Ellie wondered what Dan meant.
The boy’s mum sipped her tea. “So what did Matt Budgeon say that alerted you to us?”
“He was writing about dogs’ names. He was saying that it was good to have names in pairs, and one pair he mentioned was Snippit and Snappit, who belonged to the ‘soon to be famous’ Charlie Daniels.”
“He said that?” Dan was laughing as he looked at his mum.
His mum offered Ellie a biscuit. “I can fill in the rest. You saw me and the dogs in the park, heard Snappit’s name and put two and two together.”
“I’m sorry,” said Ellie, nibbling the biscuit, “I didn’t want to take pictures, or reveal where he lives, or anything like that. I just hoped he’d let me ask him some questions about his writing and the films.”
“And now you’re getting your wish,” said the boy.
Ellie looked at him. “I am?”
He nodded.
“You mean…he’s here? And will talk to me?” Ellie fumbled in her bag for her notebook. “I won’t take up much of his time…”
Now Dan and his mum were laughing. Ellie felt a bit put out, but the woman soon took pity on her. “You’ll have to tell her now, Dan. Or do you want me to?”
“I will.” The boy cleared his throat. “You are already talking to Charlie Daniels.”
Ellie stared at him, open-mouthed. “You? You’re Charlie Daniels?” She probably sounded rude, but she couldn’t help it. She hadn’t in her wildest dreams imagined that the author would be so young.
“Well, I’m the Daniels part, or Daniel, to be correct as it’s my name. The other half is my mum here, Charlotte…better known as Charlie.”
“But…” Ellie looked from one to the other. “I thought he was a man.”
“That’s what we wanted everyone to think,” said Charlie. “You see, a couple of years ago, when we got this big advance for the books, Daniel was still at school, working for his A levels. If the papers had got hold of the story, he wouldn’t have had any peace.”
“The publishers suggested we come up with a pseudonym and Matt’s name for us seemed perfect,” said Dan. “And it worked really well, but it’s not so important to keep the secret now. I’ve taken my exams, and I’m going to take a gap year before university, while Mum and I write the next book.” He threw his arms wide to include the whole cabin. “And we’re going off sailing!”
His enthusiasm was infectious, and Ellie found herself smiling back. “In this boat?”
He nodded. “We’ve just bought it! It’s our first big treat since we started earning so much money. Do you like it?”
“I do,” said Ellie, full of admiration.
As they devoured the biscuits, Dan and Charlie explained how it had all happened. How, when Dan’s dad had died a few years earlier, Dan had told his mum that he’d help to make enough money for them to live. How it had started more as a way for them to share a hobby, but had ended up as a bit of an obsession, one that turned into the Fanghurst Trilogy that had sold so many copies and was now being turned into three films.
“The thing is,” said Charlie thoughtfully, “I’m not sure our publisher will want a teen magazine like Heart to be the one to reveal the secret. They are planning a big event this summer. They want to keep the books uppermost in people’s minds. It’s an ideal time, with the first film being such a hit, and the second one due out soon.”
“Well I don’t want to spoil their plans,” said Ellie wistfully.
“But Ellie did all the sleuthing to find out,” said Dan. “It won’t be fair if she doesn’t get her scoop. At least her magazine ought to be able to reveal who we are at the same time as the publisher.”
“It’s going to depend on timing,” said Charlie. “I expect your magazine is monthly, isn’t it?”
Ellie nodded.
“Well, our publisher won’t want to risk waiting any longer, now you’ve uncovered our secret,” said Charlie, “in case it gets leaked. I don’t know if it would be possible for you to run the story at the same time or not. But I tell you what: Dan, why don’t you give Heart your first interview? We’ll have to do a joint one I expect, pretty quickly, but I don’t see why Ellie shouldn’t do an interview just with you. You’re the one who will interest a magazine like Heart. I’ll clear it with the publishers. We haven’t signed over all our decision making for publicity.”
“That would be brilliant!” said Ellie, hardly able to believe her ears. “It’s exactly the sort of thing the readers of Heart will love.”
“I’ll phone our publicist,” said Charlie with a smile. “To be honest, although it was good to stay out of the limelight for a while, it’s rather a relief to know that we won’t have to live a lie for much longer.”
“Will you be prepared to have photographs taken as well?” said Ellie hopefully. “You could come into the office for the interview and a photo shoot if you like.”
“Why not?” said Dan. “It sounds fun, and now the secret is out there’s no point being shy. But look…in case none of this works out…I’ll make sure you have a couple of tickets for the premiere of the next film. How about that as a reward for your persistence?”
As soon as Ellie had got the contact numbers for Dan and his mum she hurried back to the office. Some of the staff would have left already, but she needed to collect some of her things, and she hoped that she might be able to make sure that Sophie was okay. Had she got into terrible trouble with Angel for bringing Ferdinand back so late? And would Ellie be in trouble too, for not arriving back with him at all?
