books, of course, both here and in the States. And she managed to invest it very wisely, though her methods may have been a bit off the wall.’ He smiled and shook his head. ‘Sometimes she’d buy shares because she liked the design on the company’s notepaper. But they always came through. And of course the cottage was an excellent investment, and she