by Judi Curtin
Zoe and Kate shook their heads. ‘Definitely not,’ they said together.
‘But it was all so long ago,’ said Kate. ‘Even if Mr Lavelle was wrongly convicted, what can we do about it now?’
‘It’s never too late to make a wrong right,’ said Zoe.
‘Cool saying,’ I said. ‘Did you just make that up?’
Zoe laughed. ‘Not exactly. My Grandma embroidered it on a sampler and hung it on her kitchen wall. She quoted it to me about five times every day.’
Kate jumped up. ‘Come on, Eva,’ she said. ‘What are you waiting for? We’ve got a wrong to right – and I think I know exactly where to start.’
Gerry the friendly policeman remembered us from when we’d saved Jeremy from being destroyed. He brought us into the waiting room of the police station, and told us to sit down.
‘Hello, girls,’ he said when we were all settled. ‘What brings you here? Are you trying to save more trees? That was mighty work you did against that developer guy.’
Kate giggled. ‘No,’ she said. ‘We’re not here about a tree this time. It’s something different altogether.’
‘So tell me more,’ said Gerry.
‘We need to talk to you about a crime,’ I said. ‘It happened very near here – in Newtown.’
Gerry reached for a notebook, and fluttered through the pages until he found a blank one. Then he took a pencil from the top pocket of his uniform.
‘Take your time and give me all the details,’ he said. ‘What was the nature of the crime?’
‘A very valuable silver chalice was stolen,’ said Kate.
Gerry wrote something down. ‘And when exactly did this happen?’
‘In 1947,’ I said. ‘In September.’
Gerry put down the pencil and looked at us over his glasses.
‘Is this some kind of joke you girls are playing?’ he asked. ‘I presume you know that wasting police time is a crime.’
I rushed to explain. ‘We know it was ages and ages ago, but we think the wrong person was blamed.’
‘And that man went to jail, and his family broke up,’ said Kate.
Gerry put away his notebook and pencil, and sat back on his chair. He listened patiently while Kate and I told the sad story of the Lavelle family.
When we were finished, Gerry shook his head. ‘That’s tragic,’ he said. ‘A tragic affair altogether. But I’m afraid I don’t understand why you’re telling me. All that happened many years ago, long before I was even born.’
‘We thought maybe you’d have the files here in the police station,’ I said. ‘Maybe you could show them to us. Maybe Kate and I could look at the evidence. Maybe we could ……’
I stopped talking when I realised that what I was saying sounded kind of stupid. This wasn’t a glitzy American TV detective show. Kate and I weren’t going to be able to access shiny labs with microscopes and fancy computer programmes that could check for ancient fingerprints. We were just kids and we were way, way out of our depth.
Gerry was kind enough not to laugh.
‘I’m sorry, girls,’ he said. ‘We don’t have much storage space here. Files from 1947 would have been sent to Head Office many years ago. And even if I had the files here with me, I couldn’t just hand them out to anyone who showed up here with a sad story. There are confidentiality issues here, and I have to follow the rules.’
‘We understand,’ I said, as Kate and I stood up. ‘We shouldn’t have bothered you.’
I felt small and stupid as Gerry shook our hands and showed us to the door.
‘That was a rubbish idea of mine,’ said Kate as soon as the policeman had gone back inside.
I shrugged. ‘It seemed OK at the time,’ I said. ‘And it’s not like I had any better ideas anyway.’
‘So now what?’
‘Maybe we should face up to the fact that there’s nothing we can do. Maybe Daisy’s story ends right here.’
Just then the door of the police station opened again.
‘I’ve had an idea that might help you,’ said Gerry. ‘The big library in town keeps copies of all the local newspapers. Back in the forties they used to have very comprehensive court reports. Maybe you could find something to help you there.’
I felt like hugging him, but figured there was probably a law against it!
So Kate and I just thanked him and then we raced off to get our bikes for the cycle in to town.
The woman in the library was really nice and helpful. She told Kate and me to sit at a big wide table, and before long she was back with a stack of dusty old newspapers.
