Millie sat beside Alice-Miranda while Caprice took a seat at the opposite end of the room, as far from the other two as she could get.
‘I should probably head back – we’ve got Science first lesson and you know how Mr Pratt doesn’t like us to miss out,’ Alice-Miranda said.
Millie reached across and grabbed her friend’s hand. ‘Please don’t go,’ she implored. ‘Miss Reedy will definitely be more reasonable if you’re here. You tend to have that effect on people.’
Louella Derby suddenly stood up and, without a word, dashed out of the room. Meanwhile, on the other side of the wall, it sounded as if a fight had broken out.
‘Why did you employ her without having me interview her?’ Miss Reedy’s voice boomed. She might as well have been standing right beside the girls, such was the tremor.
Alice-Miranda looked at Millie, who glanced over at Caprice, who raised a perfectly arched eyebrow back at her.
‘There was simply no time, Livinia,’ Miss Grimm replied loudly. ‘I didn’t want you to have to pick up more classes and Philomena had a heavy load. You couldn’t possibly have done all of that on top of running the school. Anyway, you were at the conference. I was doing you a favour.’
Alice-Miranda grimaced. ‘That doesn’t sound very good,’ she whispered, wondering if she and the girls should step out of the room.
‘Well, she’s not right,’ Miss Reedy retorted. ‘She’s presumptuous and over-confident, and I have a very bad feeling about the whole situation.’
Louella Derby walked back into the room, wiping her mouth with a tissue. She straightened her skirt and sat down at her desk, only to be startled by the angry voices coming from the other side of the wall.
‘You’ve done nothing to convince me that I should terminate the woman’s employment, and we are obligated to give her a three-month probationary period. I can’t get rid of her simply because you have a bad feeling,’ Ophelia protested. ‘We’d be sued and rightly so.’
The display case in the hallway, which boasted an array of highly polished trophies and sparkly awards, rattled as if a giant had stamped their foot.
‘Well, you wait and see. She’s going to be a disaster. I know it,’ Livinia retorted, and the rest of the conversation subdued to a dull murmur.
Louella looked at the girls, her pointer finger aloft. ‘Not a word to anyone about this. If I hear one whiff of gossip about what went on in there, I’ll tell Miss Reedy that you were listening at the door. Do you understand?’
Millie and Alice-Miranda nodded.
‘If you want to appear on that television talent quest, Caprice Radford, you’d better answer me,’ Louella hissed.
Caprice’s head bobbed up and down as the door to the study opened.
Mrs Derby smiled. ‘Good. Miss Reedy is ready to see you now.’
An hour or so later, Ophelia Grimm was about to rush out the door for Aggie’s paediatrician appointment when she remembered something important. In the heat of her argument with Livinia, she’d forgotten to mention that she’d declined several enquiries from reporters seeking to interview the girls about the fire. She raced back to the office, but Livinia was gone. Louella was nowhere to be found either. Ophelia scribbled a note and placed it in an envelope marked ‘Livinia Reedy – URGENT’, then wrote Louella a message to make sure it was delivered as soon as possible. Ophelia sped to the flat and, in her haste to get to the car where Aldous and Aggie were ready and waiting, left her phone sitting on the kitchen bench.
With the front office empty, no one saw the figure enter and scoop up the letter for Livinia as well as the note addressed to Louella. Sometimes, one just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
Alice-Miranda was despatched back to class with little more than a stern look and a flick of Miss Reedy’s hand, while Millie and Caprice had been ordered into the study. The tiny girl decided to leave the umbrella for Millie in case the rain started again and, after farewelling Mrs Derby, walked out into the quadrangle, eager to get to her Science lesson. Mr Pratt had promised something fun last week as part of their unit of work on electrostatics and she always looked forward to his experiments. She skipped along the path, hoping she hadn’t missed too much, and was pleased to see Miss Wall and Mrs Clinch walking ahead of her. She quickened her pace to say hello to the pair, who appeared to be in the middle of an animated conversation.
‘Well, I’m glad that Ophelia has seen sense to make you her deputy,’ Caroline Clinch said. ‘It’s the step up you need. You did a wonderful job with the girls on the leadership camp.’