On top of that, if Francesca was there, Ellie wanted to let her know about Charlie Daniels. They would need to arrange a photo shoot with Joe as soon as possible, and she hoped they might even be able to make it for the following day.
As she went in through the main door, the first people she saw in the reception area were Sophie and Flynn. Sophie was carrying a huge bouquet of flowers, and Flynn had his arm around her. They looked blissfully happy.
“Ellie!”
“What gorgeous flowers!” said Ellie, admiring them hugely.
Sophie was beaming. “Aren’t they?” She smiled at Flynn. “Flynn had them delivered. It was so romantic. And…” She looked questioningly at him. “We’re definitely friends again, aren’t we?”
Flynn leaned in and gave her a kiss. “And I promise not to interfere again. Or at least, I’ll do my very best. Throw some wet clay at me if I do.”
Everyone laughed.
“It’s a promise,” said Sophie.
Sophie turned to Ellie. “Don’t worry about Angel. I gave Ferdinand to Debbie and she put him back in his basket. She texted me later to say that Angel didn’t say a word.”
“Phew!” Ellie felt very relieved. “What about the official at the Boat Show?”
“He was fine about it. He just told me not to flout rules in future, and saw me out. I gave him a little wave as I walked away.”
Ellie giggled. “Trust you!”
“But what about you?” said Sophie. “Were the people on the boat helpful?”
“They certainly were!” said Ellie. “And now I must go and see Francesca. I hope she’s still in the office.”
“Okay,” said Sophie. “Go on then. I must take these flowers home. See you tomorrow, Ellie.”
“See you tomorrow.”
In the lift on the way up to the office Ellie rehearsed what she would say to Francesca. She knew she’d love to appear cool about her success, but that probably she’d rush straight in and tell the Deputy Editor all about it. However, when she arrived in the office it seemed that Francesca already knew.
“Well,” she greeted Ellie, “I’ve just had a call from Charlie Daniels’s publicist. It seems you’ve got yourself an interview! Amazing!”
Piano was closing down her laptop, but her hands stopped moving, and hovered above the computer while she listened to Francesca.
“Angel wants to see you in her office right away. Congratulations, Ellie!”
“Come in, Ellie,” said Angel, when Ellie knocked at the door. “Have a seat. Would you like a drink?”
The Editor in Chief had never treated her so graciously and Ellie was shocked. She perched on the edge of one of the powder blue chairs and wondered about asking for a cup of tea. But she knew Piano would be asked to get it again and that Piano would hate her for it. Besides, it was the end of the day. She didn’t need to be unkind to Piano.
“No thank you,” she said.
“So. This interview,” said Angel, all professional crispness. “We’re told by Charlie Daniels’s publicist that we can publish an article by you about the author in the next issue if we want. That’s quite a scoop.” She looked at Ellie. “In fact, with the Pop Lowther story as well, you’ve actually got us two scoops in one week. Is it your ambition to provide the entire content of our magazine in future?”
Ellie wasn’t sure what to say. Was Angel pleased with her work, or not? It almost sounded as if she was angry. “Umm…well no…I’m sorry if…”
Angel raised one immaculately manicured finger to stop her. “That was a joke,” she informed Ellie. “I am, of course, very pleased with you. If I have any complaint at all it’s that I would wish for scoops to be more spaced out, instead of like buses, several arriving at the same time. Scoops sell magazines, but two at the same time don’t sell twice as many copies.” She paused, and smiled at Ellie. “However, I recognize that these things can’t always be planned. Well done. Very well done indeed.”
“Thank you,” said Ellie, hoping that the Editor in Chief didn’t intend to crack any more jokes.
Ellie got up to go, but as she reached the door Angel spoke again. “Ellie.”
“Yes?”
“You had an almost impossible assignment and yet you pulled it off. I know there was a large element of luck involved, but that depended on you being alert and tenacious enough to take advantage of it when it came. It’s not really my place to tell you this, but I believe your father would have been very proud of you. I’m certainly very pleased and proud to have you as a member of our team.”
As Ellie made her way back to her desk Angel’s words echoed in her mind. She could almost feel her father’s presence, standing by her. And Ellie had never been more certain that this was the life for her.
For wannabe journalist, Ellie, doing work experience at her fave teen magazine is a dream come true. Check out the other titles in this stylish series…
A dream come true
Ellie’s got a jealous rival who’s determined to turn her dream job into a nightmare…
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Boys, blues and shoes
Ellie’s thinks she’s going to miss out on meeting her favourite band – until she finds herself on a photo shoot with some very special ‘extras’…
ePub ISBN 9781409537632
Best friends rock!
Ellie’s fallen out with her best friend and an interview with the son of a rock star is a disaster. Will things ever go right this summer?
ePub ISBN 9781409537755
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This ebook edition first published in 2011 by Usborne Publishing Ltd., Usborne House, 83-85 Saffron Hill, London EC1N 8RT, England. www.usborne.com
Copyright © Cindy Jefferies, 2011
The right of Cindy Jefferies to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
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This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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