‘Hello Miss Grimm,’ Alice-Miranda greeted the headmistress.
Jacinta had swiftly mastered the art of the crutches and with the boot in place she manoeuvred herself next to Alice-Miranda and Lucas.
‘Hello Alice-Miranda.’ Miss Grimm turned to Jacinta. ‘You silly sausage. How on earth did you manage to drop a pétanque ball on your toe?’
‘I didn’t mean to,’ Jacinta said with a shrug. ‘I just wasn’t paying attention.’
Sloane and Millie arrived with Lucinda in tow. ‘You were too busy dreaming about Lucas,’ Sloane teased.
Lucas’s face turned bright red. ‘No, she wasn’t,’ he protested.
‘No, I wasn’t,’ Jacinta agreed.
The other children kept looking at her.
‘Seriously, I wasn’t. Not then, anyway,’ she said.
The others laughed.
‘I’m doing your solo tonight,’ Sloane boasted.
‘Oh,’ Jacinta frowned.
‘But don’t worry, I told Mr Lipp that next time we perform that song we should do the part together,’ Sloane said.
‘Okay. I think.’ Jacinta wondered if Sloane was telling the truth.
‘You need to get upstairs and rest, young lady,’ Miss Grimm instructed. ‘Miss Reedy has kindly volunteered to stay behind and look after you.’
When Miss Grimm and the professor had met with the staff over afternoon tea to discuss the incident and ensuing arrangements, Mr Lipp had volunteered to stay back too. Professor Winterbottom had pointed out rather bluntly that as the musical director, it would be a little odd for Mr Lipp to miss the performance.
‘And Lucinda, your mother telephoned a little while ago and said that we should take you with us. Your parents will meet us at the cathedral,’ said Miss Grimm.
The children were set to leave for Notre Dame at five pm, with the service commencing at six. They would have dinner afterwards. Monsieur and Madame Crabbe had arranged with Miss Grimm to order in pizzas, which Monsieur Crabbe could attend to. That way Madame Crabbe could see the children’s performance too.
Cecelia was planning to head back to the hotel to change before meeting the children at the cathedral but Charlotte was nowhere to be seen.
Monsieur Crabbe appeared from the door marked ‘Private’. He took one look at Jacinta and shook his head.
‘I heard about this pétanque injury,’ he said seriously. ‘You know, some may laugh about dropping a little metal ball on your foot but not me. It can be a dangerous sport. Especially when you play it with old men like my father, whose aim is very wonky. Poor Lulu was almost crushed by the silly man one afternoon.’
The children wondered if he was serious.
‘Have you seen my sister?’ Cecelia asked.
‘Oui, madame. She is in the sitting room with my wife, supposedly having a rest but I think that Camille has probably worn her out with a hundred and one questions. Please, you should rescue her.’ He indicated that Cecelia should go through.
‘Merci, monsieur. I’ll just say goodbye to the children first,’ Cecelia replied. ‘All right, darlings, I’ll go and get Charlotte and we’ll see you in a little while. And take care, Jacinta. The doctor gave you some strong painkillers, so you really should go and have a lie down.’
Cecelia hugged each of the children and gave Jacinta an extra squeeze. She was more than a little annoyed that Ambrosia hadn’t yet called her back. Surely the woman had seen her attempts to get through.
‘Bye Mummy,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘See you later.’
‘Now, I need all of you to head upstairs and get changed immediately,’ Miss Grimm instructed the group. ‘We have to leave soon and I don’t want any delays.’
The children did as they were told. Jacinta and Alice-Miranda rode the rickety elevator up to the second floor, while the rest bounded upstairs.
Sep and Lucas headed for their room on the fifth level.
‘So, I saw that Fabien guy again when we got back here,’ Sep told Lucas as they walked along the hallway.
‘Why’d he leave the park before?’ Lucas asked.
‘I don’t know. I didn’t get to talk to him,’ Sep began to explain.
‘Why not?’
‘Because I knocked on the door over there, like I did last time, and the same woman Alice-Miranda and I saw yesterday answered. When I asked if Fabien was home, I saw him on the landing doing this –’ Sep put a finger to his lips – ‘So I didn’t say anything else and the next thing I knew he was gone. She looked surprised when I mentioned his name and just shook her head. Then she slammed the door.’