‘Thank you, Caroline, but I’m technically working for Livinia at the moment.’ Benitha adjusted her baseball cap and pushed a rogue strand of hair behind her ear. She had recently replaced her rather tired school-issue tracksuits with a range of luxe activewear in Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale colours in a bid to give herself a more professional edge. ‘I’m not sure what will happen when Ophelia is back in the hot seat. I imagine I’ll be demoted and Livinia will officially become her deputy even though we both know I’d do the best job.’
‘Gosh, I hope that’s not the case,’ Mrs Clinch said. Her nostrils flared as though she’d caught a whiff of an open sewer. ‘Honestly, the power has gone straight to Livinia’s head, and while Josiah is a sweet man, his teaching standards are nothing short of woeful – especially his practical work. It’s patently obvious to all the staff and surely Ophelia sees it too.’ The woman shook her head. ‘We have to get rid of her. She’s been here too long. In fact, I even heard Mr Trout say he’d had enough and that man is practically unoffendable.’
‘I heard she was seriously annoyed about the new English teacher,’ Benitha said.
Caroline nodded. ‘You should have seen her giving the poor woman the third degree at supper last night. She’s obviously jealous of Tabitha’s talent and the fact she’s newly graduated with a lot of innovative ideas, but that’s precisely what we need around here – fresh blood.’
Alice-Miranda wished she’d made herself known before now. Hearing how unhappy Miss Wall and Mrs Clinch were about Miss Reedy and Mr Plumpton made her stomach churn. Staff morale was important in every organisation – she’d learned that from her parents. Miss Reedy had been so off hand towards Miss Crowley this morning too. None of it augured well. Alice-Miranda took a deep breath and said a rather loud hello.
The two women leapt into the air.
‘Where did you come from, ghost child?’ Benitha demanded.
‘I accompanied Millie and Caprice to a meeting with Miss Reedy. I’m just on my way back to Science class,’ Alice-Miranda replied. ‘Mrs Clarkson gave me permission.’
‘Oh okay,’ Benitha said, softening. ‘Great job yesterday, by the way. What you girls did was very brave.’
‘And a touch foolish,’ Caroline added. ‘But you’re all fine, thank goodness for that.’
‘Yes, we are,’ Alice-Miranda said with a smile. She hurried off to class, feeling rather out of sorts for having overheard the second uncomfortable conversation of the morning. Miss Reedy and Mr Plumpton were part of the heart and soul of Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale – she couldn’t bear the thought of losing either of them, but it sounded as though the rest of the faculty had other ideas. Alice-Miranda didn’t like feeling that the school was out of balance and at the moment the scales seemed heavily weighted against Miss Reedy, that was for sure.
A few minutes after ten o’clock, Millie and Caprice scurried through the lab door, having missed more than half of their lesson.
‘What happened?’ Alice-Miranda whispered to Millie when the girl hopped up onto the stool beside her. Mr Pratt was busy with the Van de Graaff generator, making Sloane’s hair stand on end at the front of the classroom. The rest of the children were laughing and lining up for their turn, although the man assured them there was some serious learning to be done among all the fun.
‘Miss Reedy was snappier than a Patagonian toothfish. She’s making us do ten hours of school and community se
rvice and I’m banned from riding until it’s done,’ Millie moaned. ‘Caprice isn’t allowed to do the television show unless she finishes hers too. It’s supposed to be on in a couple of weeks, so it’s going to eat into her rehearsal times,’ the girl added, brightening.
‘That seems a bit harsh, especially considering the part you played in saving the Abbouds yesterday,’ Alice-Miranda said with a frown.
‘Miss Reedy didn’t even mention that. She was in a filthy mood,’ Millie said. ‘Probably because of the fight with Miss Grimm.’
‘I can’t stand it, Millie. The idea of the teachers falling out with each other is too awful for words.’ Alice-Miranda’s mind was a whirl. When she’d first arrived at Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale, the staff and students were utterly miserable and she couldn’t bear for the school to become unhappy again. While she wasn’t planning to tell Millie about what she’d overheard on the way back – because that would be gossiping – something had to be done.
