“Yes, another fire,” Anna continued morosely. “The ballet company was there one day, and gone like that! And the ballet? I never learned it. Not one step. Things never got that far,” she admitted with a sigh.
“The repeat in tragedy meant my grandfather never got to stage his father's work, but our family passed it down like a treasure. It is now only up here,” he said tapping his temple. “I look forward to it being,” he said spreading his arms in a port de bras, “out there. And through you, my great-grandfather's dream will come true. Now you can return to your classes. We will start rehearsals tomorrow, in Studio Three at four o'clock sharp and do not be late.”
The young dancers leapt up, all expressing their gratitude in animated chatter. The adrenalin kicking up a storm, they rushed outside. The cool air hindering their high spirits, Kurt hugged Melissa and Tina. Unable to contain his joy, he took a running start.
“We're on our way ... up!” Kurt yelled as he vaulted into the air to appreciative applause.
Chapter Twenty-five
The next few days were a mixture of pleasure and pain. Constantly feeling that she needed a pinch to believe what was happening, Melissa and the four others worked with Alexei on learning the challenging choreography. The variations almost impossible, she was starting to wonder just how good the dancers at Palace Ballet had been.
Usually paired with Kurt, this afternoon was no different. Sweat pouring from Melissa's brow, it soaked her neckline with splatterings. Constantly rehydrating, she threw herself into the steps, but to no avail. As soon as she thought she had it, she'd be faced with a roadblock of not remembering.
Although Zoe would have loved to laugh at her, she was too busy trying to keep up. Not the star in this class, she wasn’t taking the demotion lightly. Casting negative glances about like chicken feed, she tried to make up for being late in the counts. Justin dug his hands into Zoe's ribs a little too roughly.
“Ow!” she screeched.
Apologizing, he released his hold, but her temper was set to explode. Not used to failing, it’s what she felt she was doing.
“That hurt! I'm not a sack of potatoes, I'm a girl, or hadn't you noticed?”
It was a question designed not to be answered. Whatever was said would be wrong, so he repeated that he was sorry instead.
“Here,” Alexei said, moving behind Zoe. “I will show you how it goes. Okay?”
Justin relinquished his position, joining the others in watching the primer on how it should be done.
“Kurt, can you start the music please?”
“Sure,” he said. Foregoing using a pianist, Alexei insisted on absolute secrecy. The blond danseur made sure the music was at the beginning of the track, a click signaling its start.
Up until then, Alexei’s talent had been a mystery. Marking the variations, he finally launched into the series of steps that demonstrated an exquisite musicality. The steps made sense the way he performed them. Each unfolded to the next the way a flower blooms. While Zoe did her best to keep up, she constantly checked the mirror in order to be cued by him. Reaching the count for the lift to begin, he brought his leg down to fourth immediately after finishing the pirouette. Not lingering the way Justin had, he had plenty of time to gently grasp her waist. Tossing Zoe up the air, he caught her on the way down, setting her down as if a rare jewel in a setting.
The students broke into applause for the dance lesson that proved Alexei hadn’t included himself for egotistical reasons. He was really good. Zoe giggled in reaction, deluding herself into thinking it was for her. Kurt rolled his eyes at Melissa who merely smirked, dodging Zoe's very angry expression.
“Thank you, and I believe that will be all for today,” Alexei announced, ending another brutal session.
The troupe dispersing, they headed their separate ways. Melissa showered and changed, meeting Collette and Tina for dinner. Setting her tray down, she collapsed at the table, digging her fingers into the spot on her back that was aching.
“So how go the rehearsals?” Collette asked, amped about hearing all.
“Oh,” Missy groaned, putting her head in her hands.
“That bad? Or that good?” Collette teased, cutting into her grilled chicken.
“That bad,” Christina replied for both of them, drinking deeply from her glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice. “I swear I know all the steps, but together, arrgghh!”
“Well, that's what happens when you hit the big time, girls! You two better get used to stepping up your game.”
