Alice-Miranda to the Rescue by Jacqueline Harvey Page B

kitchenette. There was a short pause. ‘Oh, hello Mrs Parker, how are you? And Mr Parker? I was hoping to pop by on the weekend, if I may?’
    â€˜Who is it?’ Mrs Howard called from the other room.
    â€˜Nosey Parker,’ Millie called back.
    Alice-Miranda barely got her hand over the mouthpiece in time. She widened her eyes at Millie, who giggled and shrugged.
    â€˜Would you like to speak with Mrs Howard?’ Alice-Miranda asked.
    The housemistress was walking towards the child and shaking her hands like windscreen wipers on high speed.
    â€˜She’s right here,’ Alice-Miranda said.
    The old woman’s shoulders slumped and she reluctantly took the telephone.
    â€˜I don’t think Howie wanted to talk to her,’ Millie said, heaping several spoonfuls of cocoa into two mugs.
    Alice-Miranda grinned. ‘You know Mrs Parker. She’d only call back later.’
    â€˜Hello Myrtle,’ Mrs Howard breathed.
    The girls in the sitting room giggled as they heard Mrs Parker’s shrill voice blasting through the receiver.
    â€˜Excuse me, Myrtle,’ Mrs Howard blustered, raising her voice. ‘We’ve had a near catastrophe here this afternoon and, no, I did not get your message about the emergency meeting, so you can jolly well calm down.’ Mrs Howard stormed into her office and closed the door behind her.
    Millie picked up the two steaming mugs and passed one to her friend. ‘What do you think all that was about?’
    â€˜Mrs Howard must have missed something important,’ Alice-Miranda replied. She and Millie wove a path through the girls who were sitting on the floor, making their way to two empty beanbags in the corner of the room.
    Sloane was there, resting on her elbows and reading a book. She looked up as the girls approached. ‘It’s nice having everyone here together for a change,’ she said, wriggling over to make room for their legs.
    Millie nodded. ‘It feels like the weekend.’
    â€˜I suppose we have Caprice to thank for that,’ Sloane said.
    â€˜She’s not getting any thanks from me,’ Millie grumbled. ‘I thought Miss Grimm might have let me off gardening duties after what happened, but she didn’t say anything at dinner.’
    â€˜She probably wasn’t even thinking about that tonight,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘Where is Caprice, anyway?’
    Sloane put aside her book. ‘In bed. She said she was exhausted but I’m pretty sure she was crying when I left to come down here. I asked her what was wrong and she just snapped at me like always.’
    â€˜Maybe I should go to see her,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘Even if there wasn’t a prowler, maybe she feels guilty about the fire and the puppy.’
    â€˜Let her! That puppy could have died and, now that I think about it, we could have too,’ Millie said, taking a sip of her drink.
    Alice-Miranda thought for a moment and then stood up. ‘I’ll be back soon.’

Alice-Miranda knocked gently on the door and waited a few moments before pushing it open. ‘Caprice, are you all right?’ Alice-Miranda whispered. ‘I thought you might like to talk to someone about what happened this afternoon.’
    The girl was lying on her bed and rolled over to face the wall. ‘Go away,’ she ordered, her voice muffled beneath the covers.
    Alice-Miranda closed the door behind her and sat down on the edge of Sloane’s bed. She lookedaround the immaculate space, which these days resembled a page from a catalogue. If nothing else, Sloane had certainly learned a lot about housekeeping from her room mate. ‘But I’m worried about you, and the other girls are too,’ she said.
    â€˜Sure they are,’ Caprice huffed.
    Alice-Miranda decided to try a different tack. ‘I’m so glad the puppy is okay. It would have been horrible if anything had happened to him.’
    A small sob came from the