by Betsy Haynes
"Yea, Fabulous Five!" she yelled.
People passing by smiled at her.
Katie groaned. "Melanie, don't humiliate us."
"Come on," Melanie coaxed, grabbing Beth's and Jana's hands. "Let's all do it."
"Not me," said Jana. "I'm not going to make a fool of myself."
"Come on, Katie," urged Melanie. "Christie?"
"I'll do it with you, Mel," Beth said finally.
The two of them did the cheer together, and a few people stopped to watch. Most, however, walked past without thinking twice about the girls' impromptu performance. Clearly stranger things happened in Piccadilly Circus!
After that The Fab Five devoured sandwiches and sodas they bought at a small stand-up shop, and then went to several clothing stores in Soho.
By the end of the day Christie felt exhausted but happy. It was so much fun being with her friends again. It was as if they'd never been apart.
It was almost five o'clock when they trooped back into Christie's home and collapsed on the couch and chairs in the living room.
"You certainly look as if you've had a good time," Mrs. Winchell said. "You didn't spend all your money, did you?"
"Not yet," replied Katie, grinning. "But we tried. I think we went to every store in London."
"Oh, Christie," Mrs. Winchell added. "Phoebe called a couple of times. She wants you to call when you get a chance."
"I'll do it right now." Christie got up and headed for the phone. "I'll tell her which Brain Damage concert we got tickets to so she and the others can get tickets for the same night. I'll call Connie, too, and he can talk to Davey and Charlie about it."
"Hi, Phoebe," Christie said when her friend picked up. "Mum said you called. Boy, did we have a great day! Melanie and Beth did a cheer for the crowd at Piccadilly Circus."
At that Melanie and Beth started yelling and hooting in the background.
Christie grinned and motioned for them to be quiet. "We went to Soho," she went on, "and, oh, yeah, I wanted to tell you that we got tickets for Brain Damage for Friday night."
"It sounds as if you and your chums are having great fun," said Phoebe. Her voice sounded funny.
"We are," answered Christie, wondering if something was wrong.
"We thought you were going to ring us up so we could go with you," said Phoebe. "Nicki and Eleanore were over here all morning waiting. They went home when we didn't hear from you."
"Oh . . ." Christie was caught by surprise. She hadn't realized they had expected her to call. "I wasn't thinking," she said softly. "I'm sorry."
"I think I should warn you, Christie," Phoebe responded. "That's not the only thing bothering Nicki and Eleanore. They're not too happy about Davey's and Charlie's paying so much attention to Melanie and Beth."
Christie's heart sank. She really needed to talk to Phoebe in private. "Just a minute. Let me get on another phone," she said. "There's too much noise in here." She asked Jana to hang up the phone after she picked up the extension in the kitchen.
When Christie heard the click of the phone being put back in its cradle, she said to Phoebe, "Melanie and Beth really didn't do anything. They just talked to Davey and Charlie, and danced a couple of dances with them."
"I know," replied Phoebe, "but Nicki and Ellie are still a bit put out, especially Nicki."
"I'll call them right away," said Christie. "I don't want my two sets of best friends to be angry at each other."
Then she said as cheerfully as she could, "Tonight we're going to sit down and make up a schedule of all the things The Fabulous Five want to do while they're here. I'll give you a call and let you know what we're planning."
"That would be nice," Phoebe told her. "I'll let you get back to your chums now. Talk to you later."
"Phoebe," Christie said before she could hang up, "are you still mad at me?"
"Not any longer," she replied. "Give a call when you're ready to do the town."
As soon as they had hung up, Christie took a deep breath and punched Nicki's number into the telephone.
"Before you say anything, let me apologize for not calling to ask you guys to come with us today," Christie said when Nicki answered. "It's completely my fault."
"Well, it did get a trifle boring sitting around all morning with Phoebe and Ellie," said Nicki.
Feeling relieved at Nicki's reaction, Christie went on to explain about the concert tickets. Before hanging up, she decided to bring up Melanie's and Beth's dancing with Davey and Charlie.
"They were just being friendly," said Christie. "Melanie has a boyfriend at home, and Beth wouldn't steal anyone's boyfriend."
