Alice-Miranda In New York 5

by Jacqueline Harvey

  ‘And the park’s huge. She could be anywhere,’ Quincy gulped.

  ‘I’m scared, Alice-Miranda. Let’s go back.’ Ava’s voice wavered.

  ‘We have to find her.’ Alice-Miranda was more determined than ever.

  The girls made their way to the entrance of the zoo, but it was locked up tight. Low growls emanated from inside the walls.

  ‘Lucinda! Are you in there?’ Alice-Miranda called. ‘Come on, we’ll go around the outside,’ Alice-Miranda urged. ‘Maybe she’ll hear us.’

  ‘Tell me exactly why you think she’s in the zoo?’ Ava asked.

  ‘Just a feeling,’ Alice-Miranda replied.

  ‘That’s it? Like I said before, sometimes I just don’t understand you foreign people.’ Ava shook her head.

  Alice-Miranda ran off down the path, under the stone archway and straight into Mr Gambino pushing his hot dog cart.

  ‘Where are you off to in such a hurry, young lady?’ Lou Gambino asked. ‘Hey Harry, it’s Miss Alice-Miranda,’ he called to his friend who was lagging behind.

  ‘Oh Mr Gambino, Mr Geronimo, we’re looking for our friend Lucinda. She’s run away and we think she might have come to the park,’ Alice-Miranda blurted.

  ‘Well honey, we need to call the police. This park is no place for a young girl after dark,’ Lou replied.

  ‘What are you talking about? It’s no place for an old man after dark,’ Harry Geronimo wheezed as he caught up to his friend.

  ‘But we think she might have gone to the zoo. And now it’s closed.’ Even Alice-Miranda looked a little worried now.

  Quincy told everyone to shush. ‘Did you hear something?’

  ‘It’s just squirrels,’ Ava replied.

  ‘There it goes again,’ Quincy said.

  In the distance a soft voice called. ‘Alice-Miranda, HELP!’ echoed through the trees.

  ‘It’s her!’ Quincy grabbed Alice-Miranda’s hand and shot off in the direction of the sound.

  ‘We’re coming Lucinda,’ Alice-Miranda called.

  The three girls raced towards the other side of the zoo, with Mr Gambino and Mr Geronimo limping after them as fast as they could.

  ‘Lucinda, where are you?’ Alice-Miranda called again.

  ‘Alice-Miranda, I’m stuck,’ Lucinda cried out. ‘I’m stuck in the zoo.’

  The children raced over to a section of metal fence where they could see Lucinda standing in the middle of the path. Her face was the colour of her dress.

  ‘What are you doing, Finkelstein?’ Quincy shook her head.

  ‘I was on my way to see Alice-Miranda and I thought I’d take a detour through the park and then I ended up in the zoo by accident and then when I tried to get out it was locked and everyone had gone. And now I’m stuck on the wrong side of the fence,’ Lucinda wailed.

  ‘Stop blubbing. We’ll call someone,’ Ava grinned, then started to laugh outright.

  ‘It’s not funny,’ Lucinda yelled. ‘I think my father is up to something really bad. We’ve got to get to Highton’s.’ There was a rustling sound in the bushes beside them.

  ‘Hey, who’s there?’ Lou Gambino demanded.

  A figure emerged. It was a man wearing a porkpie hat.

  ‘Is that . . .’ Alice-Miranda squinted into the darkness. ‘Is that you, Mr Preston?’

  ‘Yeah, it’s me, who’s that?’ he asked.

  ‘Alice-Miranda. I saw you at the Met, with Mr Clifton,’ she reminded him.

  ‘Oh sure, what are you doing here? It’s a bit late to be out in the park.’

  ‘Our friend Lucinda is locked in the zoo,’ Alice-Miranda explained. ‘But what are you doing here? I thought you were staying in Mr Clifton’s studio.’

  ‘I am, but I just came to collect the last of my things. I almost forgot I’d left a bag of clothes hidden down here. She’s in the zoo, you say?’

  ‘Yes – you can see her if you come down here,’ Alice-Miranda said.

  ‘No, it’s okay. Wait right there. I’ll be back in a minute.’

  Callum Preston disappeared back into the bushes, emerging a few minutes later with Lucinda in tow.

  ‘Lucinda!’ Alice-Miranda ran to hug her friend. ‘Thank you, Mr Preston.’

  ‘I don’t know what he’s up to but I heard my father talking to someone on the phone,’ Lucinda sniffed. ‘He said something about a bomb.’

