by Susan Lewis
Lois was still flicking through the links. ‘I bet these girls were paid a fortune,’ she murmured. ‘Look, that one’s from Bella and the one on the beach is only from a movie poster.’ She peered closer. ‘Must not have been released here,’ she commented, ‘because I’ve never heard of it, but it looks cool. Beach Babes II. We’ll have to Google it.’
‘I love those dresses,’ Grace said wistfully, imagining herself in the pale blue one. A thought suddenly struck her, making her feel light-headed. ‘What if they want to fly me to a beach somewhere?’ she asked. ‘What would I tell my mum?’
Lois snorted. ‘At your age she’d have to go with you as a chaperone, and I can’t see her minding that too much.’
Grace grinned. ‘No, she’d love it. It’s been ages since we had a holiday.’ Her heart twisted as she recalled the amazing time they’d had camping in the Cotswolds Water Park for her eleventh birthday, when her mum and dad had taken them rowing and waterskiing and she had met her first boyfriend, Max.
Since fifty quid wasn’t anywhere near enough to help them afford a holiday again, much less get their house back she was seized by a sudden urgency to add as much to it as she could as soon as she could.
Thanks for the links and the money, she messaged back, will take some shots. Please let me know when I can meet the director. She showed it to Lois.
‘Send it,’ Lois instructed, ‘then please can we go in? I’m freezing my whatsits off here.’
‘We’ll take some shots tonight though, won’t we?’ Grace urged, going after her.
‘No problem. We are going to totally blow them away. Just you wait and see.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
‘Oh, Angie, I’m glad I caught you.’
Angie turned back from leaving the church office to see Ivan entering from one of the prayer rooms. He looked smart this morning in a navy pinstriped suit and crisp white shirt, so he was presumably going into town on parish business.
‘This came for you,’ he said, and going to his desk he picked up a small pile of envelopes and handed it to her.
The bottom fell from her stomach as she realized what it was – her forwarded mail, mostly fairly obvious final demands, or letters with a government seal. She felt a fiery flush heat her chest and her cheeks as she said, ‘Thank you,’ and made to leave.
‘Is everything all right?’ he asked before she could reach the door.
She stopped, thinking fast. ‘Yes, fine,’ she tried to assure him, forcing a smile as she turned around. ‘I’m … We’re moving house and it … I thought it would make more sense for everything to come here until we’re properly settled. That way nothing would get lost.’
His lofty brow wrinkled with a curiosity that seemed to border on suspicion. ‘I hadn’t realized you were moving,’ he commented carefully.
To her relief his phone rang then, but as she made to go and join Emma in the BtG office, he said, ‘Hang on, there’s something else. I’ll just take this,’ and clicking on his mobile he announced his full name to the caller.
As she waited Angie tried to stop her heart from racing and her thoughts crashing into each other. She’d been homeless for ten days now and it seemed to be throwing her perspective on everything, for sometimes she couldn’t even remember what day of the week it was, or what she was supposed to be doing in the next hour. She’d been on edge all this past weekend, had barely slept in spite of being at Emma’s and had felt close to panic when she’d had to return to the storeroom last night. She might not have gone had they not spotted Amy Cutler out in the street, making a pantomime of clocking the van.
‘She’s asking for it,’ Emma had growled, clenching her fists. ‘Why does she have to be such a bitch?’
Angie had replied dolefully, ‘Let’s forget about her. I’ll go when I’m ready, now carry on telling me about Melvin.’
Now, as Angie stood waiting for Ivan, she couldn’t recall what Emma had told her, although she was sure the first proper date had gone well. Her mind moved to Grace and Lois, who’d seemed so proud of some shots Lois had taken of Grace, but she could barely picture them now. Had she given the right response? They’d mentioned something about a portfolio, which would be the sort of project they’d get involved in. She was certain Zac had scored at football yesterday morning, but for the moment she’d lost track of how many times and whether she’d remembered to cheer.