“Yeah, I think it's a little too early to put our names on any marquees,” Melissa responded.
“I agree. Just because we're in the running, doesn't mean we're headed for the winner's circle,” Tina agreed.
“And speaking of horses,” Collette said, adeptly changing subjects, “Una told me that I turning into one … or was it a cow? Yes, I think it was the latter. Seems Velofsky Ballet only wants slim heifers, so I'm relegated to this,” she said poking at her none-too-appetizing meal with the tines of her fork.
“She said that?” Christina asked, her eyebrows raising.
“Yes, she called me a cow,” Collette teased. “A big, fat one!”
Christina and Melissa looked at each other, catching onto the humor.
“Oh, you!” Melissa said, pelting her with her straw's discarded wrapper. “I almost believed you for half a second!”
“It's true! Well, the part about me going on a diet. Look, I’m not talking about me being morbidly obese. I’m talking me not being the ideal weight to pursue a profession that demands peak physical conditioning.”
“But I thought you'd tried to lose weight before?” Melissa asked.
“No, not really. I mean, I never did give any diet a chance. I gave up after a couple of weeks, but this time I'm going to see how it goes. If I don't see a difference by the end of the month, I'll give up! I don't mean on ballet, I mean on ever having another type of body. Seriously, I think it's a great chance for me to see how far I can take this. Maybe a few less pounds will make me move a little differently.”
“I suppose,” Melissa said, giving up trying to argue.
“Oh, and I’m including an exercise element, so I just may be joining you guys at the gym. It's the treadmill for me! Twenty minutes at least 3 times a week.”
“Now that I can agree with whole-heartedly,” Tina said. “I know if I don't get in cardio, I'm a mess. Course,” she deadpanned, “it certainly didn't help me today!”
Melissa joined in the laughter, dramatically letting her upper body collapse onto the table. The combination of being tired, mixed with the infusion of rich food into her system, was giving her a fit of giggles. Resting her head on her hands until the laughter subsided, she looked through the huge picture window at two figures in the distance. Hard to see them in the dark, they were walking towards the woods.
“Say, who's that?” Missy asked, pointing her finger.
Collette and Tina craned their necks.
“That's Una and her grandmother. Una takes her for constitutionals. Every morning and evening.”
“Oh, I guess I've only seen them in the morning,” Missy replied. “I didn't know they took walks at night.”
“Well, 7:00 PM is hardly the witching hour.”
“I suppose,” Missy said, straightening up.
“She's nuts, you know.”
The trio turned to see who made the unkind judgment. None were surprised to see it was Zoe.
“Well, she is,” she repeated.
“You are so disrespectful,” Melissa blasted. She was so tired of Zoe's shit. “You're talking about someone that's eighty years old, you know.
“Well, she looks a hundred,” Zoe blasély continued, Melissa's venom not penetrating her steely exterior.
“I sooo hope you get that remark back one day. When the same thing happens to you, you'll see how it feels!” Melissa snapped, not willing to be deterred by turning a deaf ear to Zoe's hurtful words.
“I agree! I
n fact,” Collette stated beginning to pray out loud, “Oh, dear God in heaven, please let there be such a thing as karma.”
“Meh,” Zoe replied. Tossing off the criticism, she possessed the unique ability to shake off anything that didn't get her where she wanted to go. “It's been real,” she stated, ambling away.
“God, what a ditzo!” Melissa cursed under her breath.
“I know. Imagine saying bad things about Anna Tritta! You gotta have nerve to do something like that,” Collette added.
“Yeah, but nerve is the one thing she’s got,” Melissa responded.
“Well, I gotta go shower,” Collette remarked. “You two want to join me later? I’m planning on watching this awesome movie on TV. I think you can put off disappearing for one night, right?” she said, addressing Melissa.
“We'll see,” she replied, not giving anything away.
“Okay, then. It starts at 8 PM, if you’re interested,” Collette said, scurrying away.
