by Smith, Ava
“Spectacular,” she finishes.
Daniel stares at her before offering her the notebook. Something he never does and Sarah takes it from him and looks through.
“Wow. You’re really serious about this,” she says glancing over the notes.
“I found out we have to make a profit in the first six weeks, otherwise we’re done for.”
“We’ll make a profit,” Sarah remarks confidently.
“We will?”
“Of course. If you take a chance, things usually start to happen. Basic law of attraction.”
“Sure, take a chance,” he mumbles.
He watches her turn page after page and can’t help but sigh. This woman takes him by surprise more and more every day. Not because of her ability to speak her mind or her obvious beauty or her obvious talent. It’s something less defined. He leans forward and is about to ask her something very important when he looks up and is startled to find Felicity standing over them. Daniel moves back and notices she wears a sourer look than normal.
“We’re having lunch,” Daniel explains smiling.
Felicity is unconcerned and she practically thrusts a document into his face.
“Look at what your father’s done to us! Just look!” she says in a hysterical voice.
Daniel’s eyes glance over the document and he sees that it reads:“‘Thirty day Notice of Foreclosure.’” Daniel takes the document from Felicity and is speechless; it appears his father has forced him into a corner yet again. Sarah is on the verge of asking him about it when he gets up and marches out of the auditorium, a curious-looking Sarah turns to Felicity for an answer.
* * *
The gardener from earlier is busy raking leaves in the courtyard when Daniel’s car drives up and stops beside him. Daniel steps out of the vehicle and slams the door.
“Where is he?” he enquires firmly.
“I...I believe he is in the nursery, sir,” the gardener answers.
Daniel strides off in the direction of the nursery which is at the back of the house and away from prying eyes. Inside this haven are varieties of trees and plants gathered from all over the world. John wears a green overall and is pruning a rose bush with clippers. This is where he can be found most days because the plants are his ‘children’ and he goes to meticulous lengths to achieve perfection. The peace is broken when his real son flings open the nursery door and barges in.
“The theatre was mine. You had no right!” Daniel snaps.
John continues to prune the bushes. “I had every right. Although it was a gift, it is technically still mine. And I’ve decided it’s no longer worth saving.”
Daniel can’t believe what he hears. “So you just take it from me is that it? You won’t even let me rescue it?”
John speaks calmly. “The theatre’s not the right test for you.”
“Then what is?”
He glances at his son. “Starting Monday, you will join me at MacGregor Industries as senior manager.”
“No.”
John looks up sharply. “No?”
“I’m sick of you controlling my life, Dad. I just want to be left alone.”
“And you will be, I assure you, just as soon as you give up the theatre.”
Daniel observes his father and the fact that he shows no remorse makes Daniel not only furious but suspicious. A few seconds is all it takes for the pieces to fit together.
“How could I be so stupid? I must have cotton wool in my brain,” Daniel says.
“What are you talking about, son?”
“I think you’re doing this because there’s profit to be made,” Daniel tells him. “And the theatre stands in your way somehow. That’s why you want to get rid of it.”
John pricks his finger on a rose thorn and sucks on it.
“Don’t be ridiculous! Do you really think me that low, son? Honestly.”
“Yes, Dad, I do. And you know why? Because I know you.”
John appears at a loss for words. He never guessed that Daniel would actually be on the right track. He expects Daniel to leave at any moment but instead his son lingers the same way Hargreaves does sometimes. After a sombre few minutes, when his father is thoroughly cowering, Daniel marches to the nursery door and leaves without saying a word.
Daniel returns to the theatre that afternoon and finds his usual parking space has been taken up by a motorbike so he has no choice but to park further down the street. As he walks back to the theatre a pigeon lands in front of him and starts to shriek. He is not a bird lover, but today he crouches down and offers the bird a tiny biscuit he finds in his jacket pocket. The bird moves forward, snatches it from him and flies away.
