Alice-Miranda Shines Bright 8 (14 page)

 

S
ilas Wiley turned the card over in his hand. He reached for the telephone and dialled the number, not expecting Finley Spencer to answer the call herself.

‘Hello Silas, lovely to hear from you,' she cooed.

Silas's chest puffed out and a sickly grin spread across his face. ‘Good morning, Finley, it's
lovely
to talk to you again.'

‘I gather you have some good news for me.'

‘Yes, but I thought you might want to speak face to face, rather than on the telephone. You never know who might be listening,' Silas said cautiously.

‘I'm afraid I have a rather full schedule, Silas. Did you make contact with the owner of the property?' The honey had disappeared from Finley's tone – her fascination with him seemed to be evaporating with every passing second.

Silas cleared his throat. ‘Actually, no, I didn't.'

The line went silent for an uncomfortably long period.

‘I see. Then I gather you're not interested in assisting me.' Finley's voice cut the air like a razor blade.

‘Oh, not at all. Of course I want to help you. I didn't see the owner but I did make a rather remarkable discovery.' Silas fidgeted with the phone cord. He wanted this to be as tantalising as possible.

‘Yes?'

‘I think you'll be more than pleased,' Silas added.

‘Well, what is it? What did you find?'

‘Um, well, I think we'd better meet in person. I . . . I don't feel I can say it now.'

‘Unless you've discovered a goldmine, I think right now is the perfect time to tell me,' Finley Spencer barked.

Silas giggled nervously.

‘Are you still there, Silas?' Finley sighed. She'd known he was a buffoon from the minute she'd laid eyes on him.

Silas gulped. ‘I think we need to meet.'

‘Fine then,' she huffed. ‘I'm sure if you have such incredible news you won't mind taking a little drive.'

‘Of course.' Silas's face fell. He'd been waiting for her to offer to send the helicopter.

‘My office, in an hour.' She slammed the phone down.

Silas wondered where that was. He turned over the card. There was no address.

He pressed the intercom system. ‘Ursula, could you come in here please?' he snapped.

But there was no response. ‘Urs, I need some help in here. Now!'

Silas waited another few seconds then stood up and walked to the door. He wrenched it open. Her chair was empty. Of course. Ursula hadn't come in because he'd told her not to if she was sick and she'd called to say that she wasn't well.

Silas went back to the computer and searched for Spencer Industries. The headquarters were in Parsley Vale, and by Silas's calculations it would take him a lot longer than an hour to get there.

‘Stupid woman,' he blustered. ‘I don't see why she couldn't come to me. Or send me a faster way of getting there.' He remembered that he had no petrol in the car either and would have to fill up on the way. That would add another ten minutes to the trip.

Silas grabbed his jacket and put it on. He ran through the building with his head down, eager not to be cornered by anyone. He got to the car and, after shoving his hands in every pocket, realised that he'd left his keys sitting on his desk – and he'd slammed the office door, which would of course be locked.

‘Argh!' He kicked the car tyres and pounded his fists on the window before rushing back across the car park and down the hall to his office.

Today wasn't going at all as he'd imagined.

 

Ursula felt as if her stomach could turn inside out at any moment. No doubt Silas wouldn't be pleased by her absence, as he could barely do anything for himself. It had taken him a month to master the intercom under her tutelage. It was no wonder he'd been through two assistants before her – and he'd been the mayor for less than a year.

She sat in her flat going over and over the ­information in her head. Could any of it be true?

Silas was convinced that Finley Spencer was a reasonable woman, but Ursula didn't share his confidence. She seemed as if she could manipulate a man to do anything. And Silas was so easily impressed.

Ursula pulled out a piece of paper from her desk drawer and began to write. She paused, wondering how much detail to go into, and decided to keep it short and straight to the point. Very businesslike. Half an hour later, she folded the letter and stuffed it into an envelope.

She made a snap decision, snatching up her car keys and handbag and heading for the door. Then she remembered something that might come in handy and ran back to her bedroom. She opened the wardrobe, pulled out a small case, and slung it over her shoulder. She made her way out through the front gate, hopped into the little red sedan and pulled onto the road.

As she turned onto the high street, Ursula ducked her head. Silas Wiley was filling up his black hatchback at the service station. She hoped that he hadn't seen her. Then she wondered where he was going. He didn't have any appointments out of the office that day.

Ursula planted her foot on the accelerator and sped towards the edge of town.

