Pisces will come into a large sum of money

‘Hello, Dr. Bonneville. This is Abigail Tanner, I was your mother’s editor for the Daily Gazette. First, I would like to say how sorry I am - we all are- for your loss. We all loved Jeanie at the Gazette. Secondly, and this is quite an insensitive request of me because you must be in great pain, but we’ve not been able to find a replacement on such short notice and I wanted to ask you if you happened to come across some of the notes for the column. We would be immensely in your debt if you could find them and get them to us. She used to carry around a little black notebook, so I suspect her notes are there. I’m sure her readers would also appreciate it.’

From Archie Bonneville’s voice messages, Thursday, 22 March 2018, 10 am

Archie listened to that voicemail again. Here he was in his mother’s flat, for the first time in 10 years, not having a clue why he accepted to help Abigail Tanner in the first place. It had been inconvenient enough that his mother’s lawyer had called him earlier that week to ask him to come out to Chicago from Houston to settle the estate and claim his inheritance - a measly $20,000. While the money was not a driver, he did after all have to clear out the property and think about selling it.

He supposed that his mother’s job, being a horoscope columnist in a local newspaper with a small readership wouldn’t have earned her too much, but after everything that had happened between them, he was surprised that she had decided to leave him anything.

He looked around the flat with disdain. It was a tip – empty teacups left everywhere, star charts lying around, books about different astrological signs piled up on her writing desk and an antiquated desktop computer behind them. How she could live like this Archie had never known. Marie Kondo would have a field day if she were ever let into this flat. In the corner on a wall, there was a large calendar with notes scribbled around it, “Mercury in retrograde” being the most prominent one in red Sharpie. He stared at the calendar and remembered what his mother once told him.

Mercury is in retrograde, Archie dear, I can’t buy you a bicycle.

I’m not sending to camp while Mars is in conjuncture with the Sun.

It was enough that his mother had to live her life like this, but she had always dragged him along. Annoyingly none of the planets had done anything in his favour – there was no Jupiter in Gemini or whatever when he had to take a test or when he was feeling sick and didn’t want to go to school. He felt like he was constantly punished by the planets and the stars.

And there was one other thing that hit very deep.

You can’t get engaged to Mindy, she’s an Aries, it will never work.

She had been right about the marriage not working, but not for that reason. It has only occurred to him that she died without knowing about his divorce.

In all fairness, Mindy’s astrological sign had nothing to do with his mother’s disapproval. Mindy had too much Chablis to drink when she first met his mother and ended up telling her that she was a fraud who took advantage of vulnerable people. Mindy was a scientist like him after all, so they both shared the same opinion, but he never had the courage to voice it to his mother. He supposed he could have taken a stance with Mindy about insulting her, but at the time he was so infatuated with Mindy he even applauded that she finally had the guts to say something that he had thought all along. His mother had been so furious that she was adamant about not attending the wedding or even hearing about Mindy. From that moment on they stopped speaking to each other. It had been ten years.

He had only once been into this flat when he helped his mother move in, assembling her IKEA bookshelves that now housed an impressive collection of books, many even written by his mother. “Capricorn – Between Duty and Self-fulfilment”, “The Zodiac of Love”, “The House of Venus - Attracting Men Based on their Astrological Signs”. Then he spotted it – a little black notebook on one shelf near a book called “The Secrets of Sagittarius” his mother had written when he was five years old.

He messaged Abigail Tanner saying he found the notebook and she offered to come to the flat around noon to pick it up. He’d seen the lawyers first thing to claim the keys to the flat, so it was still early.

He opened the black notebook with a bit of curiosity and a strong desire to reinforce how silly this whole thing was. He for one had no time to blame the universe for everything that happened to him. He had control over his own life.

He opened the notebook at random and recognised his mother’s familiar handwriting.

22 March – Don from Accounting stole tea again –Gemini to lose a bet or a large sum of money.

14 April – Abigail brought cake –Capricorn to get a promotion.

23 May – postman misplaced mail –Cancer to have an upset stomach.

14 September – neighbour’s cat peed on doormat – Aquarius will have to concede in an argument.

He flipped through the pages. He could not believe that she was using her column to mess with people that had upset her. No wonder nothing had been in his favour.