‘Here you go,’ she said, putting them on the table in front of us. ‘Everything you need should be here.’
‘Thanks so much,’ I said.
The librarian smiled. ‘The fact that you knew exactly which dates you wanted made my job very easy. Court reports are usually on the second last page. Now, I’ll leave you to it. Just give me a call if you need anything else.’
It didn’t take us long to find the report of Daisy’s father’s court case. Seeing it in black and white newsprint made it seem even more real than before. I thought of all the people in Seacove reading it, and believing it, and slowly beginning to hate Mr Lavelle and his family.
Kate and I leaned closer to the page, to read the small fuzzy text. The report was short, and to the point.
‘OMG,’ whispered Kate when we’d both finished reading. ‘There was a witness to the crime! This George Eades person says he saw Jean-Marc Lavelle leaving the church in Newtown with the chalice under his arm!’
‘I don’t believe that. George Eades had to be lying.’
Kate looked at the report again. ‘That’s what Jean-Marc said in court. Jean-Marc said he wasn’t anywhere near the church at the time.’
‘That’s just weird. If two people stand up in court, and say completely opposite things, why would everyone believe one and not the other?’
‘Remember what Martha said about people back then being suspicious of foreigners? Remember the war was just over, and people were kind of mixed up. Maybe it was too easy for them to believe that the foreigner, the man from France, had to be the liar.’
‘So everyone automatically trusted the local guy?’
Kate nodded. ‘I guess so.’
‘But that’s so unfair!’
Kate nodded again. ‘I agree.’
For a minute I felt really, really angry. How cruel was it for everyone to judge Jean-Marc because of the way he looked and the way he spoke? Didn’t anyone ever stop to consider his feelings?
But then Kate looked up at me, and I remembered what she was like when I first met her. Back then I decided I didn’t like her just because she had messy hair and didn’t wear cool clothes.
‘What?’ she asked.
I realised I was staring at her. ‘Oh, nothing,’ I said quickly. ‘I was just thinking that sometimes people can’t help being prejudiced. What’s important now is that we try to make things right again.’
‘But how?’
‘Er, I’m not sure yet. Just give me a bit of time, and I’ll think of something.’
We tidied up the newspapers and took them back to the desk.
‘You girls don’t look very happy,’ the librarian said. ‘Weren’t you able to find what you were looking for?’
‘Yes and no,’ I said. ‘We found something, but it’s not what we’d hoped for.’
‘Thanks anyway,’ said Kate, and then the two of us went back to her place to try to come up with a plan.
Chapter Ten
Patrick was playing with Simon in the garden when we got back. We told him about our failed morning at the police station and the library.
‘So now what are you going to do?’ he asked.
Kate and I shrugged. ‘We’re all out of ideas,’ I said.
‘I know,’ said Patrick. ‘Why don’t you study the stars? The answer is always in the stars.’
‘’tars,’ said Simon, pointing up at the sky.
‘That’s a totally brilliant idea, Dad,’ said Kate. ‘We can draw up charts and stuff, and plan what to do next.’
‘And there’s a full moon tonight,’ said Patrick. ‘Conditions should be just perfect for prophecies and predictions.’
I watched as the two of them went on about the stars. Kate and her dad argue a lot, so I was totally glad to see them agreeing about something. Only thing was, I wished they weren’t agreeing on something so totally weird.
How were the stars supposed to tell us what to do?
Then I noticed that Kate and Patrick were rolling on the grass, laughing.
‘Your face was so funny,’ said Kate. ‘You looked like you wanted to choke or something.’
‘I knew you were kidding,’ I lied.
‘Sorry, Eva,’ said Patrick. ‘I couldn’t resist teasing you.’
Kate was wiping her eyes. ‘Everyone confuses astrology and astronomy, Eva,’ she said.
‘They do?’
‘Dad’s hobby is astronomy,’ she said patiently. ‘That’s basically looking at stars and stuff and studying them. Astrology is totally different. Astrologers believe that stars can influence your personality and change your life. Dad and I think that’s kind of weird.’