 

Silas Wiley couldn't believe that his luck could get any worse that day. But it did. He cursed the elderly couple towing the caravan in front of him, and when he finally managed to get past, he caught up to a lorry packed to the gunwales with cattle who seemed to have a collective case of the trots. He hit the windscreen wiper lever and immediately regretted that decision, as there was no water left in the wiper tank. Now he could barely see and the stench of the manure was seeping through the air-conditioning vents, causing him to retch. Silas dropped back to avoid another deposit hitting the windscreen and swore to himself.

When he finally reached Parsley Vale, the GPS guided him to a residential street. He drove up and down before locating number 66. He managed to find a parking spot quite a distance up the road and couldn't believe it when the door was answered by a woman of advanced years, who obviously needed new batteries in her hearing aid.

After quite a bit of yelling, he worked out that he'd punched the wrong address into the contraption. Instead of 66 Red Robin Crescent, he should have been at 66 Red Robin Lane. Silas wondered what sort of idiotic council would approve two roads with the same name in the one town. He certainly wouldn't. When he finally pulled up outside a very modern-looking building in the middle of town, he couldn't help thinking how out of place it looked among the period townhouses that lined the street. A small polished metal plaque on the side of the door declared that he had found Spencer Industries.

He looked at his watch. It was almost two hours since he'd spoken with Finley Spencer. Surely she'd be so grateful for what he had to tell her that she'd forget about his being late.

Silas parked the car in the first available spot and walked the short distance to the office. He smoothed his hair and fixed his collar and, after sniffing his armpits, wished he'd had some deodorant in the glove box. He hoped she wouldn't notice.

Inside, he was confronted by a stark white room furnished with a couple of low white leather chairs. There was no sign of any reception area. He stood for a moment, waiting to see if anyone would appear, then he called out, ‘Hello, is anyone here?'

Silas almost leapt through the roof when the opaque glass wall in front of him turned clear, revealing a reception desk with a young woman behind it. The glass wall then lowered to half-height.

‘Hello,' the woman said coolly. ‘You must be Mr Wiley.'

Silas tried to regain his composure. ‘Uh, yes. I didn't see you there.'

‘Yes,' she said. ‘That's just the point.'

‘I see.'

‘Yes, you do now.'

The girl seemed to be playing with him and he wasn't the least bit impressed. He glared at her and snapped, ‘I have an appointment with Ms Spencer.'

‘Yes, we were was expecting you an hour ago,' the woman replied.

‘I would have been here an hour ago if it weren't physically impossible to get here in that time – unless of course you have a helicopter at your disposal.'

The young woman smiled. ‘I'm afraid that Ms Spencer has been called away on other business.'

‘What do you mean “called away”?' Silas could feel his temperature rising. ‘I have something very important to discuss with her.'

‘I'm terribly sorry, but Ms Spencer is a busy woman and she can't sit around waiting all day,' the receptionist replied sternly. He clearly wasn't the first person she'd dealt with in this way. She held up a small envelope. ‘She asked me to give you this.'

Silas tore it open and unfolded the note.

Dear Mr Wiley,

Thank you for your attempts to contact the owners of Wood End. This morning I have decided not to pursue that opportunity as a much larger and more profitable venture has become available to me. I trust that you enjoyed the drive to Parsley Vale. At least it would have been a nice change from being stuck in the office. Whatever it was that you had to tell me in person, I'm sure that you can use to your own advantage. I do admire a man interested in bettering himself. Perhaps one day we can do business together.

Enjoy your return trip.

Yours sincerely,

Finley Spencer

Silas felt as if his head might explode. There was nothing sincere about that woman. How dare she do this to him?

‘Is everything all right, Mr Wiley?' the receptionist asked sweetly.

‘No, everything is not all right. I have just driven two hours to get here and Ms Spencer has the audacity to give me this,' he huffed.

‘But I'm sure that you of all people can appreciate that when an opportunity arises you have to grab it with both hands.'

‘Yes, well, I had an amazing opportunity for Ms Spencer but she's chosen to ignore it,' Silas blustered. ‘I might just have to take it up on my own.' He stopped suddenly and stood there, blinking.

‘Are you all right, Mr Wiley?'

Silas nodded. ‘Yes . . . yes, I think I am.' He turned to leave then stopped. ‘Tell Ms Spencer that I said thank you for her note and perhaps one day we will be in a position to work together again.'

The receptionist frowned. ‘Certainly, sir.' She wondered what had just happened. One minute the man looked ready to kill someone and now he looked like the cat who got the cream.

Silas walked to the door and glanced back as he pulled it open. ‘Can you tell me if there's a mining registry office in Parsley Vale?'

‘Yes, Mr Wiley, just around the corner in the high street,' the woman replied.

Silas grinned. ‘Wonderful.'

Perhaps it was his lucky day after all.

 

 

 

A
lice-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.