Alice-Miranda at the Palace 11 (12 page)

After spending forever in the bathroom fixing her hair, Caprice disappeared to collect the belongings she'd left in her mother's office. By the time the girl returned with bag in hand, there was a foldaway bed complete with matching daffodil-patterned sheets and white duvet waiting for her.

‘We should get going,' Alice-Miranda called to Caprice, who was busy preening herself for the second time.

The girl wandered out of the bathroom, sighing.
‘I wish I didn't have to sleep on the foldaway bed,' she whined.

‘And I wish you weren't sleeping here at all,' Millie grumbled.

Alice-Miranda smiled and led the way. ‘It's just for one night,' she whispered, trying to console her friend.

Lawrence, Hugh, Sep and Lucas were all waiting at the top of the landing. Jacinta and Sloane exited their room at almost the same time and joined Millie, Alice-Miranda and Caprice.

‘Don't you all look gorgeous?' Lawrence Ridley said as the girls paraded down the hallway, showing off their beautiful gowns. ‘Not that you lads aren't looking pretty dapper yourselves,' he said, grinning at Sep and Lucas in their tuxedos.

Alice-Miranda wore a striking blue satin dress which sparkled with crystals, while Millie had chosen a teal frock with a full organza skirt and fitted bodice. Sloane loved the way her coffee-coloured dress swished as she walked and Caprice just couldn't help herself, striking a model-like pose as she reached the gentlemen, who all remarked on how stunning she looked. Jacinta was still furious about what had happened earlier and stood at the back of the group.

‘I wish your mothers were as snappy at getting ready as you girls are,' Hugh said.

The man pushed back his left sleeve and glanced at his watch.

Ambrosia Headlington-Bear emerged from her room wearing an exquisite gold gown with her glossy brunette locks pulled back into a high ponytail. A glittering choker of diamonds adorned her neck.

‘Ambrosia, you look amazing,' Sloane complimented the woman.

‘Thank you, sweetheart. The dress is on loan from Christian Fontaine,' Ambrosia replied. ‘I can no longer afford to buy anything like this, but at least the jewels are mine – a certain someone wasn't getting these back in the divorce settlement.'

Ambrosia studied the girls and quickly realised that something wasn't right.

‘Jacinta, why aren't you wearing your dress?' she asked, confused as to why Caprice was wearing it instead. She had specifically chosen the frock to complement her own.

Seeing Jacinta's face fall, Alice-Miranda decided it was best to step in. ‘Mummy had the exact same dress as a spare and offered it to Caprice without knowing what Jacinta was wearing,' the child
explained. ‘And Jacinta was kind enough to choose another gown for the ball.'

‘Well, after the shock you've had this afternoon, Caprice, I'm very glad that my daughter has been so thoughtful,' Ambrosia said graciously, giving Jacinta a nod and a wink.

But Jacinta was still fuming. She hated that Caprice looked incredible in
her
dress. The girl's copper-coloured hair matched the gold accents perfectly, and Caprice's already luminous skin looked even more flawless than usual. Jacinta kept her mouth clamped shut in case she was tempted to say something she might regret.

Lucas leaned in close to Jacinta. ‘I think you look beautiful.'

‘Thanks,' the girl replied, immediately feeling better.

Cecelia and Charlotte walked into the hallway at the same time. Cecelia was in a black sequinned off-the-shoulder floor-length gown while Charlotte wore a blush-toned lace frock with a plunging back. Both women had diamond-encrusted tiaras and matching earrings.

‘Check out the supermodels,' Lawrence said with a grin.

‘Lawrence Ridley, you are incorrigible,' Cecelia said with a giggle.

‘He's right, though, darling,' Hugh agreed. ‘You both look smashing.'

‘Where are the twins?' Alice-Miranda asked.

‘Aunty Gee arranged for one of the lovely young housemaids to watch them,' Charlotte replied.

‘Well, come on, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm dying to see what your mother has in store for our dining pleasure,' Lawrence Ridley said, winking at Caprice.