Kate must have guessed how embarrassed I felt. ‘It’s OK,’ she said. ‘It was totally mean of Dad to tease you like that.’
Patrick stood up. ‘Kate, do you think you could watch Simon for a bit? I’ve got some work to do – and the stars predict that this is a good time for me to do it.’
Then, after he and Kate had had another good laugh, he went inside.
Kate lay on the grass and Simon sat on top of her belly. For the next twenty minutes, he bounced up and down, while tickling her nose with a long stalk of grass. This made them both laugh like maniacs.
It was funny watching them, and even funnier when Kate pushed Simon’s bottom off her face.
‘Eeew, Simon, that’s gross,’ she screeched. ‘Dad! Zoe! Come quickly!’
Zoe came running out, looking worried.
‘What’s wrong?’ she asked. ‘Is someone hurt?’
‘Worse than that,’ said Kate. ‘There’s a nappy emergency.’
Zoe picked Simon up and hugged him. (I’m not sure how she could bring herself to do that as the smell had already reached me, and it was totally disgusting. Maybe mums get special hormones so they don’t notice stuff like that.)
‘Is your big sister bullying you again, Simon?’ Zoe asked. ‘She’s a very naughty big sister, isn’t she?’
Kate made a face at me, but I knew she was pleased. She totally loves being a big sister – even to a baby who was wearing the stinkiest nappy I’d ever smelled.
Zoe took Simon inside to change his nappy, and when she came out again, she sat on the grass beside us.
‘I’ve been dying to tell you two the great news,’ she said. ‘While Simon was having his nap this morning, I did some more research on the internet. I managed to trace Daisy’s arrival in New York. She got there on the 15th of November 1947.’
‘That’s amazing,’ I said. ‘Then what happened?’
Zoe gave a big sigh. ‘That’s it, I’m afraid. I couldn’t get any further. After Daisy’s arrival in New York, it’s as if she vanished into thin air.’
‘That’s what Rose said too,’ I said. ‘After a while Daisy just stopped writing to her. Back then, Rose had no way of tracing her, but surely, with the internet, we should be able to find something out.’
‘She couldn’t just disappear,’ said Kate.
‘Maybe she took her aunt’s name or something,’ said Zoe.
‘Or maybe she died,’ whispered Kate.
‘No way,’ I said. ‘She couldn’t be dead. I know she’s alive.’
‘How do you know that?’ asked Kate gently.
‘I just know,’ I said, even though that sounded totally stupid and pathetic. ‘I know Daisy is alive. I know we can prove that her father was innocent, and then we can track her down and tell her the good news. It’s going to happen – I’ve made up my mind.’
That night I looked at Daisy’s photo for a long time. I don’t usually talk to photographs of ancient people, but I couldn’t stop myself.
‘I’m going to help you Daisy,’ I said. ‘I’m going to find out what really happened. I’m going to make it right again. I promise.’
‘Any bright ideas?’ asked Kate when we met the next day.
‘Nope. You?’
She shook her head. We sat on my garden wall for a long time, saying nothing.
‘Do you ever watch CSI?’ I asked in the end.
‘Nope,’ said Kate. I’d forgotten that she hardly ever watches TV. She prefers looking at stars and plants and stuff.
‘Well,’ I said. ‘On CSI, when they’re trying to solve a crime, they always try to find a motive.’
‘And your point is?’
‘Motives are crucial. If Jean-Marc didn’t take the chalice that means George Eades was lying when he said he saw him do it. So we need to find out why he told that lie. We need to know what his motive was. That’s the key to finding out the truth.’
‘That makes perfect sense,’ said Kate. ‘Only trouble is, George Eades is probably dead by now, and I’m guessing his motive died with him.’
‘There is one thing we could do,’ I said. ‘Maybe we could track down his family.’
Kate didn’t say anything, but I was kind of warming up, so I didn’t let that bother me.
‘Maybe he has grandchildren who know what happened,’ I said. ‘Maybe they could tell us something that would help us.’