  ‘A bomb?’ Quincy’s eyes widened.

  ‘I have proof that my father has been the one causing lots of trouble for your parents at the store, Alice-Miranda. He’s been paying people at City Hall and I think one of the contractors has been in on it too. I saw the name “George” and the word “foreman” and then a really big amount of money.’

  ‘But why do you think there’s a bomb?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

  ‘Well, it would certainly ruin the opening, wouldn’t it?’ Tears spilled onto Lucinda’s cheeks. ‘I knew Papa was difficult but I didn’t think he was a madman.’

  Alice-Miranda thought back to her conversation with George earlier in the day. ‘Oh my goodness,’ she gasped. ‘George told me this morning that the party was going to go off. Come on, we’ve got to get back and warn everyone,’ Alice-Miranda turned to her friends.

  ‘Does anyone have a phone?’ Callum Preston asked.

  The group all shook their heads.

  ‘That way.’ Lou Gambino pointed. ‘Me and Harry will be right behind you.’

  ‘Hey, young man,’ said Harry, looking at Callum. ‘Will you give us a hand here?’

  The girls arrived back at the store just in time to hear the last minute of the official speeches.

  ‘So, did you have fun in the park?’ the dim-witted guard on the door asked.

  Alice-Miranda shook her head, and then raced inside through the perfume and make-up counters and towards the grand central staircase with Lucinda, Ava and Quincy in tow.

  Callum Preston was helping Mr Gambino and Mr Geronimo with their carts, which they parked outside the store.

  ‘I’m sorry folks, I can’t let you in.’ The security guard blocked the entrance.

  ‘Listen here, fella, this is life and death,’ Lou Gambino wheezed.

  ‘Hey, how about a pretzel,’ Harry Geronimo offered. He dug around in his cart and held one aloft.

  ‘Man, you know, I am hungry.’ The guard deserted his post long enough for Lou and Callum to duck inside the store.

  Cecelia had just stepped away from the podium to rapturous applause.

  ‘Mummy,’ Alice-Miranda called out. ‘We need to talk to you. It’s urgent.’

  ‘Whatever’s the matter, darling?’ Cecelia asked.

  ‘Lucinda heard her father talking to someone on the telephone about a bomb, and she thinks it has something to do with the store,’ Alice-Miranda blurted.

  ‘Did you say a bomb?’ Hugh Kennington-Jones strode over to the group.

  ‘Yes, Daddy. Lucinda’s found proof that her father has been making all that trouble for Mummy and now we think there could be a bomb in the store.’

  Hugh scoffed. ‘I knew your father was competitive, Lucinda, but a bomb? That would make him a monster. Where’s Morrie? Didn’t I see him arrive earlier?’

  The group turned and looked down from the gallery where they could see the whole of the ground floor. Among the throng of beautifully dressed men and women sipping on their champagne and munching canapés, one stood out.

  ‘There’s my mother.’ Lucinda pointed at Gerda Finkelstein, who was pacing the floor between the perfume counters and chewing on her thumbnail.

  ‘And there’s your father over there.’ Ava pointed at Morrie, who was looking intently at the fittings on one of the counters.

  ‘I can’t imagine that your father would be here if there was a
bomb in the store and he knew about it,’ Cecelia Highton-Smith said with a smile at Lucinda. ‘Surely he wouldn’t put his life or your mother’s in danger.’

  ‘I think we should go and find out what this is all about.’ Hugh led the girls and Cee as they headed back down the grand staircase and into the crowd.

  ‘Lucinda!’ Gerda Finkelstein cried out when she saw her daughter. ‘Oh my darling.’ She ran towards Lucinda and hugged her tightly.

  Morrie Finkelstein caught sight of his wife and child and hastened over to them. ‘Lucinda.’ He arched an eyebrow, and then turned his attention to Alice-Miranda. ‘So where have you been hiding her? Upstairs? In the apartment? Among the children’s clothes?’

  ‘Mr Finkelstein, Lucinda was never here. I told you that before,’ Alice-Miranda explained. ‘She was in the park.’

  ‘In the park!’ Morrie’s mouth gaped open. ‘How dare you take her to the park?’

  On hearing the commotion, a small group of onlookers began to gather around.

  ‘I didn’t take her to the park. Lucinda was on her way over here to tell Mummy about all the things you’ve been up to and to warn her about the bomb,’ Alice-Miranda said stoutly and stared up at Morrie.