There was a moment of silence, then Christie heard Nicki chuckle. "I guess I should have realized that," Nicki said. "You wouldn't have friends who would. What I need to do, I guess, is put a leash on Davey—or blinders."
Next Christie called Eleanore to explain things and apologize. Finally she made her call to Connie.
When she was finished, she felt a little better, but she still blamed herself for the misunderstandings. It just hadn't occurred to her to invite her British friends to go with them today. After all, they had seen Piccadilly Circus and Soho hundreds of times.
CHAPTER 5
That evening The Lab Five and Christie's parents went over the list of things to do that the girls had drawn up.
"Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, Old Bailey, and Madame Tussaud's wax museum," Mr. Winchell read aloud. "You'll love the museum. Besides the wax models of famous people, there are all sorts of torture chamber displays."
Beth looked up with a gleeful expression on her face. "All right!"
"You'll get to see the crown jewels at the lower of London," said Mrs. Winchell. "What about the Old Curiosity Shop that Charles Dickens wrote about? It has a lot of things about him in it. You liked that when we were there, Christie."
"Yeah, that's neat," replied Christie. "Add that to the list, Jana."
"Okay," her friend replied. "Right after having our picture taken in front of Big Ben."
"Who put down the London Hard Rock Cafe?" asked Mr. Winchell.
Melanie raised her hand. "Me. I want a T-shirt from there."
"Why don't we all go there for dinner one night," suggested Mrs. Winchell. "I've got an idea. Let's plan on having Christie's birthday dinner there."
"Great," everyone agreed.
"Hey, Dad," said Christie. "Can you take us to Connie's on Friday so we can go horseback riding?"
"Let me check with Mrs. Davies, the woman from my company who's here this week, to see what her plans are," answered her father. "She was intending to stay through the weekend, but she seems happy with what she's seen so far. She may actually go back to the States on Friday. If she does, I can take you."
"When are they going to transfer you back home, Mr. Winchell?" asked Katie.
He smiled. "Things are going well, but I can't believe I'll be transferred back any time soon."
Beth made a sour face. "Darn!" The others looked down.
"So," Christie piped up, trying to change the subject, "tomorrow we'll go to Buckingham Palace."
Katie smiled. "You'll finally get to see the palace, Mel. But then we're going to Old Bailey, too."
Later that night Christie and Jana were the first ones to arrive upstairs to get ready for bed.
"It's so much fun having you guys here," Christie said, following Jana as she went into the bathroom to wash her face. "Isn't London exciting?"
Jana nodded. "I'm having a great time."
"Are you?" Christie said. "I'm glad to hear that . . ." She hesitated. "I've been wondering if something's wrong. You seem so quiet."
Jana looked at Christie's reflection in the mirror and sighed. "I guess I'm not hiding it very well, am I? I'm worried about my father."
"What's up?" asked Christie, immediately thinking of Mr. Morgan's drinking problem, which was what had led Jana's mom to divorce him. For as long as Christie could remember he had disappointed Jana. Once in element
ary school he had promised to take Jana on a vacation out west, then never showed up.
"I got a letter from him," Jana explained. "He said he'd met a lady and was going to quit drinking. Her name is Erma Benfield. He said she's a wonderful person and is going to help him. He sounded excited."
"That's great!" Christie smiled broadly. "Good for him." Then she frowned. "But that should make you happy, not sad."
"It did," said Jana. "At first it all seemed wonderful. He wrote a few times, telling me how things were going at his Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Then he and Erma got married. He sent me pictures of them with the justice of the peace at City Hall.
"Then he stopped writing. I've written him twice, asking if everything is okay, but he hasn't answered."
"Maybe he's busy," Christie suggested. "Maybe they're off on a honeymoon."
"I doubt it," Jana replied. "I think either he's started drinking again or my stepmother is intercepting my letters and not giving them to him."
"Why would she do a thing like that?" asked Christie in amazement.
Jana shrugged. "Jealousy? I've tried to be friendly. In my letters I've asked him to say hello to her for me, but I've never gotten any messages back from her. Maybe she doesn't want him reminded of his past." Tears brimmed in Jana's eyes.