“So what do you think of that choreography?” Tina asked, digging into her fruit compote.
“I love it ... I just can't do it. Think that's a problem?” Missy joked.
“I know! I keep tripping over my own feet—not to mention my partner's! Gawd, what am I going to do?”
“Practice?” she suggested, sampling some vanilla ice cream. “Mmm ... delish.”
“I think you've got something there. I would love to practice more. It's like the couple hours we get isn't enough. I mean, I just want to get in a studio and go over the steps ... alone ... without Alexei watching. If I can just memorize everything, and mark the variations a few times, I can do it. I know I can.”
“Sure. I agree. And there’s no reason you can’t,” Melissa said, spooning in more ice cream. Seriously considering letting Tina in on her secret, she wasn't the type to be shooting off her mouth and giving it away. And it would be nice to have company.
“What? What do you mean?” Tina asked, pushing her empty plate away. Stretching her arms out, she reeled them back in, resting her chin on the palm of one hand.
“I mean that I found my own place. It’s where I disappear to at night,” she confessed with a smile.
“Own place? Where?”
“In the annex. Near Una's office.”
“And she doesn't see you?”
“It's not on her floor. And she's almost never there in the evenings.”
“Oh, please, can I come! I promise I won’t say anything! I swear!”
“Sure!” she responded, giving her a high five to seal the deal. Tina engaged in very subdued squealing, not wanting to cause attention to the party she was having inside. “Just meet me outside on the porch in twenty minutes for Operation: Practice Time!”
Chapter Twenty-six
“No, it's emboité, emboité, emboité, emboité, followed by two lame ducks.”
“Then what?” yelled Tina, marking the tricky combination.
“Then it's pas de bourrée over and then under ending with an entrenous.”
“Yes, that's what I'm doing wrong! I don’t do the second under! So I …”
“…ended up on the wrong foot! I know, it’s diabolically confusing,” she commiserated, joining Tina in a giggle. “I was doing the same thing until I had a 'hud' moment.”
“Hud?”
“Yeah, the opposite of a ‘duh’ one!”
Laughing, Tina wiped back fresh sweat. The two had been at it for two hours and were so close to getting one error free pass down.
“Then it's the fouettés?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, I'm going to try it once more,” Tina announced, getting into her starting position.”
Lifting her head, she turned out from her hips while Melissa hit the play button.
Tempted to yell out the steps, Missy remained silent. Tina had to do it on her own. Her graceful friend sailing through the first part, she got to the two pas de bourrées, Holding her breath, she was ecstatic when Tina nailed the combination. Ending up on the correct leg, she pliéd, grinding out the fouettés. Executing them like a consummate pro, Melissa broke out in soft applause as a reward for getting it right.
“I did it?” Tina asked unsurely.
“Um, yes! You think I’d clap if you got it wrong?”
Realizing how ridiculous she’d sounded, Tina relaxed into another easy laugh. Grasping the neckline of her leotard, she uneasily looked around. Feeling she was being watched, she’d felt spooked ever since stepping foot in the studio. Reticent to bring it up, she didn't want to ruin the vibes of the practice session with overtones of paranoia, but she had to say something.
“Do you feel anything strange?”
In the middle of taking a drink of water, Missy pulled the bottle away from her lips.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, like someone is watching you.”
Letting out a heavy exhalation, Missy swung an arm over Tina’s shoulders. The two lowering themselves to the ground, it was time for a serious talk.
“You don’t know how glad I am that you said that.”
“Why?”
“Because I’ve been feeling that way ever since I got to this place, but everybody pretty much accused me of being crazy.”
Tina grabbed her hand, giving a supportive squeeze.
“No, you’re not crazy. I feel it too, but in this studio, it’s wicked bad. Look, I’m getting chills!”
“Tell me about it.”
“What do you think it is?”
“I have no idea. I caught Alexei looking in once. And then there’s Viktor.”
“Viktor?”