  The man’s mouth dropped open like a fish’s and his wiry hair stood on end. ‘What bomb? And I can assure you that I haven’t been up to anything. How ridiculous. As if I’d be here if I thought there was a bomb in the store.’

  ‘But Papa,’ Lucinda began. ‘I heard you before on the telephone.’

  Ava’s mother, Detective Dee Dee Lee, marched towards the group with two uniformed police officers close behind her.

  ‘Mom, I’m so glad you’re back!’ Ava said. ‘Lucinda says there could be a bomb in the store.’

  ‘I think I can explain,’ said Dee Dee, looking from Cecelia to Morrie. ‘Mr Finkelstein was indeed on the telephone earlier this evening to George, your foreman.’

  ‘What are you talking about, Mom?’ Ava asked.

  ‘That call-out, downtown; we just arrested George.’ She stared at Morrie. ‘And be assured, Mr Finkelstein, he was on his way here to the store with enough plastic explosives in the trunk of his car to make a serious mess.’

  ‘So he really meant it when he said that things would go off.’ Alice-Miranda’s eye were as round as saucers.

  Morrie Finkelstein’s face turned the colour of toothpaste.

  Cecelia was puzzled. ‘George? He’s Tony’s right-hand man and he always seemed so friendly and helpful. And why were you talking to him, Morrie?’

  Morrie gulped. ‘I thought he might come and do some work for me. Your store does look beautiful.’

  Dee Dee Lee shook her head. ‘Mr Finkelstein, that’s a lie and you know it.’ She turned to Cecelia and Hugh. ‘Mr Finkelstein has been causing you considerable trouble, especially at City Hall and with your foreman. All those missing deliveries, things going astray, parades clashing with cranes – well it seems George wasn’t only on your payroll, he was on Finkelstein’s as well, along with several people down at City Hall.’

  Morrie flatly denied the accusation. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’

  ‘Papa, I saw your notebook,’ Lucinda said. ‘It had lots of amounts of money written down and George’s name was there too.’

  ‘But a bomb?’ Cecelia gripped her hands together tightly.

  ‘That was George’s idea. He just got greedy. Mr Finkelstein might be a lot of things – vain, selfish, stupid . . .’ Dee Dee turned to him. ‘Would you like me to go on?’

  Morrie shook his head.

  ‘But, thankfully he’s not a monster,’ Dee Dee continued. ‘I’m sorry, Cecelia, Hugh. We couldn’t risk ruining the investigation by bringing you in too early. But it’s just as well we’ve been monitoring Mr Finkelstein’s calls, or there would have been a lot more ruined tonight than just this party.’

  ‘Papa, how could you?’ Lucinda’s face was crimson.

  Morrie Finkelstein’s lip began to quiver. ‘I told George, no bomb. I had no idea he would go through with it. I thought he was just trying to get more money out of me. Do you think I’d be here with your mother if I knew?’ he blurted.

  The group looked at each other, shocked at these revelations.

  ‘Is Papa going to prison?’ Lucinda asked. She bit back the tears that were prickling her eyes.

  ‘I don’t think it will go that far,’ Dee Dee replied, placing her arm gently around Lucinda’s shoulder. ‘But I imagine there will be some hefty fines and none of this will do much for your father’s reputation.’

  Morrie Finkelstein slumped, defeated.

  Gerda faced her husband. ‘I don’t understand, Morrie. Why did you do it?’

  ‘I, I don’t know,’ he mumbled. ‘I just wanted Finkelstein’s to be number one, just once.’

  Gerda drew in a deep breath and shouted like a woman possessed. ‘And you would risk our daughter’s safety for the sake of making money. Who are you?’ She waggled her finger under his nose and shook her head.

  ‘It’s her fault – that child!’ Morrie pointed at Alice-Miranda. ‘She’s a bad influence on Lucinda. Our daughter has never behaved like this until she met her.’

  ‘Alice-Miranda has nothing to do with you wanting Finkelstein’s to be number one,’ Gerda retorted. ‘That’s a pathetic excuse if ever I heard one.’

  ‘Alice-Miranda is not a bad influence, Papa. She’s a wonderful friend and for your information she just saved me from a night in the zoo,’ Lucinda explained.

  ‘The zoo? What were you doing in the zoo, Lucinda, in the dark with all those wild animals – and all that fur.’ Morrie scratched his forehead and a bumpy crimson rash began to creep up his neck. ‘I don’t understand. She made you go there, didn’t she? There’s no need to protect her. She’s a Highton.’