"Oh, Jana," said Christie, stepping up to her friend and hugging her. "Have you thought about writing to him where he works?"
"I don't even know if he's got a job," replied Jana, wiping her nose with a tissue. "Besides, what would I say—Are you drinking again, or is your wife hiding my letters from you?"
"I guess you couldn't do that," Christie admitted.
"Now I don't know what to do," said Jana.
"Well, one thing you can do is try to forget him while you're on vacation," offered Christie. "There's not a thing you can do about it now. Who knows? Maybe there'll be a letter waiting for you when you get home."
Jana shook her head. "That's wishful thinking. But you're right," she said, smiling a little. "I'm on vacation with my best friends, and I'm going to enjoy it."
"Good!" responded Christie. As they headed back toward the bedroom to join the others, she added, "Let's start a pillow fight."
Jana laughed. "Great idea. I'll take Katie, you get Beth, and then we'll both jump Melanie!"
CHAPTER 6
"There they are," said Christie. Phoebe, Nicki, and Eleanore were waiting at the Green Park exit to the Underground. Christie looked at the three of them closely as she and The Fab Five approached. Had they gotten over their irritation at her, Melanie, and Beth?
"What kept you?" asked Nicki. "We've been standing here so long, I've grown moss on my north side."
Christie grinned. Nicki was back to her old self.
"We stayed up late last night talking and had trouble getting up this morning. Sorry we kept you waiting."
"I'm excited about seeing Buckingham Palace," said Melanie. "I hope we get a chance to see Princess Di."
"Whoop-de-do," replied Nicki, circling one finger in the air.
Melanie looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"Don't mind Nicki," volunteered Phoebe. "She's just not into castles. Her favorite things to see are the torture chambers in the Tower of London and Madame Tussaud's."
"Do you want to go by St. James's Palace before we go to Buckingham?" asked Eleanore. "It's on the way, and the changing of the guard is at eleven-thirty. We've got time."
"What's at St. James's Palace?" asked Beth.
"It's where the Queen Mum lives when she's in London," Eleanore told her.
"The Queen Mum?" asked Katie, looking confused.
"The Queen's mother," explained Christie.
"Well, why don't the British just say that, instead of Queen Mum?" asked Beth.
Christie held her breath as Nicki opened her mouth to say something, and then closed it. Whew, she thought, flashing her British friend a grateful smile. Nicki is on good behavior. Maybe everyone will get along a little better today.
"Unless Princess Di's visiting or something, I'm not interested in seeing St. James's Palace," decided Melanie.
"It might be fun," Jana said. "Maybe we could go there quickly."
"No," protested Beth. "Let's head for Buckingham Palace—"
"What's all the argie-bargie about, anyway?" interrupted Nicki. "If no one wants to see St. James's Palace, we won't go."
"It was just a suggestion," said Eleanore.
"It was a good one," Jana piped up quickly. "But I guess we'll skip it."
As they walked along in the direction of Buckingham Palace, Melanie glanced down a side street. "Oh, look. There's one of those cute soldiers in the red uniforms and big, black hats. Can we go see him? I want someone to take my picture standing beside him." She headed down the side street before anyone could respond. The others followed.
"Hi," called Melanie, approaching the guard. "Can I have my picture taken with you, please?" The young soldier didn't respond. In fact he gave no indication that he even knew she was there.
Melanie looked up into his face, which was partially hidden under his tall bearskin hat. "What's wrong with him, anyway?" she asked.
Beth looked at the young man closely. "Maybe he's dead and just hasn't fallen down yet."
"No, he's not," said Eleanore, laughing. "The guards aren't supposed to talk to anyone."
"Do you think it would be all right if I stood next to him and had my picture taken?" Melanie asked.
"Sure," said Phoebe. "Tourists do it all the time."
"Be careful," cautioned Nicki, smirking. "If you make him smile or move, they'll put you in the dungeon at the Tower of London."
"Here," said Melanie, eyeing Nicki warily and handing her camera to Christie. "Would you take my picture?"
