The following morning, Peter found a group of children gathered round a horse-drawn sleigh outside his apartment building.
‘Look, Mr Tias,’ a young lad shouted.
Peter couldn’t help but look. Quigley, in his conical hat and wearing a fur-lined coat over his Harlequin costume, was standing beside one of the most elaborate four-seater sleighs Peter had ever seen. It was painted red and gold, complete with a swan figurehead. Anna was sitting at the front looking awkward. Hildegard was sitting at the back looking thrilled.
‘Good morning, Mr Tias,’ said the clown.
‘Good morning. That is quite a sleigh,’ said Peter.
‘The only red swan sleigh in the whole of the city of C—,’ said Quigley.
Celeste came out of the apartment building, followed by Viggo. Quigley gave a bow.
‘Your carriage awaits, my lady. May I help you up?’
Celeste sat next to Hildegard. Quigley saw Viggo watching them, and said, ‘Young man, with your uncle’s permission, would you like to ride with us? There’s plenty of room for you. Move up, ladies.’
Viggo climbed in, looking delighted.
He saluted Peter, and saying ‘Farewell’ to the children, flicked the reins and off they set.
‘I would like to travel in this every day,’ said Hildegard.
‘That’s because you have a warm coat and fur-lined mittens,’ said Celeste.
Celeste, looking at Hildegard’s rosy cheeks and happy expression, knew she meant well. Hildegard took Celeste’s hands in hers to warm her up. ‘You are rather chilly,’ said Hildegard.
‘Did you say Celeste is silly?’ said Quigley, over his shoulder.
‘No,’ giggled Hildegard. ‘I said Celeste is chilly.’
Quigley turned to look at his passengers.
‘Soon be there,’ he said.
Hildegard put her arm round Celeste.
‘You know, if you were living with Anna and me at the apartment, I would’ve given you my other mittens – to keep.’
‘Thank you,’ said Celeste.
‘Really, I would love it if you did come back.’
‘It’s much better this way,’ said Celeste. ‘You have Anna to yourself and she can help you learn your lines.’
‘You aren’t jealous?’ said Hildegard. ‘And you don’t mind terribly staying at Peter’s a bit longer?’
‘No, not at all. You need Anna at the moment.’
‘I’m very lucky to have you for a friend.’
‘And I’m lucky too,’ said Celeste and she meant it. But what she didn’t say was that she had to stay with Viggo and Peter because she and Maria had a play to write.
She had told Peter that she thought that the man in the emerald green suit and Albert Ross were the same person.
‘If that is the case, then you need to be doubly careful,’ said Peter. ‘He hears everything and is very close to Miss Olsen.’
‘Why is he so close to Miss Olsen?’ Celeste asked. Or rather Maria asked and Celeste spoke her words.
‘A good question,’ said Peter, ‘and one I have no answer to. Perhaps they are both lonely.’
Celeste was thinking this over as the sleigh sped through the snowy streets of the city of C—. It was such an enchanting sight that people smiled and waved as they passed and Hildegard waved back.
‘When you have my spare mittens, you’ll be able to do this,’ she said to Celeste. ‘Wave, I mean.’
Anna, sitting up front with Quigley, couldn’t hear them, but Hildegard, enjoying the drama of what she was about to say, cupped her hand and whispered, her breath warm in Celeste’s ear.
‘Don’t you want to know my secret? I saw Stephan kiss Anna! You’re not to tell.’
‘Who could I tell?’ said Celeste, puzzled. ‘There’s no one apart from Viggo and I don’t think…’ She stopped. She could see Hildegard was deflated.
‘I thought it was a good secret,’ said Hildegard.
‘It’s not really a secret,’ said Celeste.
‘What are you two whispering about?’ called Anna.
‘Nothing important,’ said Celeste.
Having nothing else to do, Celeste stayed in the dressing-room. It was warm, and she curled up on the day-bed and snoozed.
‘There you are.’ She woke to find Viggo looking down at her. ‘Come on,’ he said.
‘Where are we going?’
‘It’s a surprise,’ he said, taking her hand.
He led her to where Anna was waiting by the stage door.
‘Viggo,’ Anna said, ‘what’s this all about? I really shouldn’t leave Hildegard.’