‘That’s weird,’ said Lucas. ‘We know that he lives there.’
‘Yeah,’ Sep said. ‘I wonder if she just doesn’t speak much English.’
‘Maybe she’s hiding something,’ Lucas suggested.
‘It was a bit strange,’ Sep said.
The boys were changing into their school uniforms when there was a knock on the door. It was George Figworth.
‘Hey, have you got any spare undies?’ he asked, barging into the room.
Sep looked at him quizzically. ‘Yeah, um, but why?’
‘The prof was just doing a room inspection and he wanted to know where my dirty laundry was and I said I didn’t have any,’ the lad explained.
‘What do you mean you don’t have any?’ Lucas walked out of the bathroom, where he’d been brushing his teeth. ‘We’ve been away for five days.’
Figgy shrugged.
‘Oh gross, Figgy, have you been wearing the same underpants since we got here?’ Sep screwed up his nose.
‘I forgot to pack any,’ the boy replied.
‘Man, you are disgusting.’ Lucas reached into his suitcase and fished around for a spare pair of undies. Sep did the same.
Lucas threw his at Figgy. ‘And I don’t want them back.’
Sep handed over a pair as well. ‘Me neither. They’re yours to keep.’
‘Thanks. You guys are the best. I can’t remember how many times I’ve turned these ones around but they’re getting a bit crusty.’ He reached down and pulled on the seam of his underpants.
‘Eurgh, get out of here, Figgy.’ Sep slammed the door.
The boys began to laugh.
‘He’s gross,’ Sep said.
‘Yeah.’ Lucas shuddered.
The boys finished getting ready and headed downstairs. As the group gathered in the courtyard, Sep glanced at the window where he had seen Fabien before. He didn’t know why he cared so much, but clearly something wasn’t right in that house across the road.
Miss Reedy was quite glad to stay behind at the hotel. While it would have been nice to hear the children singing in the cathedral, looking after Jacinta would give her an opportunity to finish her marking and have some time to herself.
Jacinta was lying in bed with her foot up watching the French version of Winners Are Grinners. While Miss Reedy generally didn’t approve of much television, she thought this was harmless and potentially educational as Jacinta would have to interpret what was going on.
She made herself a cup of tea and sat down on the settee with the compositions piled in front of her. Her own room was about the size of a postage stamp, so it was nice to be able to spread out a little. Jacinta and Sloane had certainly scored the jackpot with their suite.
Miss Reedy worked solidly for an hour before she decided it was time to stretch her legs and check on Jacinta. The girl had fallen asleep, so she turned off the television and pulled up the covers. She wandered to the window. Here she was in Paris, the most romantic city in the world, and yet she still couldn’t bring herself to tell Josiah Plumpton how she felt. She didn’t know whether he thought of her as just a friend, or perhaps something more. At this rate she would never know.
Down in the street, Monsieur Crabbe was walking Lulu towards the park. He and his wife were a handsome couple, and he clearly adored the woman, even if he did spend most of the time teasing her mercilessly.
A flash of colour higher up cau
ght her eye. She looked into the windows directly across the street on the first floor. The curtains were open and a man and a woman were fussing over dresses; not the type that you would wear in the street, more the sort of thing that Ambrosia Headlington-Bear would be pictured in on the cover of a glossy magazine. They were lining them up on long portable clothing racks. The woman looked up at her. Miss Reedy averted her eyes and walked back into the sitting room. Her cheeks were flushed and she was embarrassed to have been spotted, although she couldn’t say why. She picked up another of the assignments on the pile and began to read.
Alice-Miranda and the entourage walked the short distance to Notre Dame. As the group rounded a curve in one of the small laneways, Millie nudged Alice-Miranda.
‘Do you see who that is?’ She pointed at a woman wearing an enormous pair of sunglasses and a scarf wrapped around her head.
‘Yes, of course. It’s Mrs Headlington-Bear,’ Alice-Miranda whispered. She had pulled her mother aside when they were leaving the hospital and told her that she’d seen the woman in Paris. To her surprise, her mother already knew.
‘We need to talk to her and let her know about Jacinta,’ Millie said.
‘Yes, I agree,’ Alice-Miranda replied.