She glanced down at her phone as a text arrived.
It was from Hamish.
Mark Fields has been fired from his job. Apparently he called the site manager the C word. Can’t see any going back from that. H.
She looked up as Ivan finished his call. ‘I have to run,’ he said, ‘but I wanted to let you know that someone will be coming later to change the lock on the storeroom door.’
Angie could only stare at him.
‘We’ve had reports, sightings, of someone coming and going at night,’ he continued, ‘which suggests that it’s being used by a rough sleeper. I don’t know how they managed to get a key, but there are people in and out of here all the time. Of course, we’re all about helping these people, but we don’t want anywhere on church premises being turned into a squat or a drug den. I don’t suppose you or Emma have seen anyone suspicious loitering about?’
Angie swallowed dryly. Her heart was thudding too hard. ‘No,’ she replied, ‘but we’ll keep an eye out.’
He smiled, and wiping a gnarled hand over the small amount of hair on his scalp, he gestured for her to go ahead and followed her out into the blustery morning.
Hi Grace, the shots you sent were perfect, every one of them. You are a truly beautiful girl. I am hoping to have some very good news for you by the end of the day. A
Grace turned her eyes to Lois and as they grinned they smacked each other’s hands in a triumphant high five.
‘Melvin just rang,’ Emma announced as Angie came into the office. ‘He says he can let us use one of his vans to move the furniture to his warehouse on Friday. It’s much bigger than yours so we won’t have to do as many trips.’
Angie took a moment to adjust to the good news that was actually terrible news, but before she could speak Emma’s hand went up to stop her.
‘You had a visitor earlier,’ she said, her tone making it clear it wasn’t a welcome one. ‘Thankfully Ivan and Rosa weren’t around, because he turned out to be a debt collector.’
Angie paled.
Emma looked both hurt and angry as she pointed at Angie’s desk. ‘I’ve spent the last half an hour going through all the final demands and multiple fines you’ve got hidden away in there,’ she stated, ‘and don’t start kicking off about me invading your privacy. You know you’d have done the same in my shoes. So, were you ever planning to tell me how bad it really is?’
As Angie drew breath to answer Emma continued.
‘It has to be dealt with,’ she snapped. ‘This denial that you seem to be in has got to end or we really will go under.’
It was the we that hit the hardest.
‘Do you realize,’ Emma ranted on, ‘that if you ignore a summons to court you could be arrested and even end up in prison?’
Yes, Angie did realize that, but, as with all the other dreadful possibilities on her horizon, she’d been telling herself ‘it just wouldn’t happen.’
‘When you go to court,’ Emma continued, ‘and I hope you know you’ll have to, you need to be able to tell the judge that you’re working to pay off your debts. That’s going to mean having more than this job. OK, I know you’ve tried to find others to fit in with it, and you’re doing all sorts of temporary cover. Cash in hand isn’t exactly above board, though, so you need to … No, we both need to find something that pays more than this.’
‘No!’ Angie cried heatedly. ‘It’s not your responsibility to sort out my problems …’
‘I’m your sister, for God’s sake …’
‘Emma, listen to me. You know very well that I can only get another job, or jobs, if you help with
the children. This one suits you, so you need to stay here and I give you my absolute word, on Mum’s grave, that I will find myself more work tomorrow.’
Emma stared at her and Angie stared back, holding her sister’s big, frightened eyes and willing her to trust that she would do as she’d promised, because she would, and when she did, everything would be all right. She didn’t believe it herself, not for a minute – in fact the very mention of prison had all but felled her – but somehow she had to make Emma believe it or they really would both go under, and if they did all four of their children could very well end up in care.
