Alice-Miranda in Japan 9 (6 page)

Kiko gulped. ‘Yoshi,' she whispered.

‘What did you see here?' He pointed at the pages.

Kiko shook her head. ‘Nothing.'

‘That's right. You saw nothing. Our business is our business and you will do well to keep your nose out of it.'

Kiko nodded and kept her mouth closed.

Taro smirked at her.

Obaasan shuffled over from the stove and stood beside the man. ‘What are you talking about, Tatsu? We have nothing to hide!'

‘But this boy does. Why are you wearing your hat inside?' the man asked, staring at Kiko.

Obaasan hadn't said anything about her cap.

‘Take it off so I can see you,' the man demanded.

Kiko flinched. ‘I have to finish the washing.' She stood and fled from the room, racing down the corridor and into the laundry below.

She didn't like the man in the kitchen, but whatever he was doing was none of her business. She had her own troubles. Kiko's hand trembled as she picked up the large pair of scissors she'd noticed earlier.

 

Dolly Oliver fluffed her trademark brown curls, powdered her nose and smacked her rose-coloured lips together. Dressed in her favourite navy suit and cream blouse, she felt as if she was on top of the world – which could have had something to do with the stunning view from her generously proportioned room on the forty-fifth floor of the hotel.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd slept so well, which was remarkable, as she'd gone to bed feeling anxious about her impending presentation. It was scheduled for the following afternoon but her speech still needed tweaking.

Dolly sat down at the desk under the windows, and looked at the vast city below. Somewhere, Alice-Miranda and her friends would be out exploring, she thought to herself with a smile. Dolly was looking forward to joining them once the conference was finished later in the week.

She opened her folder and read through her speech again, marking changes as she went.

Although Dolly's formal training had been limited, after some experimentation she discovered that she had something of a gift for science. It was fortunate that her first employers, Cecelia's parents, had recognised Dolly's potential early on and were pleased to support her scientific endeavours. Plus, they had thought Dolly to be the best cook in the world, so if letting her potter with her inventions meant that she would remain in their employ forever, the Highton-Smiths had been more than happy for her to do so.

Dolly now had a splendid laboratory in the cellars at Highton Hall.

The creation of Just Add Water, or JAW as it was more commonly known, had been a labour of love over many years after the tragic death of her husband. An explorer of great renown, Dougal Oliver had perished during a blizzard when he had run out of food. Dolly had thought that a lightweight, compact product that transformed into nutritious food would not only benefit those undertaking outdoor pursuits but could also help reduce world hunger. And she had been right.

Hugh Kennington-Jones was so impressed with the product's potential that he had immediately had a manufacturing plant built adjacent to the Kennington's supermarket headquarters.

And now with JAW contracts signed in more than twenty-eight countries, the invention was being rolled out around the globe.

Dolly smiled to herself. She couldn't believe that her years of dabbling had brought her all the way to Japan to speak in front of eminent scientists from all over the world. She finished reading through her notes and turned her attention to the small pill case at the side of the desk. She opened it to reveal three compartments of white pills. Each group bore its own stamp: a rising sun, the Eiffel Tower and a bull. She'd been pleased with her whimsical thinking, and it would be impossible to get them mixed up.

Dolly decided that she should take one before she made her way down to breakfast. At home she'd run several trials, but only when she was alone in the laboratory practising her language skills. The pills had worked almost perfectly but there was still room for improvement. Even she found it hard to explain the science behind her new invention, but it had the potential to change lives if she could get it right.

She stood up and took a small bottle of water from the bar fridge beside the desk. ‘Let's see how this goes,' she said and swallowed one of the pills marked with a rising sun.

 

An hour later, the young girl at the entrance to the hotel restaurant smiled and bowed at the old woman with the perfectly coiffed curls.

‘Good morning, Mrs Oliver,' she said with a nod.

Dolly read the girl's name tag and said, in Japanese, ‘Good morning, Umi-san. What a pleasant morning it is.'

The girl looked a little startled, and then smiled and replied in Japanese, ‘Yes, it is. May I compliment your command of Japanese. It is perfect, ma'am, unlike my attempts at English.'

