Читать книгу Secrets and Spies - Sienna Mercer - Страница 7

‘You guys must see my photos from New York!’ Olivia Abbott dived down to grab her digital camera from the sequinned purple bag by her feet. ‘Jackson took a bunch of photos in between takes. Seriously, my BF is an awesome photographer . . .’

As she sat back up, her hair knocked straight into her sister Ivy Vega’s jet-black cellphone and sent it flying through the air.

‘Aahhh!’

Something else Olivia had brought back from New York City was her outrageously high 1950s-style beehive hairdo, left over from her latest movie shoot for Eternal Sunset !

Who knew that historical hair could be dangerous? Olivia thought, as the phone soared through the air towards the wall . . . until Ivy’s boyfriend, Brendan, caught it with superhuman agility.

He hunched his shoulders and looked furtively around the room. Luckily, Olivia’s adoptive parents were busy admiring the souvenirs she’d just passed on to her new stepmom, Lillian, on the other side of the Vegas’ living room. They wouldn’t have noticed a jet-plane landing beside them, much less the fact that Brendan had reacted far quicker than any ordinary human being should have.

Olivia knew just what he must be thinking. The First Law of the Night commanded that vampires never, ever let humans find out about their existence . . . unless they had an identical twin sister who was a vampire, but that did not happen often!

‘It’s OK,’ she whispered to Brendan. ‘They didn’t notice.’

‘Doofus,’ Ivy murmured, shaking her head and smiling. Still, she looked relieved as Brendan handed her the phone.

Olivia winced. ‘Sorry about that. I didn’t mean –’

‘I know. It wasn’t you, it was your hair !’ Ivy rolled her kohl-lined eyes. ‘Seriously, when are you going to have an update? It hasn’t been 1950 for a long time.’

‘Give me a break!’ Olivia laughed as she sat back on the couch beside Ivy, twitching the swirling pink skirt of her dress into place. ‘I’ve been off-set for less than five hours, and back in town for literally twenty minutes.’ Carefully, she shook her head, feeling the weight of the piled hair. ‘I’ll change it as soon as I get a chance, I promise.’

‘You’d better.’ Ivy crossed her arms over her black-and-crimson, bat-winged shirt. ‘Because we look even less like twins than usual right now.’

‘And that’s a problem because . . .?’ Olivia began.

Then she caught her sister’s meaning. Ohhh, right! With such massively different hairstyles, there was no way the two girls would be able to pull one of their occasionally necessary twin-switches. Pretending to be each other had saved their skins more than once.

‘I don’t know,’ Olivia mused, tongue in cheek. ‘Maybe if you got a beehive hairdo to match mine . . .’

‘Glagl-argh-what ?’ Choking, Ivy dropped her phone again.

Olivia burst out laughing, while a grinning Brendan patted Ivy’s shoulder.

‘Hey, it might be kind of cute,’ he teased.

Ivy let out a moan of pure horror.

Olivia took pity on her grumpy goth vampire twin. ‘Just kidding,’ she said with a wink. ‘My hair will be back to normal by tomorrow.’

‘Olivia?’ The twins’ vampire bio-dad, Charles Vega, crossed the room towards them, elegant as always in a tailored black suit. ‘Did you say you had some pictures to show us?’

‘That’s right!’ Olivia bounced up to hand over the camera. ‘I took photos all over New York City.’

‘Ah, New York . . .’ Charles sighed wistfully as he took the camera. ‘It’s been so long since I was there. Did you go to DeLucci’s?’

‘Um . . .’ Olivia frowned. ‘What’s that?’

Charles half closed his eyes with an expression of longing. ‘It’s a famous restaurant,’ he said. ‘They serve the most mouth-watering steaks I’ve ever eaten . . . I used to go straight from there to the Tea Room dance hall. Didn’t you even walk past it while you were filming?’

‘Sorry.’ Olivia shrugged. ‘I didn’t see either of those places. In fact, I’ve never even heard of them.’