A few minutes later Angie was outside on the footpath to the church, trying to clear her head with some fresh air. The exchange with Emma was still burning inside her, with its terrifying warning of all that could lie ahead if she didn’t get a grip. Her thoughts were a chaotic jumble as they raced from the housing office (she hadn’t called them yet today, but she must); the lunchtime shift she’d agreed to cover at the Half Moon; there were more forms to fill in to keep her benefits coming; she’d promised to do a supermarket collection for the food bank … She hadn’t told Emma yet about the storeroom lock. If she did she knew her sister would insist on her sleeping at the house again tonight, and every other night, until something was sorted. But after Amy Cutler had been so blatant about spying on them … Then she remembered the news about Mark Fields. Damn him for letting her down, and letting himself down too. What was she going to say to Martin? Why was she even asking herself that? Why would Martin care? He was on holiday with his family … She rested against a tree and took in deep breaths of cold air. She was going to be all right, she told herself. She wasn’t going to panic. She couldn’t allow herself to do that.
Grace gasped in astonishment, clasped her hands to her face, turned to Lois and back to the screen of her phone where Anya was watching her. This was totally amazing. Absolutely, completely lit. Excitement was rushing all over her, making her heart beat fast and her breath catch in her throat. They were going to be shooting a new teen movie very close to Kesterly, and the director who’d seen her YouTube videos and had said he wanted to meet her was now saying that he wanted her to audition for a part.
Anya’s friendly eyes shone as Grace took in the news.
‘When is it?’ Grace asked breathlessly, suddenly fearful she wouldn’t be good enough to impress the director. ‘Will I have much to learn? How many others are up for the part?’
‘The director and his team are going to be here tomorrow,’ Anya replied. ‘They’ll be interviewing for most of the day because there are lots of roles to cast. The one you’re up for isn’t a lead, but it’s a crucial part and he’s already told me it’s yours if you can pull off a good audition when he sees you.’
Grace’s head started spinning. She could feel Lois’s fingers digging into her leg, and hear the track ‘Breathin’ from Ariana Grande’s Sweetener album playing in the background to drown out the sound of her talking to Anya. She must keep breathin and breathin …
‘I expect you’d like to hear more about the film and exactly why the director feels you’re so right for it?’ Anya prompted, a gentle tease in her voice.
Grace nodded. ‘Yes, yes, definitely,’ she replied, sitting to attention to show how ready she was to listen.
‘Well, the shots you sent for your portfolio,’ Anya began, ‘caused quite a sensation. There’s so much we can do with them, and because they’re so good the director has decided that you could be just who he’s looking for to play the female lead’s younger sister in his new film. He’s asked the actress who’s already been cast as the lead to be there for your audition, so he can assess the likeness between you.’
Grace nodded, taking it in, already seeing herself interacting with a girl she hadn’t met, playing out a story she didn’t know. She could do this, she really could – that was what her acting coach at Fairweather Players always said, and he was usually right.
‘She’s older than you,’ Anya continued, ‘sixteen, and in the story she uses you to stand in for her when she’d rather be other places. It gets you both into a lot of trouble, and when she disappears no one will believe you when you say you don’t know where she is. I’m probably not telling this too well … The script is still being finalized, but apparently there’ll be a couple of key scenes ready for you to audition with.’
Grace said, ‘Can I see them before, so I can learn them?’
Anya smiled. ‘I’m sure that’ll be possible. Don’t worry about what to wear; if you’re coming straight from school your uniform will be fine, and if the director decides you need make-up someone will be on hand to sort it out.’
Grace was trying hard to think what else to ask. She looked down as Lois rapidly tapped a question into her phone to prompt her. Turning back to Anya she said, ‘Where do I have to go for the audition?’
‘I believe they’ve rented some space in the studios at WCA – West Centre for Creative Arts. Do you know it?’
Grace was mega-impressed. It was where scenes from some major movies had been shot, and where some top-selling albums had been recorded. ‘Shouldn’t my mum be there,’ she asked, wanting to demonstrate that she knew about these things, ‘you know, with me still only being thirteen?’
‘Technically, yes,’ Anya agreed, ‘but she’s got so much going on right now and I’m very happy to be your chaperone. Are you OK with that?’
Was she? ‘Yes, of course,’ she said. ‘Thank you.’