‘I'm sure we'll all find it much easier to speak one another's native tongues one of these days,' Dolly replied. She smiled and bowed. Oh, how pleased she was with the first test!

‘This way.' The girl held out her arm and asked Mrs Oliver to follow her.

 

Alice-Miranda reached out to hold Jacinta's hand. ‘Are you all right?'

‘Yes, it was just a bit of a shock. I mean, seriously, I could have given that little tub of lard a run for his money if I'd wanted to. But I had no idea what he and his father were saying to one another or if they were serious about calling the police. I don't think I'd like to go to prison in a foreign country.'

‘As opposed to going to prison at home?' Millie said. ‘I can see how that would be
so
much nicer.'

Jacinta sighed. ‘You know what I mean.'

Millie gave Jacinta a grin and patted her on the shoulder.

‘Hello Daddy,' called Alice-Miranda as she spotted her father coming out of a store near the end of the row.

Hugh swivelled around to face the girls. ‘Hello darling, did you have any luck with your shopping?'

Alice-Miranda nodded and held up her bags. ‘I got some lovely presents and so did Millie.'

‘What about you, Jacinta?' Hugh asked. He noticed that her eyes were red and she didn't look her usual perky self.

‘There was a bit of trouble,' Millie piped up. ‘The owner of the shop accused Jacinta of stealing.'

‘He did what!'

‘It's all right, Daddy. It was just a misunderstanding and we sorted it out,' Alice-Miranda explained.

‘Alice-Miranda sorted him out, that's for sure.' Millie shot an admiring look at her friend.

Hugh listened to the girls' tale. He was keen to go back and give the man and the boy a piece of his mind, but Alice-Miranda said that there was nothing to gain. At least the boy had been caught red-handed.

‘I don't think that's quite the point,' Hugh said. ‘I've heard about things like this happening in tourist areas.'

‘I think they were trying to be clever,' Alice-Miranda said. ‘And the father did apologise and said that they were just having a bit of a joke.'

‘It wasn't funny,' Millie said.

Jacinta pouted and nodded.

Hugh reluctantly agreed not to pursue the matter. He didn't want to get into a row and it sounded as if Alice-Miranda had handled herself perfectly.

Hugh glanced at his watch. It was after one. ‘Well, what about some lunch? Cecelia and Ambrosia have been caught up and won't be able to join us, so they said they'd meet us in the city about half past two. What are we going to eat? There are plenty of restaurants along here.' Hugh looked at the row of shops. ‘I spotted some tasty-looking eels and a couple of blowfish in one of the live tanks.'

Jacinta and Millie pulled faces at one another.

Hugh grinned mischievously.

‘Daddy, please stop teasing. What about teppanyaki?' Alice-Miranda asked. ‘I feel like some beef.'

Jacinta immediately perked up. ‘Oh, yes please.'

‘I'm happy with that,' Millie agreed.

Hugh led the girls to a restaurant he'd noticed earlier. They entered and were instantly surrounded by the tantalising smell of sizzling beef. A smiling chef in a crisp white uniform greeted the group with a bow as they took their seats around a giant barbecue plate in the centre of the room. The chef sliced some perfectly cooked meat at lightning speed and served three plates to some patrons on the other side of the counter.

‘Are you happy for me to order?' Hugh asked. ‘I was thinking some chicken and beef.'

The girls agreed.

‘Unless of course you'd like to try the blowfish?'

Millie and Jacinta screwed up their noses.

Alice-Miranda laughed. ‘I think that's definitely a no.'

Hugh placed the order then chatted with the girls about their purchases.

‘Did you buy anything, Daddy?' Alice-Miranda asked.

‘Yes, but don't tell your mother,' he said and winked.

Her eyes lit up. ‘Is it a present?'

‘No, but I'm sure she'll get a surprise when she sees it in my study.' Hugh couldn't hide his grin as he told the girls about his find: a handsomely preserved suit of sixteenth-century samurai armour, which he had arranged to have shipped home.

‘Poor Shilly, can you imagine her shock when she opens it?' Alice-Miranda giggled.

‘No worse than when I found that antique taxidermy polar bear in the cellar and had it brought up until we could find it a new home at the museum,' her father replied.

