‘I just wanted to come and say goodbye to Jessie - I was going to come over later but I’ve been called up to the gallery for an early meeting. And I wanted to ask you a favour.’
Jessie stopped eating and looked up. ‘Me?’
‘Yes, I wondered if you would mind, terribly, if I took Nanna’s painting to the gallery and showed it with the others?’
‘The one we painted?’
‘Yes Jessie. I’ve been thinking about your interest in the luminescent paints, and it may just be a way to entice some younger people to the gallery. Maybe I could even run some classes in the school holidays. Would you mind terribly Jessie? It will still be Nanna’s - it will just be on loan to the gallery.’
‘That’d be great,’ Jessie said,
Fleur smiled. ‘And I’ll make sure both our names are on the back of the painting. Then next time you come to visit Nanna, we’ll have some real painting classes.’
Jessie went over to Fleur and hugged her. This holiday just kept getting better and better, Jessie thought as Fleur left with the painting and Nanna made a fuss about Jessie becoming famous.
Sarah’s car came bounding down the drive an hour or so later. Jessie and Nanna were waiting for her on the verandah.
‘Well, how was the holiday?’ she asked.
‘Excellent,’ Jessie replied enthusiastically.
Sarah looked surprised. ‘Really?’
‘Sarah,’ Nanna said seriously, ‘you have a very talented, and famous sister.’
‘Really?’ she said again.
‘Yes, that’s right. There’s a painting in the gallery in town, with her name on it.’
‘I don’t believe it,’ Sarah said, laughing, ‘you’ve never painted before. What’s the story?’
As they all wandered inside Jessie related the story of her meeting with Fleur and Harmony, how she had taught Harmony how to use the computer and how Fleur had helped her paint her very first painting.
She told Sarah about the luminescent paint and the two green figures that only show up in the dark. But she left out the bit about the family secret - maybe she’d tell Sarah later … maybe.
‘Wow, that’s really great Jess. And what did you call it?’
‘I didn’t really call it anything,’ she replied absently while an idea was bubbling away in her head.
‘Well, when you’ve had a think about it, love,’ said Nanna, ‘You could write to Fleur and suggest a title. After all, the exhibition isn’t for a few weeks yet.’
Suddenly Jessie cried, ‘I know what I’ll call it.’
Nanna and Sarah looked expectantly at Jessie as a big smile lit up her face.
‘Jessie’s Ghosts’.
Jessie's Ghosts Page 7