As fortune would have it, Miss Grimm bumped into a colleague from home and the conga line of children came to another grinding halt. Mr Trout and Mr Lipp were already at Notre Dame and with Miss Reedy looking after Jacinta, the supervision was somewhat diminished. At the end of the line, Mr Plumpton was deep in conversation with Mrs Winterbottom and Professor Winterbottom, and Mr Grump had ducked into a shop to admire some artworks.
‘Come on.’ Alice-Miranda tugged on Millie’s hand. ‘We won’t be long.’
The girls checked for traffic and then scampered across the cobblestones towards the woman. ‘Hello Mrs Headlington-Bear,’ Alice-Miranda greeted her.
She looked up from the pile of papers spread in front of her as if she was annoyed at being interrupted.
‘Oh, hello Alice-Miranda, hello Millie.’ She managed a tight smile and shuffled the pages on the table into a messy pile.
‘Jacinta will be so glad you’re really here,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘She thought she saw you when we were at our rehearsal at the Ritz the other day but the lady at reception said there was no one by your name staying there. But of course you are. Mummy said that she saw you too. Are you coming to the cathedral?’
Ambrosia scanned the line of children across the street. ‘No, I hadn’t planned to.’
‘It’s just as well, seeing that Jacinta is actually back at the hotel. She was feeling quite sorry for herself but now that you’re here I’m sure you can cheer her up,’ Alice-Miranda babbled.
This caught the woman’s attention. ‘Why is she back at the hotel and why does she need cheering up?’
‘She had an accident earlier today and broke her big toe. It’s nothing too serious but it will stop her from training for at least a month and she was very upset that she’ll miss the championships,’ the child explained.
‘Oh, that’s horrible. Poor Cinta.’
Millie saw a piece of paper on the top of Ambrosia’s pile and couldn’t help commenting when she read the name. ‘Dux LaBelle. We’re opening his show tomorrow,’ she said. ‘At the Ritz.’
‘Yes, wonderful new designer. I’m right behind that young fellow.’ Ambrosia grinned. She shifted her papers again, covering what looked like some sort of contract. ‘Where are you staying again?’
Millie got out her pocket map and laid it on the table. ‘We’re staying at l’Hôtel Lulu. Just there.’ She pointed to the spot. ‘Please go and see Jacinta.’
Ambrosia frowned. ‘Yes, of course I’ll see her, Millie. You and I both know how highly strung Jacinta can be. I’d hate for her to think I didn’t care.’
Millie almost laughed. Jacinta was highly strung and everyone knew where she got that from.
Alice-Miranda looked at the notebook and laptop on the table. ‘Are you writing something?’
‘It’s confidential,’ said Ambrosia. ‘Well, at least for the moment.’
Alice-Miranda and Millie exchanged bewildered looks.
‘Don’t look so worried, girls. I’ll go and see Jacinta now, I promise.’
Alice-Miranda and Millie said goodbye and walked back to join the group.
‘What do you think she’s up to?’ Millie asked.
‘It could be anything but at least she said that she’d see Jacinta,’ Alice-Miranda replied.
‘Maybe it’s got something to do with Dux LaBelle,’ Millie said. ‘She didn’t want us to see whatever it was that had his name on it.’
Alice-Miranda wondered too. Ambrosia Headlington-Bear seemed to have changed quite a bit lately but if she was up to her old tricks again, Jacinta would be devastated.
Jacinta woke up and wondered what time it was. There was a dull throb in her toe but the painkillers had obviously taken effect. From the sitting room, she could hear deep breathing punctuated by the occasional little grunt. Miss Reedy must have fallen asleep. Not wanting to wake her, Jacinta decided that she would head downstairs and see if Madame Crabbe might be able to make her a grilled cheese sandwich. Her stomach was making all sorts of grumbly noises, and she realised she hadn’t had any lunch.
She put on her dressing-gown and grabbed the crutches from beside her bed.
Jacinta poked her head around the bedroom door. Sure enough, Miss Reedy was sound asleep. She must have been marking books the whole time. There was one lying open on her lap next to half a cup of tea.
Jacinta managed to pick up her plastic key and fumble to the door and into the hallway without much noise at all. Soon the lift bell tinged and she was hobbling across the hotel reception.