“Yeah, you’d figure a creep would be creeping around.”
The joke breaking up the hostile atmosphere, Tina sunk into a laugh.
“You’re right there.”
“The good thing is that it doesn’t matter. Nothing’s ever happened and it could have. I think it’s just that this is an old place and …”
“And sometimes old places creak and groan. Mix that in with the woods, and being away from home, I guess the combination could cause it. You don’t think that it has anything to do with Brandi going missing, do you?”
“How could it? She most definitely was at the train station. So whatever happened, happened after she left here!”
“I guess.”
Looking around, Tina rubbed her arms, feeling a slight chill.
“You ready to call it a night?” Missy queried, giving her a friendly grin.
“No, I think I’m going to stay a little longer. I used to do 32 fouettés after every class. With them being included in the choreography, think it might be a good idea to get in the habit again.”
“Okay, I’ll stay and watch,” Missy said, beginning to scoot over to the side of the studio.
“Heck, no! You go to bed! Might take me awhile to get through them all.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure! You’ve been using this studio almost every night, right?”
“Yes, but … I don’t mind waiting. Really.”
“I’ll be fine,” Tina replied, giving her a kiss on her cheek. “You go to bed. No sense both of us suffering.”
Grabbing her bag, she slung it over her shoulder.
“Okay, but promise that you won’t be too long.”
“Promise,” she said.
Missy gave her a wide grin. Saluting her with a water bottle, she turned to leave.
“Oh, and Missy?” Tina called out.
“Yes?”
“Thank you.”
Nodding, she padded out, leaving Tina alone. The temperatures dropping, the girl from California was regretting her decision to stay. The feeling that someone was with her was overwhelming. Slowly scanning the room in the mirror, she didn’t see anything … or anyone. Satisfied, she dimmed the lights, spotting Melissa's sweatshirt on the ground. Tucking it into her dance bag, she’d return it before class tomorrow.
Wanting to get the stupid turns over with, she
determinedly crossed the studio, giving herself a pep talk. Turning on the music, the strains of the Black Swan filled the room, providing enough atmosphere to get into character. She imagined herself as the icy, calculating Odile. Visualizing herself dazzling the slightly idiotic prince, the sap couldn’t even tell a girl who dresses in all white from one in black.
Running to the center, she assumed a fourth position, relaxing into a deep plié. Completing a double pirouette, she launched into the series of turns.
“One, two, three, four,” she silently counted.
A soft, unexplained noise stopped her cold. Telling herself that nothing was wrong didn’t work. Staring into the mirror, she searched the studio again. Although the reflective surface gave her the reassurance that she was the only one present, she wasn’t convinced. Unsure where the sound came from, she decided to check outside. Drawing in a deep breath, her pointe shoes made clacking sounds from the shank meeting the hardwood planks. Grabbing the handle of the windowed door, she waited a moment before swinging it open. Opening it in one flourish, she was treated to an unoccupied expansive space. The corridor was deserted.
Retreating into the studio, she crossed herself, holding her hands in prayer. Saying a few words of thanks for no one being out in the corridor, she wasn’t in the mood to receive visitors. Restarting the music, she resumed her position in the center.
One, two, three, four,
Whipping her leg around, she fixed on her image in the mirror. Noticing she’d left the door ajar, it threw her off. Collapsing on her supporting side, she regrouped, gathering her center. Upright and straight as an arrow, she synched her movements to the rhythm of the music. Ambient sounds forgotten, she energetically sprang onto pointe, her ankle allowing the fluid motion. Pushing her heels forward, she whirled her head around looking only forward. Called “spotting,” she concentrated on only one point of focus. Only seeing her reflection in the mirror, it was a technique that dancers used to keep from getting dizzy.
Eleven, twelve, thirteen ...
Soft footsteps in the hallway drew her attention away from practice. Thinking it was Melissa coming back for her shirt, she merely smiled. She’d be happy for the company.
Black Adagio Page 19