by Valerie Tate
Alicia and Saanvi rushed to be first to open the door.
“Sorry I’m late,” the newcomer announced in a velvety voice that gave Alicia goosebumps. “I’m Magnus Wolff.”
Real name or not, Alicia thought, it was perfect for the dream-boat that stood before her. She felt her jaw drop and quickly snapped it shut, hoping he hadn’t noticed.
“It’s really nice to meet you,” she finally managed to stammer. “I’m Alicia Dunbar-Mallory and this is our deputy mayor, Saanvi Kapoor. We’re running the competition. Anything you need to know, just ask us.”
“Wonderful!” He really looked as if he thought it was. “Can one of you please show me to the kitchen?”
They both nodded enthusiastically. Saanvi handed him a badge which he donned without complaint and then she and Alicia led him to the large, professional kitchen where his staff was already getting set up. Magnus Wolff seemed pleasantly surprised at how well appointed it was. There was a massive refrigerator, walk-in freezer, multi-burner gas range along with several ovens that were built into the back wall. A long prep island ran down the centre of the room with drawers and cupboards underneath. Storage cupboards lined the walls, as well, and all surfaces were easy-to-clean stainless steal. The kitchen was completely outfitted with every gadget, utensil, pot, pan and dish conceivable.
“It isn’t always the case,” he assured them with a roll of his eyes, as he opened drawers and cupboards. “We bring everything we need with us, just in case, because it’s a live show, but it is nice to know that we can use your implements if necessary. And you don’t need to worry that your equipment will get mixed in with ours. All of the show’s devices are marked with the DMD logo. Davina has her own line of cooking utensils and we only use those, of course. The logo is highly visible when she’s cooking on the show.”
Alicia thought she detected a slight edge to his voice on that last bit but his face revealed nothing. There was a highly charged atmosphere in the kitchen and everyone seemed a little on edge.
“Don’t you usually have an audience for your show?” Saanvi asked.
Magnus nodded and turned his million-watt smile on her. “We do. We always have one when it’s filmed in the studio, but on location it depends. For instance, there isn’t room here so we won’t have one.”
“That’s too bad. People would have loved to watch,” Alicia said with real regret. She had hoped to watch the filming.
Leaving the kitchen, she and Saanvi walked through the connecting doors into the rotunda where the tables for the contestants and the huge Christmas tree, decorated as decided in small lights, bands of white satin ribbon and white doves, were waiting. The television crew was setting up lights while the director discussed logistics with the cameramen.
From where Alicia was standing, it looked like controlled chaos, but it wasn’t too different from backstage on opening night at the theatre. She assumed they knew their jobs. It was, after all, what they did.
Fiona James was dashing around, her heels tapping a staccato rhythm on the tile floor while her pen kept time on her notebook. The reason for her nerves became apparent when Davina Dove arrived at the community centre a short time later.
Storming into the banquet hall, she gazed around her with obvious displeasure. “Are you not ready yet?” she demanded shrilly. “The opening ceremony is in less than an hour.”
“You don’t have to worry. We’re on schedule,” Fiona assured her, but sounding nervous nonetheless.
Davina looked around the room where the technicians had all frozen. “It doesn’t look that way to me,” she replied, steely-eyed with disapproval.
Her face pale, Fiona hurried to defend herself. “We haven’t been here very long and everyone is working as fast as they can. The public aren’t coming in until tomorrow when the competitors bring their entries. Everything will be ready, I promise.”
Davina looked at her coldly and went on without mercy. “This is your job, Fiona. If you can’t manage it, I can easily find someone who can.”
“I’m on it, Davina,” Fiona said firmly. “Everything will be perfect for the show. It always is.”
She muttered that last bit as Davina stalked off saying, “See that it is.”
It was an ugly scene that left everyone returning quickly to their jobs, avoiding Fiona’s eye.
“It’s just terrible, how she treats her assistant,” Saanvi whispered to Alicia, looking outraged.
Alicia found it all too reminiscent and said nothing.
“That sort of thing has been pretty common lately,” a voice behind her said quietly.
Alicia turned to find Eric Braxton standing there. She couldn’t think of a diplomatic reply so all she said was, “Oh?”
“Yah, ever since some of her best recipes started turning up online and on another cooking show.”
Shocked, Alicia exclaimed, “That’s terrible! Could it have just been a coincidence? You know, one chocolate cake or crème caramel recipe is pretty much like another.”
Behind his glasses, Eric’s eyes glinted with anger as he replied forcefully, “No, her entire schedule of shows was leaked to another cooking programme, Chef in the House.” He nodded at Alicia and Saanvi’s shocked gasps, then went on, “Not only did the chef do the dishes the week before Davina was scheduled to do them, he used her recipes and then posted them online so it looked like she was copying him. We reported it to the police but there was no way to prove it wasn’t Davina who had stolen them from him. We had to change everything. That’s why we were able to do your event. We started doing the location shows, publicising the locations in advance with the dishes Davina would be preparing, so we couldn’t be upstaged again. It was a mad scramble to arrange but it paid off. The viewers love the location shows and it bought us time to try to find the leak.”