“You’re welcome!” Daniel cries out.
He then turns a corner and ambles up the theatre steps to meet Felicity by the doors. She still has that same sombre look.
“Are you ready to tell them everything?” she asks.
“Not really. But I know we have to.”
Later that day, the dancers crowd one of the rehearsal rooms and all their faces look solemn. They have been listening to Felicity give out bad news for the past 15 minutes while their boss stands meekly by the door.
“Although all outstanding salaries will be paid, we don’t have enough money to pay for other necessities such as costumes and advertising. So as sad as it seems, we have no choice but to close down,” Felicity informs them.
Several of them murmur and shake their heads but Felicity speaks over them.
“I’m sorry, but that’s just how it is.”
Sarah pushes her way to the front, steps up on a bench and addresses them loudly.
“I think I know a way we can save the theatre,” she says. The dancers ignore her and continue to murmur so she tries again, “I think we should... You see the thing is... For heaven’s sake just listen to me!”
Daniel looks up at Sarah and the dancers quieten down.
“All we have to do is give up our salaries for a few more weeks,” she tells them.
Some of the dancers snigger and shout out. “We have families to support!”
“And I have mortgage payments.”
Sarah reassures them. “I know it’s asking a lot but think about what we’re trying to accomplish. Remember ...” She lifts her leg up one side of her body and Daniel looks at her and grins. “We are artists.”
Emily glances to her side and looks ahead. “Yes we are!”
Sarah spins full circle. “And as such, we love practising our dance routines.”
Leo shouts out, “Yeah! We do!”
Sarah performs an arabesque. “We love hearing the roar of an audience when we’ve finished our work.” The dancers applaud and Isobel raises her eyebrows.
“But most of all.” Sarah puts her leg down and stands upright, “we love this theatre. Because despite its long, winding staircase, its cramped changing rooms, and its uneven stage, it’s become a part of who we are – and that’s special.”
A stilled silence overwhelms the room and Isobel draws in a cynical breath. A couple of seconds later Ian shouts out.
“I suppose I could manage a few weeks of nothing.”
Sarah turns sharply to Ian.
“And maybe we could give them guided tours?” shouts one dancer.
“And perhaps we could sell our costumes?” shouts another.
Sarah looks at her friends and smiles with obvious gratitude.
“So noble.” The whole room turns to Felicity who informs them, “But sadly, it won’t even cover the electricity bill.”
Smiles fade all around the room but Sarah stares Felicity right in the eye and tells her, “We’ll just see about that.”
CHAPTER 17
The moment she gets home Sarah creates a link on the Odette Carmichael website for people to ‘Save the theatre’. She is about to email some very important patrons when Victor yells out,
“Sarah time to go!”
“Okay Uncle.”
Sarah reluctantly leaves the house f
or her daily visit to the lake but for the next 12 hours the only thing on her mind is how to stop the theatre from closing down. Even the serenity of the lake can’t distract her from her thoughts. She swims away from Victor and the others and goes to a place that’s very remote. She often comes here to be on her own. The hours pass by at an achingly slow pace and during this time Sarah’s mind fills with all manner of ways to save the theatre, but none of her ideas are any good. The moment she changes back she scrambles up the mound more quickly than she’s ever done before. She and Victor drive home but Victor keeps shifting his hands on the steering wheel.
“Something wrong, Uncle?” Sarah asks.
“I was just wondering that myself. You seem quite distant today.”
“I’m okay, Uncle. I’m going to be playing Odette. So why would you think that I’m troubled?”
Victor keeps quiet after that but is aware his niece isn’t telling him the truth.
His car pulls into the drive and even before he turns off the engine Sarah gets out of the car and races into the house. Once she’s in her room she switches on her computer and waits for the webpage to load. The screen takes ages to come up and when it finally does Sarah is devastated to learn that only £500 has been pledged.
“That’s not going to be enough,” she hisses.
