“How about I see what I can do. If I can get contributions of… say… five thousand, by tomorrow afternoon, would that be enough for you to talk to the school board about putting on the play?”
“That would certainly convince them to think about it. But it still would not be enough to do the play.”
“As long as they will consider it, I will keep working to get enough money.” Jason looked over at Mr. Vandeuson. “We know quite a few yachters that might kick in a hundred here or there, do we not, Mr. Vandeuson?”
“You are a sly dog, Jason McKindrick,” he replied with a smile. “Yes, we do, Irene,” he added, walking toward Miss Murcheson. He took out his wallet and counted out five twenty dollar bills. “Here is the first hundred. I will help Jason with the fundraising. Then, anything else I can do to help, I will.”
“Well, Mathew, I suppose we will just have to give it a try, then,” Miss Murcheson said. She turned back to Calvin and said, “Not to doubt you, Mr. Rasmussen, but I will need to know about how much help you will be. If the students and I are to do this, we all want to do it well. I will call Nancy and find out what I need to know.”
“I was thinking you might join me for dinner. I could fill you in on my credentials.”
Miss Murcheson turned bright red. Only Jason noticed Mathew Vandeuson’s sudden tenseness. Jason smiled.
“I think not, Mr. Rasmussen. It is not appropriate. Now, if it does turn out that you could be of help, I will need a way to contact you.”
Calvin smiled. “Nancy can tell you how to contact me. I take it that I am dis-missed for the moment?”
Again Miss Murcheson colored. “I am sorry if I offended you, Mr. Rasmussen.”
“You did not. It is quite refreshing to meet a woman who will speak her mind. Good day.”
Miss Murcheson colored yet again when she turned to speak to the group and saw them all watching her interestingly.
“That is enough,” she said sternly. “Since there is very little we can do until the decision is made as to what play we will actually undertake, I believe everyone can go. I will announce the time and date of the next meeting, after I see how the fundraising goes and talk to the school board.”
Jason went to Mr. Vandeuson and quickly said, “If you do not want the third degree from Trinity, about Miss Murcheson, we better head for the marina.”
“Jason I have no idea what…” Mr. Vandeuson saw Trinity headed toward him with a gleam in her eyes. “Uh… I think we should hurry, Jason. I want to get plenty of time aboard. I may not have many chances, with this play thing,” he hurriedly said.
“Yes, sir. Of course.” He turned and called back, “See you guys later,” to Sara and Trinity, who had been slightly delayed by Bootsi.
“Jason, I am not sure what you were thinking in the gym…” Mr. Vandeuson said as they prepared his boat.
Jason smiled. “What I think is not important, Mr. Vandeuson. Only what you think. And Miss Murcheson.”
“There is nothing going on between us, Jason,” Mr. Vandeuson said sternly. “And I will tell Trinity that, as soon as I see her.”
“Yes, sir. I know that,” Jason replied, handling the lines expertly as Mr. Vandeuson moved to the tiller.
Jason smiled toward the man and added, “If there is anything I can do to help you change that, just let me know.”
“Oh, Lord! Am I that obvious?”
“No, Mr. Vandeuson. I do not think you even knew it until in the gym a little while ago.”
“She called me Mathew,” Mr. Vandeuson said.
Despite their talk, they were handling the boat well in the freshening wind.
“And you called her Irene.”
“No, I did not,” Mr. Vandeuson protested. “Did I?”
Jason nodded, then ducked and moved to the other side of the boat as Mr. Vandeuson brought the boat around on another tack.
“No wonder Trinity was headed toward me with that look.”
Mr. Vandeuson sighed. “I am in for it now.”
“Do not be surprised, if after the initial outburst, Trinity makes the same offer to you I did.”
“What do you mean?”
“Mr. Vandeuson, Trinity loves you very much. She wants you to be happy. She likes Miss Murcheson. I do not believe Trinity would think having her as a stepmother would be a bad thing.”