‘What makes you think that?’
‘Well, people know stuff about their grandparents don’t they?’
She narrowed her eyes. ‘What kind of stuff do you know about your grandparents?’
I giggled. ‘I know that my granny loves toffees that come in a blue tin, even though she’s afraid they will damage her false teeth. I know that my granddad says rude words under his breath when he can’t solve the daily crossword.’
Kate laughed too. ‘Exactly. All you know about your grandparents is useless stuff.’
‘Well in the absence of a better idea, I still think we should talk to the Eades family, and see if they can help us.’
‘But––’
‘You know everyone around here, Kate. Are there any people called Eades still living in the neighbourhood?’
‘Mmmm, yeah,’ she said, not very enthusiastically. ‘But I’m not sure that––’
‘Where do they live?’ I asked.
I jumped down from the wall, but Kate didn’t move.
‘Come on,’ I said, getting excited. ‘Why aren’t you coming?’
‘Well, you see––’
I grabbed her arm. ‘Don’t worry, Kate,’ I said. ‘I’ll do all the talking if you want. You can just show me the way, and be there for moral support. I like doing this kind of thing.’
Kate looked like she was going to say something, and then she changed her mind. She gave a big shrug and a sigh.
‘Whatever,’ she said. ‘No matter what I say, I know you’re going to go ahead with this. We might as well just get it over with.’
I walked beside her as Kate slowly led the way towards the village. She didn’t say anything, but I was too excited to care.
‘There,’ she said finally, pointing at a small house. ‘That’s where the only Eades family I know lives, but––’
I knew that if I hesitated, Kate would find a reason to back out, so I opened the gate and marched up to the door of the house. As I knocked, Kate sidled up and stood beside me. She looked kind of edgy, like she was getting ready to make a quick escape.
I knocked again, and a second later the door was open and a stunning blonde girl was standing there in pyjamas.
‘What do you two losers want?’ she asked.
Cathy?
I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.
‘It had better be good,’ said Cat
hy. ‘I’m totally exhausted. Do you have any idea how tiring the flight from Dubai is? Even in first class, it’s totally impossible to get any sleep.’
I stood there like an idiot. How had we ended up talking to Cathy – the meanest, most horrible bully in the history of the world? I looked at Kate, but her head was down, and she was examining her shoes like they contained the hidden secrets of the universe.
I remembered the summer when Kate and I first met. Back then, she was all weird and sullen and sad and lonely. Back then, Cathy had spent her time calling Kate names and being mean to her. (Back then, Lily used to be friends with Cathy, but luckily she started to hang out with Kate and me, and she got sense in the end.)
I couldn’t stop staring at Cathy. Even though she claimed to be tired, she looked like she’d just walked out of a beauty salon. Her hair was perfect, and her pyjamas looked like something you could easily wear to the Oscars. I have to admit that people who look as perfect as that scare me a bit.
I knew this was a terrible mistake, and I was getting ready to walk away, but then I saw that Kate wasn’t moving. She looked cross and upset, but kind of determined too. She caught my eye and gave a small nod, which I guessed meant that she wanted me to continue – so I did.
‘Er, hi Cathy,’ I said. ‘Kate and I would like to talk to you about one of your ancestors.’
Cathy’s eyes opened wide, becoming even bigger and bluer and more amazing as they did so.
I kept talking. ‘You see there’s this girl called Daisy, well she’s not a girl any more, she must be an ancient old lady by now, but she used to be a girl and she used to live in Seacove years and years ago, and …’
Cathy gave a pretty yawn, holding perfectly manicured fingers over her mouth. The sleeve of her pyjama top slipped down, so I got a good view of her golden, suntanned arm.
‘Is this story actually going somewhere?’ she said. ‘Or are you just exercising your lungs? I’m just wondering, because unlike you, I actually have a life, and I’d like to get on with it.’
And then I knew that this was never, ever going to work. Even if she knew anything about George Eades, Cathy was too mean and horrible to share it with us. She’d just use it to taunt and annoy us.