Anya smiled again. ‘I have to go now, but I’m really pleased about this and hope you are too … Oh, hang on, what am I thinking, I haven’t told you the best news of all yet. If you get the part, and I’m pretty sure you will, the fee is ten thousand pounds plus royalties, with five thousand payable upfront.’
Grace was so stunned she couldn’t speak. Next to her Lois mock-fainted on to the bed.
‘So in next to no time,’ Anya said happily, ‘you could be in a very good position to start solving some of your family difficulties.’ She added gently, ‘I know that’s what really matters to you, and it’s what would make your dad very proud of you.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Today was the day.
Angie was going to prove to herself, and to Emma, that she was still capable of turning everything around and getting herself out of the unholy mess she was in. Since she couldn’t face spending any more nights in the van, and the storeroom was no longer an option, she’d agreed to stay at Emma’s for now, but was determined it couldn’t be for long. So she’d started the day with her usual call to the housing office, forcing an appointment out of them for the day after tomorrow, then she’d spent the next two hours ringing employment agencies, practically begging them to find her something, anything that she could add to the hours she already had. Otherwise, she’d give up BtG and commit herself to a position that would provide her with a good income and full-time working status, if there was such an opening.
So far the only job she’d been offered was a 7 p.m.-to-midnight shift sorting waste at a recycling plant ten miles outside of Kesterly – protective cap, mask and gloves provided by the company. She’d have to work for an entire month before she was paid, and the agency would take their cut before transferring the rest to her bank account, where it would be swallowed up by her overdraft. However, she had to show the court proof of her finances increasing when she appeared for non-payment of her TV licence.
Now she was in the process of going door to door in Kesterly, hoping a more personal approach might produce some positive results.
‘Oh gosh, I’m sorry, we don’t have anything to offer you at the moment,’ the kindly woman who owned the smart hairdresser’s on the seafront said, seeming genuinely to mean it. Angie knew little about her, apart from the fact that her name was Gina and her twenty-eight-year-old daughter had died quite recently, so life probably wasn’t very easy for her right now either. ‘Have you tried next door at the gift shop?’ Gina asked.
Angie nodded; yes,
she’d tried the gift shop and had been told that there were no vacancies there.
Thanking Gina with her friendliest smile Angie turned to leave, pulling her padded coat more tightly around her as she trudged on through the bleak, wintry day. Staying on the Promenade for now she called into a newsagent-cum-post office, Gigi shoes, a B & B, and an old-fashioned haberdasher with a surf shop attached. Apparently no one needed extra help for cleaning, or serving, or stacking shelves, or anything at all. So how, she was asking herself, was she going to pay the road-tax bill that had managed to reach her this morning, or the MOT that would have to be carried out before paying the tax? And what if the van needed work?
Stiff with dread she pressed on with her job search, reminding herself not to look desperate, for it would only put people off, and might even scare them. As she passed the Seafront Café she resisted the temptation to try and throw herself on Fliss’s mercy again; she already knew there were no vacancies there at present.
On reaching the quaint Dickensian-style front window of Glory Days on the corner of Prince’s Arcade, she went to push open the door and found herself confronted by a Closed sign. This was one of her, Grace and Emma’s favourite boutiques, with its art deco jewellery, feathered hats, flapper dresses and fur-trimmed capes. Entering it was like being transported into another era, or a land of make-believe, and the two women who ran it were always friendly and helpful.
Hoping the closure was simply seasonal and not a result of hard times, Angie walked on past the teddy bear shop (closed until May), the fragrance boutique (also closed until May), and after trying the estate agent where she was told they were fully staffed, thank you, she went on into the Inner Courtyard. Its central fountain and uneven cobbles seemed forlorn today, but maybe that was her mood, not helped by the fact that most of the shops and businesses looked deserted. However, there was a light on in Ogilvy Antiques on the opposite side of the square, so doing her best to pluck up her spirits she went to try it.