‘Girls, would you care to share whatever it is you’re discussing with the rest of us?’ Mr Pratt asked. His white hair was standing on end and his moustache appeared to be levitating above his top lip. ‘Something more important than my class, hmm? For which there will be a quiz at the end of the lesson, to be completed in your neatest handwriting.’
Millie bit her lip in an effort to quell the laughter that was bubbling up inside her. The man looked ridiculous. And why a Science teacher was so fussy about their penmanship was beyond her. It had never mattered an iota to Mr Plumpton.
‘Sorry, sir,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘Millie and I were discussing the importance of loyalty and a happy school environment, but you have our full attention now.’
‘You can save your philosophising for when you are doodling in Art class,’ the man said. He waved the wand of the generator, creating a giant spark that sent several of the girls ducking for cover.
There was a swift knock at the door before Miss Reedy walked into the classroom. ‘This looks interesting,’ she said with a furrowed brow.
‘It’s always interesting in my classes as well as highly educational and lots of fun too,’ Mr Pratt replied. ‘Would you like to join us?’
‘Another time perhaps,’ Miss Reedy said, clutching her clipboard to her chest. ‘I need to speak to the girls who were involved in the fire yesterday.’
Caprice’s face fell as a giddy murmur reverberated around the room. ‘They’re probably going to get a bravery award,’ one of the girls whispered, which only caused to further sour Caprice’s mood.
Millie followed Alice-Miranda to the door with Chessie and Sloane behind them. Jacinta was in another class and was already waiting for them outside Miss Reedy’s office on the ground floor of Caledonia Manor. Livinia held the door open as the girls filed inside. There weren’t enough chairs for them, so they stood in a semicircle in front of her desk.
The teacher sat down and clasped her hands. ‘Girls,’ she fizzed, all traces of her earlier bad mood banished. ‘I had a very exciting phone call this morning from none other than Tilde McGilvray. She would like to interview you all for the show.’
‘Oh, I love her!’ Sloane exclaimed. ‘She’s so positive and all the segments on her show are good news stories, which makes for a refreshing change from all the bad things that get reported every day. Because, as a young girl, I really don’t want to know about currency crashes or car crashes or any other crashes for that matter. I’d much rather hear about the boy who takes his dog to visit the old people’s home or the woman who’s been providing morning teas for the shopkeepers in her village for fifty years. Those stories restore my faith in humanity and inspire me to be a better person.’
The other girls looked at her curiously.
‘Who are you and what have you done with Sloane Sykes?’ Jacinta demanded.
‘Very funny,’ Sloane said, rolling her eyes. ‘I just think Tilde McGilvray is an inspiration. I watch her show whenever I can and you might be interested to know that it’s the only current-affairs program approved by Mrs Clarkson. What’s wrong with that?’
‘Nothing at all,’ Alice-Miranda said, ‘and I agree with you that Ms McGilvray is terrific. She once did a story with Daddy when Kennington’s provided groceries to a family whose house had burned down in Highton Mill.’ As the words flew out of her mouth, Alice-Miranda realised how remiss she’d been. ‘Goodness, Daddy would do the same thing for the Abbouds. That would be a great help to them.’
‘Best not to get ahead of yourself, Alice-Miranda, though it is a lovely idea,’ Miss Reedy said, peering over the top of her glasses. ‘I’m glad that you’re all excited about the interview. Now, the crew are due to arrive at five o’clock and will set up in the sitting room of the boarding house. Ms McGilvray wants you girls in your normal habitat. I’m sure she won’t ask you any tricky questions, so just be yourselves and answer honestly and plainly – but not too plainly, Sloane and Jacinta. Do you understand?’
The girls looked at each other and then at Miss Reedy and gave a nod.
Livinia smiled. She was quite excited herself, though it was hard to ignore the little voice in her head reminding her that she hadn’t yet told Ophelia the plan. It was through no fault of her own. She had tried several times to call the woman but hadn’t been able to get through nor leave a message.
‘Make sure that you are in full uniform and looking immaculate. I know this is about your brave deed, but you are also representing Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale,’ Livinia said. ‘Now, off you go to morning tea. I noticed that Mrs Jennings just received a delivery from the junior school kitchen and it smelt to me like freshly baked brownies.’