‘Wait . . . that’s it!’ Olivia’s adoptive father, Mr Abbott, clicked his fingers as he walked over to join them. ‘I’ve heard of DeLucci’s and the Tea Room dance hall. But only in History Channel documentaries about the 1920s.’ He shook his head in obvious confusion. ‘Charles, both of those places you just mentioned closed down decades ago – well before either of us was born!’

Uh-oh. Olivia froze as she realised what had happened.

Her bio-dad was usually so careful . . . but the Abbotts were so much like family to him now, he must have forgotten that they didn’t know his Big Secret. How is he going to get out of this?

‘Uh . . .’ Charles blinked rapidly, looking more rattled than she’d ever seen him. ‘Documentaries! That must be it!’ He licked his lips, the fingers of his right hand tapping nervously against Olivia’s camera. ‘I . . . was up late the other night watching documentaries on old New York. The lack of sleep must have confused me.’

‘But you just said you’d been there,’ Mrs Abbott said, drawing closer. ‘You gave so many details . . .’

‘Yes. Well.’ Charles smiled weakly. ‘Do you know, for a moment I may have thought they were memories, but of course it must have been just a dream. Too much History Channel for me! Haha?’

‘But . . .’ Mr Abbott began.

‘Olivia!’ Lillian Vega stepped forwards quickly, shielding Charles from the others. ‘You have to tell me all about the production,’ she said, looking as excited as Ivy when a new Pall Bearers album was about to be released. Lillian’s job was as an Assistant Director on Hollywood movies – she had first met Charles when one of her movies filmed in Franklin Grove. ‘What kind of cameras were they using on-set?’

‘Um . . . black ones?’ Olivia shrugged, laughing as she sat back down next to Ivy.

Her stepmom frowned. ‘But were they film or lightweight DV? And what was the “FPS” rate?’

Ivy snickered. ‘From the look on Olivia’s face, I think you might as well have just asked that question in Latin!’

‘Sorry.’ Olivia smiled apologetically. ‘If I knew, I would tell you.’

‘Oh . . . of course.’ Lillian sighed. ‘I haven’t been on a film set since before the wedding. I was just looking forward to getting some good technical details. Never mind.’

‘Well, you know what us thespians are like when it comes to the nitty-gritty of production,’ Olivia said lightly. ‘It’s all magic and fairy lights to us.’

She was hoping to get a laugh . . . but Lillian only looked more depressed.

This is weird. Olivia turned to trade a worried look with Ivy. Their stepmom was usually upbeat around the twins and any guests – always the perfect hostess. What could be going on to make her so morose right now?

Brendan’s cellphone broke the awkward silence. He slipped it out of his jeans pocket, took one look, and immediately silenced the call. At the same moment, Lillian suddenly brightened.

‘What about the director?’ she asked. ‘I’ve heard Tom Taylor can be a bit of a perfectionist. Does he ask for a lot of takes?’

Finally, a question I can answer! ‘Ohh, yes.’ Olivia groaned. ‘The number of times I had to repeat the same action – just walking into a room, or hanging up a phone! Seriously, how can there be a wrong way to hang up a phone?’

‘Well . . .’ Lillian’s face lit up with interest. She leaned forward, as if to respond . . .

. . . But Ivy spoke before she could, looking straight at Charles. ‘Now that we’re all here and settled down, could you please tell us your “big news”?’

Olivia frowned as she saw her stepmom sink back, looking deflated at the interruption, but Ivy didn’t seem to notice. She was already turning to Olivia and the Abbotts to explain:

‘He’s been teasing us with this “upcoming announcement” for the last three days!’

‘Ohhh, that’s right.’ Olivia nodded. ‘You sent me that text yesterday saying he had big news, but you never told me what it was.’

‘That’s because he won’t tell anybody!’ Ivy growled.

‘Until now.’ Charles grinned. ‘If I may have a drumroll, please . . .’

Brendan made drumming noises on the coffee table with his fingertips, and everyone laughed, gathering close to listen.