“Jason! I have not even gone out with the woman!”
“No, sir. But the thought crossed your mind, even before this afternoon.”
Again Mr. Vandeuson sighed. “At the Halloween party last year. But I put it out of my mind. The thoughts just all came rushing back in the gym.”
Jason smiled. “One thing you should know about this afternoon. Calvin Ras-mussen is happily married. He and his wife are staying at the Carlton.”
“What? How do you know this?”
“I know him. I would really rather you not tell anyone. Especially Miss Murcheson, Trinity, and most particularly, Sara. I want to live a little longer.”
“I was right. You are a sly dog! Not just about getting contributions from the yacht club members, either! How do you know some actor from New York?”
“Oh, he is more than just some actor, Mr. Vandeuson. He is a very talented, though not yet widely known, actor, director and producer. He was choreographing a play last year when another actor slipped and fell into him. It really messed up his knee. He will be all right, he said. He is just taking the time while his knee heals to study, as he said. And write.”
The two fell silent as they worked intensely several minutes to deploy the spinnaker. Running before the wind now, Jason spoke again.
“There are several projects just waiting for his return to New York. One of my father’s many businesses interests was a silent partnership in a production company. I was introduced to Calvin before my father’s death. I talked to him about helping out with this production. I want Miss Murcheson to have a chance to do it. And I want Sara to have the same chance.
“Mr. Vandeuson, I know you know who my father was. I really do not know how well you knew him.”
“Just passably well, Jason. From the yacht club and marina.”
“Trinity has always thought of me as well off, Mr. Vandeuson. I am. Very well off. I certainly do intend to canvass for contributions for the play. But it does not matter if I get a penny. I will even give you back the hundred if you want it.
“But I intend to provide the money for the play, no matter what it might be. Five thousand or ten.”
“Take the wheel,” Mr. Vandeuson said. He moved forward, checked the lines, then turned to study Jason. Jason was watching the sails and the water. He knew Mr. Vandeuson was watching him.
“You have done things like this before. The team uniforms.”
“I did get much of it from donations. I really do think I can raise quite a bit for the play. But, yes. I did contribute most of the money for the team uniforms.”
“You are only seventeen, Jason. You were barely fourteen when you got the money for the uniforms.”
“Some people think I am mature for my age. I just have known, for a long time, what I want.”
“Trinity told me about your arrangement with Sara.”
Jason looked at Mr. Vandeuson steadily.
“I am not judging either of you,” Mr. Vandeuson said.
Jason suddenly smiled. “Yes, you are. It is a favorable judgment, or you would have said otherwise.”
A look of surprise crossed Mr. Vandeuson’s face. “You know, by George, you are right! I always told myself that I simply would not judge the situation. But Trinity is always talking about the two of you. Not as a couple, but as two individuals. And that is what the situation is. She was adamant about the particulars of the arrangement. I did not doubt, really. But now, it is an iron clad certainty in my mind.”
“It is something I have been sure of from the outset. Just as I am this. I would prefer to keep my part of the contributions unknown. Sara will eventually figure it out. She is a
n extremely perceptive woman. And she will tell Trinity. Eventually. And Miss Murcheson, I am sure, no doubt will get wind of it. As long as the play is produced, I do not care.”
He suddenly smiled. “Assuming I live after Sara finds out. She is not quite as keen on her part in the play as everyone else is.”
“And there is no doubt about her getting the female lead,” Mr. Vandeuson said.
Jason smiled again.
“It is absolutely none of my business… But how do you deal with the fact… Sara… Trinity also told me you love her, but she does not love you.”
“I spend time with her. She is happy.” Jason shrugged. “I cannot explain other than that.”
Mr. Vandeuson nodded. Without further words they exchanged places again, sailing until they both knew they had to get back or suffer even worse than they were anyway.
“AW! NO, NO, NO! I do not want to be the villain!” Trinity wailed.