‘Oh, yes, I'm sure there are lots of interesting surprises,' the girl replied sweetly.

The guests gathered in the rear foyer as a convoy of palace staff, dressed in black tail coats, accompanied them through to the front entrance hall.

‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, children.' Braxton Balfour smiled as the group reached the bottom of the stairs.

‘Hello Mr Balfour,' Alice-Miranda said. ‘Where are we having dinner?'

‘I'll take you through to meet everyone in the
front hall for drinks first, then it's off to the dining room and finally to the ballroom for some dancing,' the man replied.

Alice-Miranda's eyes lit up.

‘Good evening, everyone,' Elsa said as she and Freddy entered the room.

‘Well, well, well, Braxton Balfour,' Freddy said, archin an eyebrow.

The under butler lowered his eyes.

‘Never thought I'd see you back here, but Mummy tells me you're a fine specimen … for a butler.' Freddy smirked. ‘I only realised it was you this afternoon. The years haven't been kind, have they, old chap?'

‘No, Sir,' Braxton mumbled.

‘Well, carry on,' Freddy said, waving a hand. ‘I'm sure you've got people to serve and all that sort of thing.'

Alice-Miranda wondered what Freddy was talking about. Poor Mr Balfour's face had flushed a dark shade of red.

‘Good grief, what's Elsa wearing?' Sloane whispered to Jacinta, who worked hard to smother a grin.

The woman was enveloped by a long yellow satin gown that seemed to have more tucks and pleats
than all the palace curtains put together. Her hair was piled high into a beehive with a diamond tiara perched on top. Her neck and her wrists twinkled as if she'd ransacked the entire collection of crown jewels just for the occasion.

Hugh grinned at the girls, a cheeky glint in his eye. ‘Yes, it's lovely to see our future queen looking so understated, as always.'

The girls snickered and Cecelia gave her husband a playful nudge. ‘Behave yourselves,' she said, suppressing a laugh.

‘Please go ahead.' Braxton Balfour swept his arm forward, gesturing for the group to move on.

The children and adults walked through a gallery lined with priceless artworks and into a salon housing Her Majesty's favourite collection of marble statues. Two enormous lions guarded the entrance while, at the other end of the room, a naked man and woman cast in stone reclined on granite couches. Marble busts were arranged on tall plinths, and dotted about were ancient urns easily big enough for the children to climb inside should they have wanted to.

‘Here, let me take a photo of you next to that head,' Millie said.

Alice-Miranda giggled. ‘That's Julius Caesar.'

‘I like his curls,' Millie said with a nod. She took her camera out of her little purse and snapped a couple of shots.

‘Why don't we get a photograph of everyone together?' Alice-Miranda suggested, but the group had already spilled out all over the room.

‘Would you like me to round them up for you, miss?' Mr Bunyan asked.

Millie recoiled at the sight of his head poking out from around the other side of a large statue of David. ‘Were you spying on us?' the child asked.

‘I was merely offering to help,' the man huffed.

Alice-Miranda wondered how long he'd been watching them. ‘Thank you, Mr Bunyan,' she said, and watched as the man proceeded to gather the group of family and friends together in front of the lions.

‘There's something really weird about that guy,' Millie said. ‘And I think he shaves his legs.'

Alice-Miranda looked at her friend and laughed. ‘What are you talking about?'

‘Didn't you notice at the games this afternoon? He was standing next to your dad, who has quite a decent set of spidery pins on him, and I noticed that Mr Bunyan didn't have any hair on his legs at all. Aren't all men supposed to be hairy?'

‘Maybe not,' Alice-Miranda said. ‘Perhaps he cycles in his spare time. Sometimes cyclists shave their legs for greater speed.'

Millie glanced over at the bald man. ‘Seriously, do you think he's about to enter the Tour de France? Not likely.'

‘Excuse me, girls, everyone's ready,' Bunyan called.

‘Coming,' Millie said.

‘Would you like me to take the photograph, Miss Millie?' Braxton offered.

Millie smiled and nodded.

