Alice-Miranda and Millie had met in the dining room for lunch. Sloane appeared a few minutes later but Jacinta was still nowhere to be seen.

Alice-Miranda decided to check with Jacinta’s classmates. ‘Excuse me, Susannah,’ she said as she approached the older girl. ‘Have you seen Jacinta?’

Susannah shook her head. ‘She hasn’t been in class at all this morning. I saw her heading towards the office straight after the assembly but she hasn’t come back.’

Alice-Miranda was worried. After Jacinta’s awful time at Sainsbury Palace and her reaction when the girls had visited her at Wisteria Cottage, she wasn’t in a good way at all. If she’d been grilled by Miss Grimm for hours, Alice-Miranda could only imagine the state she’d be in now.

‘Come on, Millie, let’s go and find her.’ The tiny child tugged on Millie’s tunic sleeve.

‘But I’m starving,’ Millie said. ‘And it’s cheesy lasagne day.’

‘I’ll come,’ Sloane offered.

‘Oh, all right,’ said Millie. ‘I’ll come too. As long as you promise we’ll be back before the end of lunch. I don’t want to miss out.’

Alice-Miranda nodded.

The three girls made their way out of the dining room and across the cobblestoned courtyard. Miss Grimm’s study was in the oldest part of the school, Winchesterfield Manor. They arrived at the school secretary’s office, only to find it empty. There was no sign of Jacinta either.

‘What are you doing?’ Sloane asked as Alice-Miranda approached the double doors that led to Miss Grimm’s study.

‘Going to see Miss Grimm,’ she answered.

‘But she might be busy,’ Sloane said. Although Miss Grimm was now perfectly lovely and approachable, she was still the headmistress and Sloane had some nerve-racking memories of being on the other side of that door.

From inside the study there was a loud thump and the girls all jumped. Miss Grimm’s voice penetrated the thick walls.

‘I will not have my students treated this way. It’s ridiculous, Mildred. How you keep that bully on your staff is quite beyond me. I’ve a good mind to call in the police.’

The girls knew they shouldn’t be listening.

‘Who do you think she’s talking to?’ Millie whispered.

‘Someone called Mildred,’ Sloane whispered back.

‘Wow! You’re a genius, Sloane.’

Sloane poked her tongue out at Millie.

Alice-Miranda turned to leave.

‘Where are you going? I thought you wanted to see Miss Grimm,’ Millie said.

‘Yes, but she’s busy and we’ll have to come back later.’

From the other side of the wall there was another thump. ‘Ophelia, Professor Crookston is the finest teacher in my school and I will not have you, or that child there, malign his good name. In fact, I will not have your children full stop, amen. I refuse to take any girls from the sixth grade into Sainsbury Palace next year or any year henceforth. They are nothing but trouble – just look at that Goldsworthy brat. The father said that he would build us a new library and all we got for our trouble was a half-done building and a pile of debt. The man should be in prison.’

‘I believe that he is!’ Ophelia Grimm shouted back. ‘And I think you’re being completely unreasonable. Your board of governors won’t be impressed to hear that you’ve just tossed all those students. I don’t know how you’ll fill the spots at such late notice.’

‘Well, unlike at this dump you call a school, I have a waiting list as long as your arm.’ Mildred Jelly’s voice was quivering now. ‘So unless the girl is willing to apologise and retract her accusations, there is nothing else to discuss.’

‘Mrs Jelly, I hardly think that is appropriate, given Mr Plumpton and a dozen other girls all witnessed exactly what went on. I can’t blame Jacinta for standing up for herself – clearly the fire was nothing but an unfortunate accident caused by your staff member, who shouldn’t have left a young student in charge of equipment she had no experience with.’

Outside the door, the three girls stood wide-eyed, wondering what was coming next.

Unfortunately it was Mildred Jelly. The study door flew open. Millie grabbed Alice-Miranda’s hand and ducked behind a grandfather chair opposite Mrs Derby’s desk. Sloane made a run for the hall and hid behind a potted palm. Mildred Jelly slammed the door behind her and huffed and blew all the way out of the office and up the corridor.