Melanie stood close to the soldier and smiled broadly. Just as Christie was about to snap the photo, the soldier raised his knee almost chest high and slammed his foot down.
Melanie jumped back out of the way, a look of fear and amazement on her face. "Wha . . . ?"
The soldier slapped his rifle, shifted it to the other side, and stamped his foot again.
The London girls roared with laughter at the look on Melanie's face. Nicki bent over, holding her stomach. Between peals of laughter, she managed to say, "I've got to have a copy of that picture."
Melanie looked wounded. "What'd he do that for?" she asked. "I thought he was going to shoot me."
Phoebe struggled to keep a straight face. "The guards do that at set times. You just happened to be next to him at the wrong moment."
Melanie looked up at the building they were standing in front of. "What is this place, anyway?"
"I'm not sure we should tell you," replied Eleanore, giggling.
Christie tried to break the news to Melanie gently. "Actually, it's St. James's Palace, Mel."
"Oh," said Melanie, looking embarrassed. Nicki, Eleanore, and Phoebe began laughing all over again.
Christie started to join in, but stopped when she noticed the look on Melanie's face. Her friend was usually able to laugh at herself, but this time Melanie seemed upset. The incident had really bothered her, and the British girls' teasing wasn't helping. Christie wished she could find a way to ease the tension between the two groups.
When the girls reached the wide avenue called the Mall that led directly to Buckingham Palace, they saw that people were starting to gather along the curb for the changing of the guard.
"We'd better find a place to stand before it gets too crowded," suggested Phoebe.
"Wow," said Katie, looking at the palace. "This place is only a little bit larger than my house."
"And that's just the back door," remarked Eleanore.
"Who's the statue of?" asked Jana, pointing at a huge statue surrounded by a pool of water outside the palace gate.
"That's the Queen Victoria Memorial," answered Phoebe. "Victoria's regarded as one of our greatest queens."
"That's one thing I've always admired you Brit
ish for," commented Katie. "You let a woman run your country."
"I hate to disappoint you, Katie," said Christie, "but the queen doesn't run the country anymore; the prime minister does."
"I know that," Katie said. "But at least there was a female prime minister when Margaret Thatcher was in office. In the States we've never had a female president or even vice president."
"The Queen's flag's up," observed Eleanore, pointing to a tall flagpole on top of the palace. "That means she's here."
"Isn't she always?" asked Beth.
"No," responded Phoebe. "Sometimes she stays in the country at Windsor Castle."
"Oh, my gosh," exclaimed Melanie. "Do you mean she has two palaces to live in?"
Phoebe nodded.
"Here come the guards!" cried Beth.
Down the avenue came soldiers on horseback. They were carrying swords and wearing brightly colored jackets and silver helmets trimmed in gold. It was a magnificent parade. When the soldiers had passed, the crowd moved out into the street behind them and followed.
"Everyone's going to watch the changing of the guard now," explained Christie. "Some of the arriving soldiers will stay to protect the palace, while the ones who were there will get a break. We can go and watch, if you want."
"Maybe we'll see Princess Di," said Melanie hopefully.
"Fat chance," replied Nicki. "Even if she is here, she won't be sticking her head out every five minutes to see if the post has come."
"We didn't expect her to," snapped Katie. "But we're not complete pessimists—like some people."
"Why don't we go to the Tower of London," interrupted Christie hastily. "We can use our travel cards and catch a bus. You guys have been wanting to ride a double-decker."
She turned to lead the way. Katie, Jana, Melanie, and Beth were right behind her; Phoebe, Nicki, and Eleanore followed them.
On the way they stopped by the Houses of Parliament so Jana could have her picture taken with Big Ben in the background.
Next they caught a bus and dashed to the upper deck. As they rode along the Thames River, Christie pointed out interesting sights.
"Those dragons at the ends of the bridges are supposed to protect London," she explained, pointing to statues of the mythical animals. "And that's the Westminster Pier, where you can catch a sightseeing boat. Over there is where the Globe Theatre used to be. That's where Shakespeare's plays used to be staged. It's now being rebuilt."