She sits in her chair looking preoccupied. The open music box still takes pride of place on her table like it has done for years. The ballerina doll stares right at her as if it, too, is wondering what she’s going to do. Sarah winds up the box and watches the doll twirl around to the music. As ballerina dolls go it’s not the most graceful of dancers and its movements are somewhat jerky. Still it brings a smile to Sarah’s face. The music ends and silence falls over the room. Its vacant eyes keep staring at her and usually Sarah turns away after a while but this time she stares right back. As she looks into its painted black eyes a strange feeling rushes over her and Sarah’s forehead begins to furrow.
“How could I be so stupid? It’s simple,” she declares.
She has her moment of clarity just like Daniel did the day he decided to revamp the corridor. The only problem is, just like Daniel, she needs Elizabeth’s permission to proceed.
The next day Sarah arrives at the theatre half an hour earlier than usual. The minute she’s inside one of the rehearsal rooms she goes straight to the storage area and takes out a series of old costumes, props and DVDs and arranges them neatly into a stack. Emily, Ian, Robert and Isobel turn up an hour later and they each gather up a collection of memorabilia and walk silently to the door.
“Good Luck!” Sarah yells after them.
This is just stage one of her plan and she needs to find Elizabeth to get the second part up and running. The only problem is Elizabeth is nowhere to be seen. Sarah searches the three rehearsal rooms, the canteen and Felicity’s office but there’s no trace of her. Having given up, Sarah pushes open the foyer doors only to find Elizabeth making her way into the theatre.
“Miss Smith, I’m so glad you’re here!” Sarah says excitedly.
* * *
By mid-afternoon the four dancers who Sarah asked for help are standing at the foot of the theatre with the stuff from storage piled neatly in front of them. They wear casual clothes and do their best to appear like hardy sales-folk. Emily vies for attention from a young man in his 20s.
“Excuse me, sir. Would you like to save the theatre?” The man walks off and Emily repeats, “Sir, would you like to buy some DVDs?”
The man is long gone and Emily looks upset. Next she sees a middle-aged woman walking her dog.
Emily speaks politely and says, “Madam, you look like you could fit into a size ten.” The woman walks faster and Emily follows, “Madam, you must have some kind of conscience!?”
The woman shakes her head and crosses the road and Emily looks exasperated.
“Perhaps you need to be less polite?” Robert suggests.
Emily straightens her hair and clothes and tries again.
“Be part of something amazing today. Save the Odette Carmichael! Don’t be shy. Put your hands in your pockets and make that donation!” Emily pauses a moment and speaks frankly, “The plain fact is we need your goddamn money!”
Isobel, Robert and Ian turn to her slowly.
Things aren’t much better inside one of the rehearsal rooms as Sarah speaks to Elizabeth about her idea.
“Miss Smith you must have some desire to save the theatre?” Sarah asks.
“Of course I have a desire, but I will not make a spectacle out of myself or my dancers,” Elizabeth replies.
“But it’s not making a spectacle, it’s informing the world!” Sarah says excitedly.
Elizabeth laughs as she speaks. “The world knows what we are, dear. And trust me, it doesn’t care.”
“So you’re just going to give up? You’re not even going to try?”
Elizabeth gives Sarah a sympathetic look. “I used to dance here when I was your age.”
“Yes, I know. I’ve seen the picture.”
“And that’s why I would do anything to save the theatre. Absolutely anything.”
“Then why don’t...?”
Elizabeth raises her hand and Sarah stops talking.
“Because it’s too far gone; it has become what we try to epitomise every day- a myth - a Swan Queen doomed to live forever under the shadow of a curse, impossible to save.”
Sarah looks angry and upset all at once as she tells Elizabeth, “I really admired you, Miss Smith. That’s why I tried so hard. Even though my arms ached and my feet bled. I still tried. Oh, and about that myth... I happen to think she’s more real than you or I or anyone on this planet put together!”