5 December – No call from Archie. – Aries to sustain a minor sports injury.

The 5th of December was his mother’s birthday. He hadn’t called since she made her stance clear on his wedding but looking at the second part of the phrase, he realised she was taking it out on Mindy, who was an Aries, rather than on him – a Pisces. He couldn’t help but snigger. Mindy had had an affair with her personal trainer for more than 3 years so it would probably serve her right to sustain a minor sports injury.

He realised he might have inherited some pettiness from his mother and then he wondered what she wrote about him. He flipped through the pages at any mentions of his sign.

Pisces

… workplace success as you deliver a new project …

…. you will receive good news from a friend or a neighbour…

…. Mars in Gemini means you should do something you have been postponing….

….it is time to talk to a relative like a parent or a guardian …

He had an ominous feeling about the last one that was dated two weeks before. He flipped the page to see the 18th of March 2018.

… you will come into a large sum of money, possibly an inheritance from an ill relative…

Archie froze and then he felt a tingle in his chest. She must have known she was ill for a while. Why had she not told him? He then looked a few rows about to see what she had written for herself.

Sagittarius

… you will finally see the outcome of something you have been expecting for a long time….

Archie could feel himself tear up. He’d always been calculated and rational but now he just wished he had buried the hatchet sooner. He must have sat on the floor for an hour sobbing, thinking of his mother and the happier times they had shared and how he had been so foolish to not make amends. Despite using the stars to punish him, she had been a decent mother, she had supported his passion for knowledge and facts despite it not being what she believed in and was very proud of him when he got his doctorate in physics.

His trail of thought was interrupted by a knock. He had forgotten about Abigail Tanner. When he opened the door, she immediately leapt to give him a hug which made him pretty uncomfortable.

‘Dr. Bonneville, we’re all so sorry at the Gazette. We’ll be doing an obituary in the Sunday issue along with her last column.’ She declared.

‘Thank you, Miss Tanner. I’m sure she would have appreciated it.’ He said getting himself free from her grasp. She was a petite redhead with thick, black-rimmed glasses, and she looked much younger than Archie had imagined.

‘She talked a lot about you, you know.’ She added. ‘My son, the Pisces, is going to have some good news this week; my son, the Pisces, is going to be praised at work this week.’

He nodded politely.

‘I have the notebook, but I should warn you, it’s not what you expect.’ He said flatly. ‘In fact, I’d rather not give it to you. I hope you understand, it would keep my mother’s memory a fond one.’

She tried to hide a smile.

‘Oh, we know what’s in that notebook. That was her charm you see. One time Barb from Design forgot to add her column and Gemini got a full month of “unforeseen expenses and minor inconveniences”.’ She said devilishly. ‘When my ex and I broke up she wrote that Virgo would be unlucky in love for a whole year. Everyone was amused by it; they knew she didn’t mean any harm.’

Archie was surprised.

‘You probably knew my mother better than I did.’ He said handing her the notebook.

‘She mentioned you weren’t on speaking terms, but I have to tell you that she always looked out for Pisces. I don’t think I have ever seen anything bad or even mildly inconvenient happen to Pisces while I’ve been at the Gazette. It was probably her way of looking after you.’

Archie’s eyes were starting to fill up with tears again.

‘Oh no, I’m sorry I’ve upset you.’ She said trying to get out a handkerchief from her handbag.

‘It’s alright, it’s all the emotion plus being on a red-eye from Houston.’

‘You poor thing, please let me buy you lunch and some coffee, it’s the least I can do for getting this.’ She held out the notebook.

He was too tired to protest so he nodded. He got out his keys to lock the door and then followed Abigail Tanner to the elevator. As he pressed on the ground floor, he noticed she was flipping the pages of the notebook looking for something.

‘I’m just looking for the horoscope for next week.’ She said noticing that he was examining her ‘I’m curious what the stars have in store for me.’

She seemed to find what she was looking for and shut the notebook swiftly.

‘What’s the matter? Did you give her a strict deadline that means you’re going to have an altercation with a friend?’ he joked.

She looked up at him startled.

‘No, no, nothing of the sorts. It’s all good.’ She was flustered but recomposed herself. ‘There’s a diner right across the street that does some great burgers. Would you like that?’

From the Evening Gazette Horoscope column, 24 March 2018

“[…] For Capricorns that are currently single love is on the horizon, most likely a Pisces or a Libra that will appear suddenly in your life. With Venus in your house, it is the perfect moment to start a romantic relationship.

Pisces will suffer a loss, but Venus in Capricorn brings them the prospect of a new beginning and hope. Pisces natives may travel or embark on a more spiritual journey.”