“You are the only one that can do that whiny voice and make it convincing,” Sara said. “And if I have to do this, so do you.”
“But you will be the star! I will be the villain!”
“The guy is the star,” Sara said.
Trinity managed to grin. “Not in this production.”
Sara growled. “Trinity, I will find a way not to do this, if you do not. I will break my leg, if necessary.”
“No you will not. Oh, phooey! Wait a minute! I might not even get it! There are a whole bunch of girls trying out. After they found out who Calvin is, we got a bunch more people involved."
“That was really odd, that,” Sara said.
“Not really, if you think about it. Miss Murcheson knows that Nancy woman, who knows Calvin.”
“Maybe.” Sara smiled over at Trinity again. “But you still have it locked. Miss Murcheson already heard you clowning around with the voice. She will not let you not use it when you do the audition.”
“Me and my big mouth!” Trinity complained. At least you get to kiss Roger in a couple of scenes. And dance with him.” She grinned. “What do you think George will say?”
“Do not know, and do not care. This is a play. If he cannot handle it, that is his problem.”
“Hey! Whoa! What brought that on?” Trinity asked.
Sara sighed. “Nothing. And he will be fine with it. You know that. Jason…”
“What? Jason always helps with the play. He could not last year, because of being grounded. But he has done it every other year.”
“I know. That is what everyone has told me. But it is still annoying. I still think he had something to do with this. He tried last year.”
“Well, sure he has something to do with it. He is getting the money. Helping with the sets. And that idea for the rain scenes… Even Calvin thought it was great. We can do it for half the money Calvin thought we would need to spend. And it is real water. A lot of it. It is going to be almost like the movie.”
Suddenly Sara looked thoughtful. “I did not know it at the Halloween party that it was him when we danced together, but he was good. And you and pretty much half the female student body in this school says he is a good dancer. Do you remember those moves on stage at that party?”
Trinity’s eyes grew large. “Cosmo!”
“Exactly. That devil is not going to get to hide backstage!”
“I cannot believe I did not think of it myself!” Trinity exclaimed. “He is probably the only person in this school that come anywhere close to the acrobatic dancing that a really good Cosmo character would do.”
“Right. Why he is still taking lessons is beyond me,” Sara said. “The way most of you talk, he taught you to dance.”
“He did, Sara. Sara, he does not just take lessons. He teaches down at Gypsy’s Dance School. He did teach a bunch of us.”
“What do you mean, he teaches?”
“The young ones. He helps Gypsy teach beginners. She was already using him to help demonstrate moves when Bootsi, Kathy and I went.”
“You are kidding!”
Trinity shook her head. “No. He keeps going there to help Gypsy. She has taught him what she can. Now, he studies on his own, and she just acts as his partner when he practices.”
“I am going to maim him!” Sara hissed.
“Why?” Trinity asked as they went to look for Miss Murcheson.
“He never told me that.”
“Okay?”
“But he… Oh, never mind. But he is going to do that part, or else!”
Trinity grabbed Sara’s arm when they went around the end of the curtain. “Wait,” she whispered. “Look!”
Mr. Vandeuson was listening, enraptured, as Miss Murcheson explained how she wanted a backdrop constructed. Mr. Vandeuson wore a tool belt over faded Levi’s, with a sleeveless tee shirt and work boots.
“Wow! My dad looks kinda cool! And boy, oh boy, does he have it bad for Miss Murcheson!”
“You do not seem upset,” Sara replied, keeping her voice low, too.
“Miss Murcheson is great. You know that. My dad deserves someone like her. She is smart. And beautiful. And… My mom would like her.”
Trinity wiped the tears from her eyes.
“Oh, Trinity!” Sara said gently.
“I am okay. Do not tell Daddy. Okay?”
“Of course not. You will tell him yourself, anyway, you know.”
“Yeah, probably. But not right now. I do not want to screw this up for them.”