She glares at Elizabeth and storms out of the room. She goes to the only place she knows she’ll get privacy, the theatre changing rooms. Sarah sits alone and tears a piece of paper into squares, when the door opens and someone takes slow methodical steps into the room. A moment later she sees Elizabeth standing meekly in the corner. The two women gape at each other for a long time before Elizabeth affirms,
“Very well, we can try your idea.”
Sarah is over the moon and rushes over to hug Elizabeth. For a moment she is taken back to her childhood when she used to hug Miss Chermont in exactly the same way. Sarah suddenly remembers herself and steps back.
“I’m sorry, I got carried away,” she mutters.
“It’s all right, dear. I know you’re happy that the theatre could be saved.”
On the other side of town, Daniel is standing in his London kitchen while he gulps down a coffee and stuffs an entire croissant into his mouth. He doesn’t have time to relish the meal since he has a hundred things to do today. He steps out of his home but draws back when he sees Andre standing by the Porsche.
“Something wrong?” Daniel asks frowning at him.
Andre replies with a cryptic, “You might want to come to the park today, sir.”
Daniel remains confused but Andre just smirks at him like he’s got a devious plan. Daniel and Andre drive through London and Andre keeps the slight grin on his lips throughout the journey. When they reach the gates of Hyde Park Daniel steps out of his car but is still clueless as to what’s going on. It happens to be a gloriously sunny summer’s day so there are blue skies and white puffy clouds that resemble something out of a fairy tale. Daniel wanders into Hyde Park and notices a gathering near the Archibald fountain. He can hear Elizabeth’s commanding voice and makes his way to the front of a tiny crowd. He chuckles when he sees Sarah dancing right before him. It’s the first time he’s seen her dance since the day she fell over and he gives her a gentle nod but Sarah is too busy to respond. Andre is standing next to his boss and comments,
“Amazing isn’t she?”
“More than amazing,” Daniel replies.
Leo, Amy and Joanne are also there and are busy collecting money from the crowd. The man on Daniel’s left puts £1 into the tin and Daniel puts in five. The man takes out his wall
et and removes a crisp £10 note; he shows it to everyone and pops it into the tin looking quite smug about it.
“You’re a very generous man, sir,” Daniel comments.
Daniel looks ahead to see Sarah perform a particularly intricate dance move and claps along with everyone else. By the time the work day ends the coin boxes are full to the brim.
The following day even more crowds appear and a news crew films the swan princesses as they dance. The coin boxes rattle away again and people are pouring their hearts out. The Odette Carmichael making money is something everyone thought impossible a week ago. Even Isobel and Robert seem to have gotten in on the act.
“Well, we always supported the theatre because being dancers ourselves that makes it our home,” Robert tells a reporter.
“Yes, and because it’s very important to preserve this for future generations,” adds Isobel.
Coincidently, Claudia watches the programme while doing sit-ups on her bedroom floor. She sees the reporter speak with Sarah and notices that her competition looks happy and relaxed. To make things worse she sees Daniel standing directly behind Sarah in the crowd. Claudia sits up, grabs the remote and presses the ‘off’ button several times.
“Come on! Work!” she yells as she presses the button again and finally manages to turn the TV off.
Claudia throws the remote on the floor and sobs; her dream of becoming Mrs Daniel MacGregor is slowly slipping away.
For the next ten days anyone who has any connection with the Odette Carmichael Theatre tries to raise money for its survival. And it’s not just dancing in Hyde Park anymore. Cake sales, giveaways and sponsored walks are all part of the agenda. The time goes by in a flash and the dancers are exhausted by all their fundraising efforts. Even Emily has large bags under her eyes. Still, they’re convinced their valiant efforts have kept the theatre above water. So an hour before the deadline the dancers gather in Felicity’s office. No one speaks but the air of anticipation is overwhelming. The two Swan Queens, Emily and Sarah, beam as they place the collection box onto Felicity’s polished desk.