Charles cleared his throat. ‘Several years ago, I hosted an exhibit of rare, Eastern European fashions at the Franklin Grove museum. It was quite popular at the time, and apparently some people haven’t forgotten it . . . so I’ve now been asked to curate and host another exhibit, on artefacts from the same region!’

‘Wow.’ Ivy shared a wide-eyed look with Olivia. ‘That is big news!’

‘Congratulations, darling,’ Lillian said, and turned to kiss him on the cheek.

‘Yes, what an honour,’ Mrs Abbott said warmly.

‘Good for you, Charles.’ Mr Abbott beamed. When he took a deep breath, Olivia rolled her eyes as Ivy grinned at her. Another one of Mr Abbott’s deep quotes was coming. ‘“What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: Our life is the creation of our mind.”’

‘Er . . . yes. Thank you.’ Charles bowed to the room at large.

Olivia was still fixated on what he’d said first, though. ‘You hosted a fashion exhibit? I wish I’d been living in Franklin Grove back then to see it!’

‘Really?’ Charles raised his eyebrows. ‘Lots of those dresses are still on display.’

‘What?’ Olivia sat bolt-upright. ‘There are vintage fashions on display in Franklin Grove . . . And no one told me ?’

Laughing, Ivy nudged her. ‘Did you even know there was a museum in this town?’

‘That’s not the point,’ Olivia said, with a mock scowl for her twin.

‘Better yet,’ Charles added, ‘I’ve also been asked to come up with interior designs for the museum’s South Wing.’

‘The South Wing?’ Mr Abbott frowned. ‘What’s in there now?’

‘Nothing,’ Charles said. ‘It has been closed for years, but they’re thinking of re-opening it if my exhibit is successful. So, I’m pulling out all the stops. I’ve arranged for the loan of several priceless historical artefacts to be shipped over specially from Transylvania.’

‘My goodness.’ Mrs Abbott shook her head in wonder. ‘How on earth did you manage that?’

‘Well, I had some help.’ Charles smiled. ‘My parents, the Count and Countess Lazar, pulled a few . . . delicate strings.’

Olivia grinned at her sister. Sometimes it was cool having Transylvanian royalty for family.

Brendan’s phone rang again. This time, Olivia noticed a definite flash of irritation cross his face, but instead of silencing the phone, he stood up.

‘Sorry,’ he muttered. He was holding the phone slightly away from his body, as if it were a bomb that might go off. ‘I’d better take this.’

The adults barely even seemed to notice.

‘You must tell us all about your plans!’ Mrs Abbott said to Charles. ‘What is your theme going to be?’

But Olivia stopped listening to the adults as Brendan disappeared from the room. Her frown deepened as she heard the front door open and close.

Wait a minute. Why would Brendan bother to go all the way out of the house to take a phone call . . .? Was he trying to make certain he would not be heard, even by the vampires with super-hearing?

Even Ivy ?

She saw her twin frowning at the closed door, obviously disturbed.

Olivia didn’t have time to dwell on her questions, though, as Lillian’s smartphone beeped an alert. Stiffening, Lillian stepped back from the other adults and sat down on an armchair near the couch to type a response.

For once, the elegant film-maker looked . . . tired.

Hmm. Olivia looked hard at Lillian for the first time since she’d arrived. It wasn’t just her stepmom’s eyes that showed the strain. For the first time that Olivia could remember, Lillian’s glossy, dark hair looked . . . messy.

I didn’t know Lillian’s hair was even capable of being messy!

As Lillian hunched her shoulders over her phone, a pearl earring shone in one ear . . . but the other ear was blank. Did she actually forget to put her other earring in? Olivia frowned.

Then she realised the worst symptom of all: Lillian’s flowing sweater was a deep, dark purple . . . but her slimline trousers were green.

Olivia sucked in a gasp. Her colours are clashing . . . Something is definitely wrong here. And she knew she had to consult her twin about it.

Olivia leaned in to whisper into Ivy’s ear . . .

WHAP!

Her beehive hair slammed into Ivy’s face.

‘For darkness’ sake!’ Laughing, Ivy scooted away, her eyes narrowing as she wagged a finger in a mock-warning. ‘If I take one more hit, I might just cut your hair myself !’