‘Mademoiselle Jacinta, what are you doing out of bed?’ Monsieur Crabbe turned from where he was dusting the shelves behind the reception desk. ‘Does Mademoiselle Reedy know that you are down here?’
‘She’s asleep and I didn’t want to wake her.’
‘She will be worried if she wakes up and you are gone,’ Monsieur Crabbe admonished her. ‘What can I do for you?’
‘I was feeling rather hungry and I wondered if I might be able to get a grilled cheese sandwich?’ Jacinta asked.
‘Ah, you are in great luck. Grilled cheese is my speciality. But of course, this is France, so I add a little ham and it becomes a croque monsieur. Délicieux! You must sit down there while I go and make it.’ Monsieur Crabbe pointed at one of the couches to the side of the room. ‘Then I will help you back upstairs so we do not upset your teacher.’
The man disappeared through the door behind the reception desk. Jacinta picked up a magazine on the coffee table in front of her and flicked through the pages. She recognised a whole lot of the Parisian landmarks they had visited but couldn’t read any of the text as it was all in French.
She was thinking about the mass at Notre Dame when the front door opened and a woman walked in.
‘Mummy?’ Jacinta said, frowning.
‘Oh, darling, there you are.’ Ambrosia flew across the room and hugged Jacinta tightly. ‘Tell me, are you all right? I heard that you had an accident and had to go to hospital.’ She stood back to survey the open boot on Jacinta’s leg.
‘I’m fine. But what are you doing here?’ Jacinta was very confused. ‘Cecelia Highton-Smith couldn’t even get you on the phone earlier.’
‘I saw Millie and Alice-Miranda when they were on their way to the mass at Notre Dame and they told me what had happened and I came straight here to see you.’
‘Yes, Mummy, but what are you doing in Paris?’ Jacinta glared at her mother.
‘I’m here on business.’
‘What business? You don’t have a business and if you’re here spending money that you haven’t got, Daddy will be so cross,’ Jacinta admonished.
‘It’s a surprise, darling. A good one,’ her mother replied. ‘I didn’t want to tell you until I’d really done something interesting,
but I have a job.’
‘You have a job? What sort of a job?’ Jacinta was imagining her mother parading nanna knickers on the runway at one of the shows. She hoped it wasn’t the one they were singing at tomorrow. Surely not.
‘I’m working for Fashion Week,’ Ambrosia explained.
Jacinta’s stomach lurched. ‘You’re not modelling, are you?’
‘Me?’ Ambrosia laughed. ‘Are you joking? Oh darling, thank you for even thinking I could but heavens no. That would be too awful for words.’
Jacinta breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Then what are you doing?’
‘If I tell you, you’ve got to promise to keep things just between us. You can’t tell anyone, not even Alice-Miranda.’ Ambrosia looked her daughter in the eye. ‘Come to think of it, especially not Alice-Miranda.’
Jacinta was intrigued. Her mother seemed really excited and she couldn’t remember ever having seen her look so passionate – except when her father had given her a new sports car for her birthday, and even that wasn’t quite the same.
‘I think I’m about to unravel a huge mystery,’ Ambrosia began. She leaned in close and spoke quietly. ‘It’s very complicated but if I can get this right . . .’
Ambrosia explained everything. Jacinta was stunned.
‘It’s just that I still haven’t been able to find anything much about Dux LaBelle. He’s a complete mystery. Although I did visit his showroom – it was close to here I think, but I’m afraid all these streets look the same to me.’
‘Well, we saw a robbery on the day we arrived,’ said Jacinta, trying to one-up her mother in the shock stakes.
‘Oh my goodness. I knew it wasn’t safe for you young children to travel overseas,’ her mother fussed.
Jacinta rolled her eyes. ‘Mummy, we are perfectly safe – except around pétanque balls. Don’t you want to know about the robbery?’
‘Of course, darling,’ her mother cooed.
‘We were on our way to Notre Dame and three police cars sped into the road and Monsieur Fontaine came running out onto the street and said that he’d been robbed. We didn’t know it was him back then but it’s been on the news and we performed at his show. Well, sort of,’ Jacinta explained.
Alice-Miranda in Paris 7 Page 14