Alice-Miranda stood up.

‘What are you doing?’ Millie whispered.

‘Going to see Miss Grimm. We have to tell her that we heard what happened.’

Millie shook her head. ‘No we don’t.’

Sloane reappeared. ‘What’s going on?’

‘Alice-Miranda wants to tell Miss Grimm we heard everything,’ Millie explained.

‘Do you think that’s wise?’ Sloane asked. ‘I can’t believe Mrs Jelly has kicked them all out before they even started.’

‘And where will they go?’ Millie asked. ‘I know my parents had me on the waiting list here and over there from the time I was born.’

Sloane shrugged. ‘Well, I’m not going to just any old dodgy school. They’d better sort it out before the end of next year.’

Alice-Miranda frowned at Sloane. ‘You said you didn’t even know if you were booked in there in the first place. I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding.’

‘I don’t want to go there anyway,’ said Millie.

‘Alice-Miranda, Millie, Sloane, would you mind coming in here please?’ Miss Grimm called from the other side of the wall.

Millie and Sloane jumped. ‘Seriously that woman has superpowers,’ Millie said.

Alice-Miranda led the way to the study door, knocked gently and pushed it open. Miss Grimm was sitting at her desk. ‘Hello girls. Please come in.’

They were all surprised to see Jacinta sitting opposite the headmistress.

Alice-Miranda rushed to her side and gave her a hug. ‘Oh Jacinta, are you all right? I’ve been so worried.’

Jacinta nodded.

‘Miss Grimm, I’m very sorry, we didn’t mean to hear what was happening in here. It’s just that we came to look for Jacinta and then I was about to knock when we heard voices and it sounded like a bit of a row. Mrs Jelly wasn’t very happy at all, was she? You’re wonderful for standing up for Jacinta like that,’ Alice-Miranda prattled.

‘Let’s sit over there.’ Miss Grimm stood and beckoned for the girls to move to the couches in front of the fireplace.

‘What’s going to happen to the sixth-grade girls now?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

The headmistress’s lips drew into a thin line. ‘I’m afraid I don’t know. Perhaps Mrs Jelly will calm down but even if she does, I don’t know if I want to send my girls there. I imagine I’ll be making quite a few phone calls this afternoon to try to sort things out. In the meantime, I need all of you to keep this absolutely to yourselves. There is no point worrying the other girls and staff and I especially don’t want parents to be concerned. This is my mess and I’ll fix it.’

‘Don’t you mean it’s my mess,’ exclaimed Jacinta. Her eyes filled with tears. ‘It’s my fault that the girls are being punished and now they’re going to hate me – just like they did before.’

‘Oh, Jacinta, that’s not true.’ Alice-Miranda leaned in and put her arm around the girl.

‘It sort of is,’ Sloane said. ‘Her fault, I mean. Not that they’ll hate you. But they might.’

‘Sloane!’ Alice-Miranda and Millie chided.

‘All right, they probably won’t hate you but the parents will.’

Miss Grimm gave her a death stare. ‘Sloane, I think it might be best if you kept quiet.’

Sloane gulped. She’d seen that look before and she didn’t like it one little bit.

‘Now, do I have your word that you will not discuss any of what you’ve just heard with anyone – staff, students or parents?’ Miss Grimm looked meaningfully at each girl.

They all nodded. Millie’s stomach let out a strangled whine. Her cheeks flushed the same colour as her hair. ‘Sorry, Miss Grimm.’

‘Right. Well, girls, lunch will be almost over and by the sound of it, Millie, you haven’t yet eaten. Hurry along.’

Millie, Sloane and Jacinta filed out into Mrs Derby’s office.

Alice-Miranda lingered a moment longer. She looked up at the headmistress. ‘Miss Grimm, I have an idea.’

‘Well, perhaps you should stay and tell me about it,’ the headmistress said. Because at that moment she was at a complete loss.