Both girls saw the smile on Miss Murcheson’s face as she watched Mr. Vandeuson move away after she had finished her instructions. Just a touch of color came to her face when she turned and saw the two girls watching her.
Sara immediately walked toward her. “Miss Murcheson, have you thought about anyone for Cosmo?”
“No one has really wanted to try for the part. It may just come to whoever we can draft.”
“I have an idea,” Sara said.
“Is Trinity part of this?” Miss Murcheson asked, smiling.
“Hey! Has my dad said something bad about me?”
“No, Trinity. Your father adores you. But I have had you in my classes the last two years.”
“Oh. I guess that would probably give me away.”
“Oh, yes,” Miss Murcheson agreed. “Be that as it may, I am edging over to desperate. Calvin certainly will be a big help, but he cannot create an acrobatic dancer overnight.”
“Have you ever seen Jason dance, Miss Murcheson?” Sara asked.
“I have been chaperone at a few school functions. Yes, I do remember seeing him dance. He does the waltz as beautifully as anyone his age I have ever seen, given a skilled partner. Bootsi, I think it was.”
“You did not see him at last year’s Halloween party?”
Miss Murcheson smiled. “No. He fooled everyone. A mime server. He is very clever.”
“A little too clever, at times, in my opinion,” Sara said.
Miss Murcheson gave Sara a startled look. There had been a touch of vehemence in Sara’s tone.
“I would not want to do anything dangerous, Miss Murcheson,” Sara continued. “But Jason can be very… annoyingly slippery. He is a very athletic dancer. I think he would be a great… er… good Cosmo. But he prefers to be a behind the scenes person.”
“That is certainly true,” Miss Murcheson interjected. “What is this about something dangerous? I will not allow…”
“Miss Murcheson, Jason will not audition, you have already suggested that. I want to get three or four more people, and set up something for you to watch. There are a couple of ways to get Jason to do something he would not ordinarily do. And I know both of them.”
Miss Murcheson hid a smile. Sara Lee was a determined young lady. She had enjoyed the interplay between Jason McKindrick and Sara in her classes. Point and counterpoint often. But they also meshed, as her father so often put it, like a well-oiled set of matched gears.
“You will not do anything really dangerous?”
Sara shook her head. “It will take a few
minutes to get things organized. The main thing is for you to see him, but I think Calvin… Mr. Rasmussen, should, too.”
“He should be here any minute. He had to take his wife to the doctor for the ultrasound. He will drop her off before he comes here for the auditions.”
“Has anyone shown any interest in playing Cosmo?” Sara asked.
“Poor Jeffery said he would do any part at all. He is such a dear, I will find some part for him… But… Cosmo…”
The two girls smiled. Jeffery was totally infatuated with Miss Murcheson. And a total klutz.
“Perfect,” Sara said with a smile. “Jason will not be able to resist.”
“Resist what?” Miss Murcheson asked.
“Just keep an eye over…” Sara looked at the stage area, then pointed out a section. “Over there. We will get things set up, then start when we see Mr. Rasmussen come in. If the two of you get into a position to watch, I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
“Trinity, you go find Jeffery. I’ll grab Bootsi and Alan and a couple of others.”
Mr. Vandeuson walked over when he saw Trinity and Sara head off in different directions after talking rather conspiratorially with Irene.
“Those two look to be up to something,” he said.
“Yes. Something about Jason playing Cosmo.”
“Never happen,” Mr. Vandeuson said, shaking his head. “That boy is slick as an eel.”
Miss Murcheson turned remarkably blue eyes to him, then said with a rather coy smile, “Mathew, no young man is slick enough to outwit a pair of determined young women.”
Lost for a moment in her gaze, Mr. Vandeuson finally muttered, “Oh, Lord! They have turned you into one of them.”
“That, kind sir, I will take as a compliment. Now, if you are as wise as you are handsome, you will watch for Calvin and me to move into a position to watch for that pair of remarkable young women to pull a scam on Jason, and take a front seat.”
The Contract Page 30