Millie licked her lips. ‘Thank goodness it’s not leftover scrambled eggs,’ she murmured as the girls filed out. She realised Alice-Miranda wasn’t among them and poked her head back inside the doorway. ‘Are you coming?’
‘I’d like to have a quick word with Miss Reedy. You go ahead,’ Alice-Miranda replied, answering Millie’s curious look with a smile. She waited until the door was closed before approaching the acting headmistress’s desk.
‘How can I help you?’ Miss Reedy said, offering the girl a seat.
‘I’m a bit worried about you and Miss Grimm,’ Alice-Miranda replied. Over the years the two women had seemed to go from miserable enemies to, at the very least, respected colleagues – perhaps even friends – but that all seemed in doubt today. ‘When I went with Millie and Caprice to the office earlier, we couldn’t help overhearing your argument. Mrs Derby told us not to speak a word of it to anyone, but I thought it would be all right to talk to you seeing as you were involved.’
Livinia sat back in her chair and folded her arms. ‘I see.’
‘Miss Crowley seems awfully nice and I didn’t think it was like you to jump to conclusions about people that way,’ the child offered.
‘Well, I just don’t agree with Miss Grimm’s decision to appoint the woman without my input. I am acting headmistress, after all,’ Livinia replied. ‘Miss Crowley will have an opportunity to prove herself, don’t you worry about that. I’m not a complete dragon, although you girls might think otherwise. Now, run along, Alice-Miranda. I have some urgent work to attend to.’
Alice-Miranda hesitated. She wanted to say more – Miss Wall and Mrs Clinch’s words were playing on her mind too – but repeating them seemed risky in the extreme. Poor Miss Reedy was completely unaware the staff were against her.
The woman had already buried her head in some paperwork. ‘Is there anything else?’ she asked, without looking up.
‘No. Thank you for listening, Miss Reedy,’ Alice-Miranda said, and scampered from the room.
Livinia rested her elbows on the desk and massaged her temples. As far as she could tell, she was doing a fine job of running the school, but Ophelia didn’t seem to recognise her contribution at all. At least the Tilde McGilvray interview might go partway to smoothing things over, and of course she’d give Tabitha Crowley a fighting chance. Livinia had been a ne
w teacher herself once, full of ideas and brimming with optimism about the children whose lives she would influence. Tabitha just needed to learn that there was a hierarchy, that’s all.
Myrtle Parker hung up the telephone and walked into the sitting room, where her husband was reading a book. ‘That was Sue,’ she said.
Reg glanced up at his wife, who he thought looked rather lovely today in a sky-blue dress. She’d recently stopped wearing quite so much floral after he’d suggested she shouldn’t stand next to the curtains or he wouldn’t be able to find her. ‘You’re going to have to give me more than that, dear. There are at least five Sues in your orbit.’
‘Sue Trelawny. She volunteers doing the tea rounds at the hospital in Downsfordvale,’ Myrtle explained.
‘Skinny Sue,’ Reg said with a grin.
‘Slim Sue,’ Myrtle corrected.
‘As opposed to Salty Sue, Silly Sue, Smart Sue or Stout Sue,’ Reg said.
Myrtle exhaled. ‘Please, Reg, they all have surnames, and if you ever call them any of those monikers, I will promptly divorce you.’
‘Yes, dear,’ he said, returning to his book, ‘but I did learn them from you.’
‘They don’t have to know that,’ the woman said, plonking herself down on the floral settee opposite. ‘Well, aren’t you interested to hear why she called?’
‘Not particularly, but I gather you’re going to tell me anyway.’ The man put down his book on the small table next to him and looked at his wife expectantly.
‘It’s about the Abbouds,’ Myrtle said, plumping the cushions beside her. ‘Sue says that Mehmet is in a very serious condition, and his poor wife and children have been discharged with nowhere to go. Nowhere – can you imagine? Apparently, the family isn’t fully insured. It’s a disaster,’ Myrtle clucked, shaking her head. ‘We must do something.’
Reg pushed himself up out of his chair and made his way across the room.
Alice-Miranda Keeps the Beat Page 5