‘I remember that. It was horrible. Poor creature. I'm sure that Great-Grandpa Highton only had him in the house because it was fashionable. I'm glad that these days sensible people prefer to admire animals in their natural habitat rather than shooting them and putting them in the sitting room.'

‘Yes, darling, I couldn't agree more,' her father nodded. ‘Now, I did buy some other bits and pieces and I was going to keep them until later, but . . .'

‘But you're hopeless at keeping secrets,' Alice-Miranda chimed in.

‘You know me far too well.' Hugh hung his head in mock shame. Then he reached down and produced a dainty bag from which he pulled three exquisitely wrapped boxes. They were covered in the most beautiful shiny paper with scenes of cherry blossoms and castles, and tied with perfect gold bows.

‘One for you.' Hugh passed Jacinta a box. ‘And one for you.' He reached across and gave Millie another. ‘And this is for you, sweetheart.' He dropped a third box into Alice-Miranda's hand and planted a kiss on the top of her head.

‘Daddy, you didn't have to buy us presents,' said Alice-Miranda.

‘I know, but when I saw these I thought they'd be the perfect memento of our trip – and I knew your mother would love them too,' Hugh said.

The girls each examined their gifts.

‘I'm dying to know what's inside,' said Jacinta. She studied the box closely then gave it a shake next to her ear.

‘I don't want to touch it,' Millie said. ‘I've never seen anything so perfectly presented. My gifts always look like they were wrapped by a spider wearing boxing gloves – I can never get the paper straight when I cut it and I always end up using half the sticky tape roll to keep it together.'

‘Go on, girls, I want you to open them,' said Hugh with a sparkle in his eyes. ‘What do you say we take a photograph and then you can dive in.'

Millie pulled her camera from her blue backpack and lined the trio of boxes up on the counter in front of them. She snapped away, then Hugh took some pictures of the girls holding them and finally a waitress offered to take another couple of shots of Hugh and the girls together.

After they'd covered just about every photographic scenario, all three girls began to unwrap their presents.

‘Turn the other way,' Millie said, ‘so we can't see what each other got until we've all unwrapped them. But Alice-Miranda, don't take forever or we'll show you.'

‘Aha! You're assuming that you've all got the same,' Hugh said.

‘Are they different?' Alice-Miranda asked.

‘You'll just have to hurry up and see.'

Jacinta was first to gasp. ‘Oh my goodness, it's lovely!' She beamed at Hugh while carefully concealing her treasure.

Millie was just as enthusiastic. ‘It's beautiful. Is it real gold?'

‘Daddy!' Alice-Miranda's voice dropped. ‘You'll have to take mine back.'

Millie and Jacinta wondered why she sounded so disappointed. Hugh frowned. There was an awkward silence.

‘I'm kidding! It's gorgeous.' Alice-Miranda turned back to her father and gave him a tight squeeze.

‘Oh, you little monster,' Hugh sighed.

The girls helped one another put their gifts on before properly examining each necklace.

Jacinta was wearing a pretty gold chain with a dainty charm in the shape of a paper crane.

‘It's lovely,' said Millie and Alice-Miranda as they admired the intricate detail.

Millie's charm was a tiny gold branch of cherry blossoms, while Alice-Miranda wore a small circular pendant.

‘What is that?' Jacinta asked.

‘It's a chrysanthemum,' Hugh replied. ‘It's a symbol of the Japanese royal family. The Emperor sits on the Chrysanthemum throne.'

‘Ooh, uncomfortable,' Jacinta said, squirming in her seat.

Millie shook her head. ‘You're ridiculous.'

‘What?' Jacinta said, grinning. ‘Chrysanthemums are spiky. And I'm not ridiculous, thank you very much.'

‘Maybe, maybe not,' Millie said and then turned to Hugh. ‘Thanks, Hugh.' She slid down from her seat and gave him a hug. Jacinta did the same, followed by Alice-Miranda.

‘So, I did okay?' he asked.

‘Yes, Daddy – perfect!' Alice-Miranda smiled as she admired her pendant. ‘I'm going to wear it every day. Well, at least until we go back to school. Miss Grimm isn't fond of jewellery with our uniforms.'

Millie and Jacinta agreed that they would do the same.