‘But I could take it for you,' Bunyan said tetchily, hurrying over.

‘It's all right, Bunyan, I'm perfectly capable of taking a photograph,' Braxton said through gritted teeth as Millie passed him the camera. ‘I'm sure you have other things to do.'

Having only been formally introduced to the man after the games, Braxton hadn't yet had time to form an opinion on Frank Bunyan. But he was suspicious of the man's motives and, after what had happened earlier with Mr Langley, Braxton didn't need the added pressure of a potential rival.

The children and adults smiled as Braxton took
their picture. ‘Lovely,' he commented before handing Millie her camera. ‘If you're ready, I'll take you all through to the entrance foyer.'

Bunyan hovered in the background as the group proceeded through another set of grand doors to the front entrance hall with a magnificent central staircase and black-and-white marble chequerboard floor. A gallery with ornate gold balustrading sat above huge French doors, while the hand-painted ceiling and giant fresco above the marble fireplace rivalled the best works of Michelangelo.

‘Here we are. I'll leave you to enjoy the party.' Braxton Balfour gave a bow and retreated. He was desperate for the evening to be over so he could have some time to himself. He couldn't stop thinking about what had happened earlier at the cottage and now it seemed he had Bunyan to worry about as well.

Meanwhile, Millie's eyes were the size of dinner plates as she struggled to take it all in. ‘This place just gets more and more incredible,' she breathed. ‘Imagine how long it would have taken to do that painting.'

Alice-Miranda turned to her friends with a gleam in her eye. ‘Do you want to go up onto the gallery level?'

Jacinta and Sloane nodded. ‘Yes, please,' they said at exactly the same time. The two girls looked at each other and giggled. ‘Snap!'

‘Could you two get any more cheesy?' Caprice scoffed.

‘Cheesy beats being mean any day of the week,' Sloane retorted. ‘And, speaking of mean, could we avoid those two?' She pointed at the twins, who were standing at the top of the stairs.

One wore a black waistcoat while the other had opted for grey, which Alice-Miranda noted would come in handy when trying to tell them apart.

‘They're not that bad, you know,' Caprice piped up.

The children were about to move off when a waiter stopped in front of them, holding a tray laden with canapés.

‘Yum, these are delicious,' Sep said as he shovelled a small pastry into his mouth.

Caprice shuddered. ‘Revolting.'

‘Why? What was it?' the boy asked, his mouth full.

‘Snail puffs.' Caprice widened her eyes in disgust.

Jacinta and Sloane looked at one another uncertainly, wondering if she was joking or not. Lucas reached out to take a different hors d'oeuvre.

‘That's minced boar's tongue,' Caprice commented, ‘and that one there is pickled quail livers, just so you know.'

Lucas hesitated, his hand wavering above the plate. He smiled apologetically at the waiter and shook his head. ‘No, thank you.'

‘Oh, Lucas, you simply must try these,' Aunty Gee gushed, approaching the waiter from the other side. ‘The quail is to die for.'

Her Majesty popped the tasty morsel into her mouth, chewed with lightning speed and swallowed. The children all looked at Caprice, who smiled like the cat with the cream. The girl certainly wasn't going to tell them that the quail was actually breast meat and the other dish was pork belly – it was much more fun watching them squirm.

‘Aunty Gee, you look beautiful,' Alice-Miranda said, admiring the Queen's pale pink dress. Unlike her daughter-in-law, Her Majesty opted for a classic style with a lace bodice and long chiffon skirt. She wore a sparkling diamond-and-pearl tiara and matching pearl drop earrings.

‘Thank you, darling girl. You all look a treat yourselves.' The Queen's eyes came to rest upon Caprice, who was trying to make herself invisible
lest Her Majesty's memory of the camp presentation ceremony kicked in.

‘You remember Caprice, Aunty Gee,' Alice-Miranda prompted. ‘Her mother is Ms Baldini.'

‘Yes, of course. I am sorry to hear about your grandfather, dear. You're most welcome to stay here for as long as necessary,' Queen Georgiana said sympathetically.