‘And we’re out,’ the executive producer called. The rest of the episode had been pre-recorded and was being controlled by another producer back in the television studio.
Tilde McGilvray stood up and smiled at the girls and Miss Grimm. ‘That was fantastic,’ she said.
‘Really?’ Miss Grimm blinked like a deer in the headlights. She stood up, smoothing her skirt. ‘We clearly have very different definitions of success. How on earth are we going to organise a concert? It’s preposterous. The costs will be exorbitant, let alone the time it would take to pull it all together.’ The woman glared at Millie, who hid behind Jacinta. Never mind that she had come across as a complete idiot, sitting there with her mouth opening and closing like a gasping guppy.
‘We can do it, Miss Grimm,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘I’m sure that Uncle Lawrence will have some contacts, and Miss Crowley was very excited about getting the Winchester-Fayle Singers back in action.’
‘That hardly makes a world-class show, does it?’ the woman griped. She spotted Livinia lurking among the crew. ‘And we haven’t consulted the Abbouds about any of this. It could come across as awfully patronising.’
Alice-Miranda bit her lip. In all their excitement, she and the girls hadn’t considered that at all.
Ophelia arched an eyebrow at Livinia. ‘A word. Now.’
As the two women disappeared into the corridor, Alice-Miranda walked over to Tilde McGilvray and held out her hand. ‘Thank you very much for the interview, Ms McGilvray. You ask such insightful questions and I do hope that Miss Grimm will come around to the idea of the festival.’
Tilde smiled, her white teeth gleaming under the stagelights, and took the child’s hand in hers, her gold bracelets jingling. ‘It was lovely to meet you, Alice-Miranda, and I mean what I said about spreading word about the concert. I’m happy to help,’ the woman said, handing the girl her card.
‘Did anyone else see Fudge in the room?’ Jacinta asked with a frown on her face.
The girls burst out laughing. ‘We’ll explain later,’ Chessie said, as Mrs Clarkson gathered them together. It was almost dinnertime and she had a surprise in store.
After they bade farewell to Ms McGilvray and the crew, the girls walked past Mrs Clarkson’s office. The door was ajar and it was clear that Miss Grimm and Miss Reedy were in the middle of a pitched battle. While Mrs Clarkson disappeared into the dining room with Sloane, Chessie and Jacinta, Millie grabbed Alice-Miranda’s arm and the pair hung back.
‘I thought it would be a good way to acknowledge what the girls have done and get the school some free publicity. We’re not full at the moment, and you and I both know that it takes a lot of funds to run this place – especially since the expansion,’ Livinia said loudly.
‘But I left a note for you,’ Ophelia fumed.
‘Yes, and I have your note right here. You specifically told me that I should proceed if the opportunity for a suitable interview should arise.’ Livinia went to pull the paper from her pocket but couldn’t find it. She thrust her hand into her other pocket then opened the notebook she was carrying. She was certain she’d picked it up from her desk in Caledonia Manor.
‘So you’ve resorted to lying to me,’ Ophelia snapped. She sighed and shook her head. ‘I need an ally who works with me, not against me, Livinia. Now the girls will be all het-up about a concert that’s not happening.’
‘I think it’s a wonderful idea,’ Livinia retorted.
‘Well, I don’t,’ Miss Grimm countered.
Millie and Alice-Miranda looked at one another. ‘Oh, this is worse than I’d managed,’ Alice-Miranda said, wringing her hands.
‘And what were we thinking, saying we should have a concert and not just a concert – a festival?’ Millie said, berating herself. ‘That’s something professional event organisers do, not kids.’
The office door swung open and the girls jumped out of sight, behind a tall pot plant. Ophelia Grimm stalked down the hallway and exited the building.
Alice-Miranda wanted to make sure Miss Reedy was all right. ‘You go ahead,’ she said to Millie. ‘I won’t be long.’
Millie agreed, but only because whatever Mrs Jennings had cooked smelt absolutely delicious and she was starving.
In actual fact, Mrs Clarkson’s surprise was that Mrs Smith had taken charge of dinner for the night and had whipped up her famous lamb roast accompanied by baked potatoes and cauliflower cheese with lashings of gravy. To top it off, there was steamed chocolate pudding and ice-cream for dessert. After this morning’s egg-tastrophe, Mrs Jennings had been sent for some more mentoring with Ginny at the junior school.
Alice-Miranda hurried back to find Miss Reedy sitting with her head in her hands at the desk. Her misery seemed amplified against the cheery surrounds of Mrs Clarkson’s office, with its bright yellow polka-dotted stationery and the framed poster on the wall with the slogan ‘It’s a good day to be happy’. ‘Excuse me, Miss Reedy,’ she said, knocking on the door, ‘are you all right?’
Livinia looked up and hastily brushed the tears from her eyes. ‘I’m fine, Alice-Miranda,’ she said. ‘You should be at dinner. Off you go.’
‘I’m afraid I might have said something out of turn,’ the child said, inching into the room. ‘I was the one who mentioned the interview to Miss Grimm, but I had no idea it would cause problems between the two of you.’
Livinia sighed. ‘It’s not your fault. Miss Grimm and I have a difference of opinion, that’s all.’ She was racking her brain, trying to remember where she’d left Ophelia’s note. As soon as she found it, she intended to show the woman and demand an apology.
‘Well, if it means anything, I think the interview went swimmingly and Ms McGilvray asked terrific questions,’ Alice-Miranda said.
Livinia stood up and walked to the doorway. ‘No, it was a mistake. And so is the fundraiser – it’s far too much work and, really, it’s not up to the school to rescue the Abbouds.’
‘But the whole village wants to help,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘I’m sure if it was the school that had a fire, everyone would rally behind us.’
Livinia sighed again. The child was right, of course, but now wasn’t the time to further blot her copybook with Ophelia. ‘Run along and have your dinner before you miss out,’ she said, mustering a half-hearted smile. ‘And, please, no more talk about the concert – we don’t want the students getting themselves into a lather about something that’s not going to happen.’
‘Yes, Miss Reedy.’ Alice-Miranda nodded, though she was disappointed to hear the woman was giving up so easily. ‘Oh, and I’m sorry Miss Grimm’s decided to come back early from her maternity leave. I think you’ve been such an innovative acting headmistress. Our Friday afternoon clubs have been very popular with the girls and we’ve so enjoyed your assemblies. At least now you’ll be able to concentrate on your classes and not be torn in ten different directions.’ Alice-Miranda flashed her a smile and darted out into the hall.
A deep frown puckered the woman’s brow. Ophelia was coming back early? This was certainly news to her. When was Ophelia planning to tell her that and how on earth did the child know?
Alice-Miranda hurried to the dining room, wondering how Miss Reedy and Miss Grimm could be so confused about the same note. She had a strange feeling that there was something else amiss, but right now there were more pressing matters on her mind.