‘Sorry!’ Smiling, Olivia put up one hand in reassurance. ‘I promise I’ll take care of it as soon as I can.’ She lowered her voice as she turned to look behind her. ‘All I was trying to do was ask you . . .’

Wait a minute.

On the other side of the living room, Charles was still regaling her adoptive parents with his grand plans for the exhibit . . . but there was no sign of Lillian anywhere. She’d slipped away.

Brendan wasn’t the only one acting oddly tonight!

Olivia jumped off the couch and headed for the door, her sparkly pink kitten-heel shoes clacking against the polished hardwood floor. The moment that she was out of the living room, she spotted Lillian in the kitchen, sitting at the breakfast counter with her head lowered over her smartphone. She’s still typing that message, Olivia realised. How long can this be?

‘Lillian?’ she asked. ‘Are you OK?’

Lillian’s phone landed on the breakfast counter with a thud. ‘Wha–? Olivia!’ She pressed one hand against her chest. ‘I didn’t hear you come in.’

‘Really?’ Olivia stared at her stepmother. ‘But . . .’ She stopped herself before she could say anything that might embarrass Lillian.

But seriously, Lillian had vampire hearing – nobody should have been able to sneak up on her, especially not a human stepdaughter in heels!

How distracted is she? Olivia wondered. And how serious is this conversation?

Taking a deep breath, Lillian plastered an obviously fake smile on her face. ‘Sorry – you asked me if anything was wrong, didn’t you?’ Her eyes widened, looking haunted. ‘I’m fine. Everything’s fine. Nothing to worry about at all.’

‘Um . . . are you sure?’ Sighing, Olivia pointed to her stepmother’s left ear.

Lillian absently lifted a slim hand to her earring-less ear. ‘Well, earrings are hardly important, right?’ She let out a dry half-laugh that didn’t sound amused. ‘I doubt Charles will mind me looking less than perfect.’

Then her gaze dropped back down to the phone, and her face tightened. In a whisper, she added, ‘ . . . If he even notices.’

Olivia stared at her stepmom. Did she really just say that?

Charles and Lillian had been married for less than two months. They couldn’t be having problems already, could they?

Lillian glanced back up. ‘Oh, just look at your face!’ She clucked as she stood up and swept towards Olivia. ‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have let you worry. Everything’s fine! Really.’ She wrapped her arms around Olivia in a warm hug. ‘In fact,’ she added, ‘I will show you just how fine everything is.’

Nodding firmly, she gave Olivia one last squeeze and then marched out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Olivia was left alone in the middle of the kitchen, feeling distinctly un-reassured.

First, Brendan had taken that secretive phone call. Now Lillian was acting a little bit out of character.

I’ve only been gone for a week, Olivia thought. What’s been going on here without me?

Olivia’s bio-dad stepped in behind her, whistling a tune that sounded as if it could have come from the Victorian era . . . which, in his case, was absolutely possible. He broke off as Olivia turned to face him, though, and smiled at her. ‘Oh, good! You’re here – you can help me carry cakes and drinks in for the others.’ He pulled down glasses from the top shelf of the cabinet and handed them to Olivia. ‘You’ve been missing all the fun out there! I’ve been describing the entire exhibit to everyone – room by room, in minute detail.’

‘It sounds great,’ Olivia said sincerely. She wondered if her bio-dad knew that not everyone was in the living room with him, but he looked so excited about his work, she hesitated to bother him with questions. ‘I’ll be right behind you,’ she told him.

‘Good, good.’ Charles turned to head down the hallway, but as he walked away he called back, ‘Would you mind bringing in some cheese?’

‘No problem!’ Olivia opened the refrigerator, leaned down to open the cheese drawer . . .

. . . And her towering beehive hairdo swept straight across one refrigerator shelf, sending food and Tupperware boxes crashing to the kitchen floor.

Olivia groaned.

Ivy’s right. As soon as I get home, I have to do something about this ridiculous hairstyle!