  ‘And what’s that supposed to mean?’ Cecelia glared at Morrie.

  ‘No Papa, of course it wasn’t planned. Alice-Miranda found me,’ Lucinda retorted. ‘If it wasn’t for her coming to look for me, I might have spent the whole night there. I didn’t see you out searching. You won’t let me out of the house and then when I do run away you can’t even be bothered to look for me!’

  ‘Oh my goodness, Lucinda, I didn’t think you’d run away. I thought you were here. It’s true, then, you really were locked in the zoo!’ Morrie gasped. ‘There are bears in there.’

  ‘How did you get Lucinda out?’ Hugh Kennington-Jones asked.

  ‘A friend helped us, Daddy,’ piped up Alice-Miranda. ‘Do you remember I told you about Mr Preston, the artist? Well, he was getting some of his things and luckily he knows a way into and out of the zoo,’ Alice-Miranda smiled. ‘That’s him over there next to Mr Gambino.’ Alice-Miranda pointed at the two men who were peering through the crowd towards them.

  ‘So you really do care about my daughter?’ Morrie Finkelstein cocked his head and stared at Alice-Miranda as if he had just discovered a whole new species.

  ‘Of course I do. She’s my friend,’ Alice-Miranda replied. ‘My very good friend.’

  ‘But how can that be? You’re a Highton and Hightons hate Finkelsteins. They just pretend to be nice. Like your mother. She’s always so kind and welcoming and she writes lovely thank-you letters and always congratulates me when things go well, but . . .’ Morrie trailed off.

  ‘But what, Morrie Finkelstein?’ Gerda demanded.

  ‘Well . . .’ Morrie gulped.

  ‘Well, what?’ Gerda snapped. Her husband looked down at his shoes and was suddenly silent.

  ‘Mr Finkelstein, I think there’s something you should know about that silly old feud between Great-Great-Grandpa Horace and Abe Finkelstein,’ Alice-Miranda began.

  Morrie’s eyes flicked upwards.

  ‘Did you know that your great-grandfather was
engaged to a very beautiful woman called Ruby Winters?’

  Morrie slowly shook his head.

  ‘Well, on the day that the two men were set to become partners in a store, a terrible tragedy happened. You see, Ruby worked for Great-Great-Grandpa Horace and she went with him down to Wall Street to the bank. Horace was meeting Abe so that they could sign the documents. That day, a wagon laden with explosives went off and Ruby was one of thirty-eight people who tragically lost their lives. Abe was so racked with grief that he didn’t want to go through with the deal. Grandpa Horace had no choice but to go it alone. He’d already signed the papers.’

  ‘Is this true?’ Morrie asked, looking around at the gathered crowd.

  ‘Yes, Mr Finkelstein. It was all over the newspapers in September of 1920. Quincy’s Granma Clarrie, she told us about Ruby Winters and Abe, and then Mrs Oliver and I went to the library and it’s all there.’

  ‘She’s telling the truth,’ Dolly Oliver chimed in.

  ‘Oh.’ Morrie was thinking about that scrap of paper locked in his desk drawer. It never had made much sense. He gulped and lowered his head. No longer the image of a rich and powerful businessman, he more closely resembled a very naughty little boy.

  ‘Is this true, Morrie?’ A tiny woman clutching a walking stick joined the group.

  ‘Oh no, not you, Aunt Heloise.’ Morrie flinched and stared at his shoes.

  ‘Morrie Finkelstein, I think you have some serious apologising to do,’ declared Gerda, her cheeks aflame. ‘And I suggest you start with your own daughter, then Cecelia and Alice-Miranda and Mr Gruber and everyone else in this family you’ve ever maligned. What’s more, you will make amends for all of the terrible lies you’ve told about the Hightons and I suggest you spend some time at that library yourself. You will allow Lucinda to go back to school on Monday and choose her own friends, just as the boys have always done. And for the record, I’ll choose my friends too from now on, and I can tell you, Rita Schwarzkopf won’t be darkening the door of that salon ever again.’ Gerda was wound up like a spring. ‘And another thing, we are not going on holidays to Southampton this year. You will take me and the children to Paris so we can see the Palace of Versailles for ourselves whether you like flying or not. That’s if you’re not in prison!’ Twenty years of frustration spewed from Gerda’s lips. The group of guests who had been watching the exchange began to retreat.