“No wonder she’s… upset.” Alicia was pleased with that euphemism. It was more polite than ‘ballistic’. “Do you have any idea who leaked them?”
“No, she suspected all of us but especially Magnus, Fiona and me. We figure it has to be someone on the show to be close enough to her to have access to them. Goodness knows she has no close friends.”
If what she’d seen was an example of how Davina normally dealt with people, Alicia thought that wasn’t surprising but said merely, “That’s really sad.”
Eric shrugged noncommittally. “I don’t think she ever had time for friends. She’s spent her whole life working for this and now that she has it, she’s afraid someone will take it away.” For a moment he looked as if he felt sorry for the Divine Miss Dove but then there was a loud crash and he turned to go saying, “Sorry, I have to get back to work.”
Alicia turned back to look out the rotunda windows, where she could see Davina and the mayor outside getting ready for the opening, and sighed. Never meet your idols.
Chapter 5
The townspeople of Dunbarton turned out in droves for the opening ceremony and a wave of anticipation flowed through the crowd as they waited for it to begin. Alicia and Saanvi had grabbed their coats and hurried out to join the excited throng in front of the elaborately decorated, life-sized gingerbread cottage. Tall enough for an adult to stand upright in, it was the colour of gingerbread with bright, many-coloured ‘candies’ on the roof and door and tiny, shuttered windows on the sides. Giant red and white candy canes stood sentinel at the four corners. It was a huge hit, with families having their photos taken in front and children enjoying hiding inside.
With their all-access badges, they were able to snag a spot close to the front. While the high school band played ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’, Alicia scanned the crowds but was disappointed not to see Chris. He had said he’d try to meet her there.
The camera crews from the show, as well as local television stations, were there to film the proceedings and Mayor Wright was in her glory. As she waited for her cue to begin her opening remarks, she surreptitiously checked her make-up and patted her short, tightly permed curls.
A
licia turned to watch Davina Dove who was looking pleased with the turn-out. As the Divine Miss Dove’s eyes flitted over the excited crowd, she suddenly looked startled and strained to see something or someone more clearly.
“What is he doing here?” she demanded, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
“Who?” The mayor glanced indifferently into the crowd.
“Mike Manning,” Davina answered automatically, raking the crowd with troubled eyes.
Mayor Wright shrugged and waved her hand dismissively. “Everyone is here. It’s a big event.”
The mayor got her signal and moved to the microphone. Davina looked around one more time before joining her.
“ ‘Curiouser and curiouser’,” Alicia muttered as she tried to see the person whose presence had rattled Davina.
A chorus of shushes around her shifted her attention to what the mayor was saying.
“And it is my pleasure to introduce our celebrity judge for this wonderful event, The Divine Miss Dove herself, Davina Dove!”
A spontaneous cheer broke out from the onlookers and Miss Dove looked suitably overcome with appreciation.
“I can’t express what this warm welcome means to me,” she gushed, looking on the verge of tears, the crocodile variety, Alicia thought. “All of the residents whom I’ve met in your lovely town have been so kind. I will truly hate to leave. But before I do, I have the extraordinary honour and pleasure to taste all of your wonderful baking. I am so looking forward to it and I know it will be tremendously difficult to choose the winners.
“I would just like to take a moment to thank the woman who is responsible for all of this, your own Mayor Marion Wright.”
The mayor smiled and waved at the polite applause which followed.
“And I feel,” Davina went on earnestly, “that I should also mention my own staff and crew who work so tirelessly every week to produce our amazing show.”
More cheers and whistles greeted that statement, and those of the staff who were there to hear it waved to their fans.
At that point, Davina stepped back and the mayor took her place at the microphone once more. She made some more suitably flattering comments about Davina before presenting her with the brass ‘Key to the Town’.
“And now I declare that the First Annual Dunbarton Gingerbread Competition is officially underway. Contestants will bring their baking here tomorrow and we look forward to the judging on the following day. The winners will be announced live at the end of The Divine Miss Dove show. The public will be welcome to view all of the entries on the final day. Good luck to all!”
Following the last of the remarks, the crowd slowly dispersed with many stopping to take selfies or family photos in front of the gingerbread house. Some peered through the plate glass rotunda windows for a look at the decorations which one and all pronounced to be ‘Just beautiful!’. Many went up to the mayor to commend her on the wonderful competition and all of the lovely decorations which were certainly livening up the Christmas season. The mayor took it all in and beamed at the success of her idea.
Meanwhile, Saanvi and Alicia went back inside to make sure that everything was going as planned.
The last thirty minutes had made a huge difference. The crews were obviously well-oiled machines.
In the kitchen, food was being unloaded from a refrigerated truck into the large refrigerator. Small appliances, pots, pans and utensils were lying in an orderly fashion on the countertops, the DMD logo highly visible. Lights were set up in readiness for the filming.
In the rotunda, lights and cameras were in place, the many wires taped securely to the floor. The plan was to conduct interviews with various competitors as they arrived with their entries, film the judging and then move the cameras to the kitchen for the show. The cameras would then have to be moved back to the rotunda for the announcement of the winners.