Viggo didn’t answer but took them out to a waiting cab. Celeste and Anna stopped when they saw it.
‘Madame Sabina didn’t send it, did she?’ asked Anna.
‘No,’ said Viggo, trying to hide his excitement. ‘Hurry, there isn’t much time.’
They climbed in and found Quigley the clown sitting in the corner, his chequered suit glimmering in the gloom of the cab.
‘We’re going shopping,’ he said. And seeing Anna on the point of protesting added, ‘No buts. “Buts” don’t keep you warm. This is my pleasure. Let’s say we are dressing you for a part. Anna, you are playing the smart young governess, a lady who knows her mind and is going to protect her young charges from a dragon.’
Celeste and Viggo burst out laughing. ‘What part is Celeste going to play?’ asked Viggo.
To Celeste’s surprise, the clown said, ‘She is the light.’
The dress shop, like the hat shop, awoke memories. Celeste and Anna had been there many times. Celeste remembered going with Mother to buy clothes for the voyage. They were to spend New Year on the king’s ship… Mother was going to sing for him. Except… except…
‘Except the king never came,’ Maria finished her thought. ‘He was ill and his doctors forbade him to leave his bed. The ship sailed with the prince and all his guests – the king wanted everything to carry on, just as if he was there.’
And those guests are the sleepers, thought Celeste, and again the enormity of what she was trying to do overwhelmed her.
Anna and Celeste were shown to two chairs in front of a slightly raised platform. Quigley and Viggo stood behind them. Before them was a model wearing the latest creation and a small man with mincing hand movements described the gown.
‘This dress is made from a wool fabric, printed with flowers and richly trimmed. We have used a goodly volume of material for the flounce. The skirt is almost straight as you can see, and blossoms behind into a mountainous mass of folds. It is lavishly decorated with horizontal panels, finished at the hem with vertical pleating and trimmed with several tucked and ruched bands of the same material.’
‘All that in one dress?’ said Quigley. ‘Does it dance a jig as well?’
Anna said nothing but held tight to Celeste’s hand for this was the dress that the girls’ mother had bought her especially for the trip on the Empress. Next they were shown a sailor dress, modelled by a grumpy-looking young girl. It was made of rich blue velvet and trimmed with a wide red sash that ended in two red pompoms. It was the same costume Celeste and Maria had worn when they were photographed with Anna. Celeste remembered that her sash had been tied to the left and Maria’s to the right. She had liked the pompoms – they were the best thing about the outfit.
‘We need hats, mittens and stout boots,’ said Quigley. ‘And,’ pointing to Viggo, ‘a waistcoat for this young helper of mine.’
‘This is all too much,’ said Anna.
‘That’s what I have – too much, and nothing much to spend it on,’ said Quigley. ‘What is money for if not for burning?’
He took out his wallet, flipped it open and flames jumped from it before he shut it with a snap.
‘How do you do that?’ asked Viggo.
‘You’re a clever lad – I bet you can work it out for yourself.’
Anna and Celeste knew that all the clothes that were bought that day they’d once had in a life that was lost to them. The mittens, boots, stockings and petticoats were things they’d owned, and today they were wrapped in tissue, boxed up and tied with ribbon. Brand new.
The cab took Anna and the parcels to the apartment, while Viggo and Celeste returned with Quigley to the opera house. Celeste hurried into the warmth of the theatre.
Hildegard was nowhere to be seen and Celeste eventually found her lurking in the corridor that led to the wardrobe department.
‘Where’s Anna?’ said Hildegard.
‘Taking some parcels to the apartment,’ said Celeste. ‘Mr Quigley took us shopping and…’ The look of anguish on Hildegard’s face stopped her. ‘What’s happened?’ she asked.
‘It’s Mama. She’s come to take me home – but I don’t want to go home any more.’
Just then they heard Madame Sabina on the stairs, shouting.
‘Olsen, Olsen – have you seen my daughter?’
‘Oh no,’ said Hildegard. ‘She never usually comes up here. What can I do? Where can I hide?’
Celeste looked around.
‘The costume basket,’ she said.
She’d spotted it outside Miss Olsen’s door. Celeste quickly lifted the lid and both girls climbed into the basket, closing it just as a taffeta skirt swished past them.