Mayor Wright and Davina Dove wandered into the rotunda, Davina casting her eagle eye around, checking out the preparations. Probably looking for something to criticize, Alicia thought.
“Much better,” Davina finally declared and those in the room gave a collective sigh of relief.
Davina turned to look at the decorations and her eyes landed on the large tree with its many white doves. “How beautiful! And what a lovely tribute. Whose idea was the white doves?”
“Alicia’s,” Saanvi said quickly, jumping in to forestall the mayor’s taking credit.
“Well, it is superb. Thank you, Alicia.” Davina smiled and gave Alicia’s hand a gentle squeeze.
“Saanvi, our deputy mayor, and I did it together. We’re a team,” Alicia hastened to say.
“Then thank you, as well, Saanvi. I am quite moved by it all.” She dabbed at her artfully made-up eyes with a white hanky that she fortuitously produced from her coat pocket.
It was said quite gracefully but Alicia had a gut feeling that Davina Dove was playing a part – gracious celebrity thanking her loyal fans. It was skillfully done but then she would have had plenty of practice. Alicia suddenly felt that she would be very happy when the competition was over and Davina Dove and her people had moved on.
She said that very thing to Chris over dinner that evening, after describing the event and everything that had happened behind the scenes.
Chris gave a low whistle. “Wow, it sounds like a scene out of ‘All About Eve’. What a diva!” He grinned wickedly and added, “I’m sorry I missed it.”
Alicia put down her fork and asked, “What happened? I thought you were going to meet me there for the opening ceremony.”
“I was, and I’m sorry I missed it, but I couldn’t get away,” he said contritely. “I had to meet with a client. I’m trying to tie up loose ends so I can take some vacation time over the holidays.” After helping himself to another serving of chicken pot pie, Chris added, “You should have held the event over the weekend.”
Alicia shrugged. “We couldn’t. We had to work around the show’s schedule,” she explained, feeling pleased to be ‘in the know’ about showbiz, or at least television cooking shows. “They’re televised on Wednesday evenings. We still had a huge crowd come to watch, though. This competition is going to be a big success. The mayor will never let us forget it, either. I think I need ice cream.”
*****
The contestants were due to start arriving by ten the next morning, so Alicia had to hurry to get the horses fed and turned out, eat breakfast, shower and change. Although it was cold, there was still no significant amount of snow and that made everything easier, she thought, as she pulled out of the farm drive.
Once on the highway, bopping along to her favourite music on their local radio station, she could concentrate on all of the things she still had to get done before Christmas. The gingerbread competition was taking up way too much of her time. Two more days and then she could go into Christmas over-drive.
And speaking of over-drive, just ahead, on the side of the highway, she could see a dog running as if his life depended on it. It was a fairly large dog, a Shepherd cross perhaps, and as she passed him, she thought he looked exhausted.
Alicia watched him in her rear-view mirror. If ever panic was written on a dog’s face, it was on this one. She made a quick decision and pulled off to the side of the road. Getting out carefully, she hurried to the passenger side and opened the rear door. The dog didn’t hesitate. He jumped right in and lay panting on the seat.
“Hi, fella,” she murmured, softly so as not to spook him. He looked at her with kind eyes and so she slowly held out her hand. When he gave it a lick she relaxed and patted him gently on the shoulder. “Where do you come from? You poor thing, you look like you’ve been through the mills.”
The dog was black and tan with a white bib and paws. He had drop ears and big brown eyes that looked at her with trust. Examining him closely, Alicia could see his ribs showing through his coat and his paws looked a little battered, probably from running on the pavement. He wasn’t wearing a collar so she hoped he was microchipped.
Taking a closer look, she amended that. She hoped she was micro-chipped so they could get her home to her family.
“So first stop is the vet. Dr. Sue will be able to check for a microchip and tend to your poor paws. We’ll get you some water and something to eat, too.” The dog nodded as if she understood Alicia was going to help her and then laid her weary head down on her paws and closed her eyes as exhaustion overwhelmed her.
Alicia called Saanvi, explained about the dog and told her she would be a bit late. She then carefully eased back out onto the highway and headed for the vet’s office.
Pulling up in front of the vet clinic, Alicia parked and then went in to explain the situation to the receptionist. They were fairly busy but Alicia and Dr. Sue went way back and so they agreed to squeeze her in. They loaned her a slip lead so she could bring the stray in and once the vet saw her, she sent them directly to the examining room. No one who was waiting minded the extra time, they assured the vet, shaking their heads and tut-tutting over the poor state of the dog.
“She was just running along the side of the highway and I could see she was in a bad way,” Alicia explained to Dr. Sue. “There’s no collar, so I was hoping that maybe she has a microchip.”
“I’ll check as soon as I’ve examined her,” Dr. Sue agreed.
Alicia helped lift the dog up on the examination table and then the vet gently went over her, manipulating her limbs and feeling for tender spots. She checked her eyes, mouth, heart and lungs as well and then looked for signs of fleas or any other skin infestations.
“Well, all in all, she’s not in bad shape,” was the verdict. “She’s thin and her feet are a little raw but otherwise she seems healthy. I think she’s been well cared for until recently.”