Page 18 of Mistaken Impression

“What’s wrong?” Ruby asks, sitting forward slightly. “Has something happened?”

Ella shakes her head. “Not as such, but I’d like to know why I wasn’t told that Blake can’t cook… and why you hired an actor, rather than a chef. I hadn’t realised that training him to cook would be part of my role, but I’ve only got three days until we start rec—”

“You don’t have to train him.” The voice in the doorway makes us all jump and Ruby looks up, while Ella and I turn around to see Kennedy standing there, her face like thunder. I wish I’d closed the door now, especially as she takes her time stepping across the threshold while glaring at Ella. It’s a tight squeeze for all of us to fit in here, and I move over, so I’m behind Ella, giving Kennedy space. “Cooking is your responsibility,” she says, “and no-one else’s. We hired an actor because this show isn’t just about the food; it’s about interacting with the guest who’s brought in their problem, and knowing how to connect with the audience, through the camera.” She tilts her head, narrowing her eyes slightly. “In future, Miss Bennett, if you have any questions about the set-up, perhaps you’d be kind enough to bring them to me, rather than bothering Ruby with them?” She’s positively dripping with sarcasm, the smirk on her lips finishing the picture to perfection.

Ella takes a half-step closer to Kennedy.

“I would have done, but I didn’t know where your office was.”

“Then you should have made it your business to find out.”

“I don’t have time,” Ella snaps, giving as good as she gets, which makes me smile. “You’ve hired a puppet, it seems, and you’re leaving me to work out how to pull his strings.”

Ouch…

My smile fades. Okay, so she’s only saying the same thing as I’ve been thinking myself, but hearing the words on someone else’s lips – especially when that someone is a comparative stranger – is a sobering experience.

I clear my throat and everyone turns to look at me. Ella’s eyes lock with mine for a second, and I’m almost certain I see sorrow behind them… although I can’t be sure, and even if I could, there’s no way of knowing what she’s sorry about. It could be her insult towards me, or that she’s regretting taking this job… or just Kennedy’s attitude to her, which sucks.

“I seem to be the problem here,” I say. “But I—”

“Don’t you dare say you’re gonna leave.” Kennedy interrupts me, stepping closer, so she’s right beside Ella. She looks up at me, a pleading expression on her face as she shakes her head, and for a split second, I almost feel valued. “There’s no time to find a replacement,” she says, crushing the last vestiges of my ego.

“I wasn’t going to say I’d leave.” Apart from anything else, I’ve left the theatre company behind, and I need this job just to keep a roof over my head. “What I was going to say was, I’m a quick learner. I might never have succeeded at cooking anything in my life, but I’m sure I’ll cope.” I’m about to add, ‘It can’t be that hard,’ when I think better of it. Ella might have called me a puppet, but that’s no reason for me to insult her… or her profession.

Ruby stands up. “This is my fault,” she says and we all turn to look at her. She glances at me, then at Ella, smiling slightly, before she turns her gaze on Kennedy. “I forgot to show Ella and Blake where your office is, and I made a point of saying they could come to me if they had any problems, so Ella was just doing what I’d told her.”

Kennedy sucks in a breath. “You’re not responsible for personnel decisions, Ruby. You know that… and if Miss Bennett has an issue about her employment, or her contract, then she ought to have realised it should be brought to me, not you.”

“How?” Ella says, raising her voice slightly. “How would I realise that?”

Kennedy turns to her, that smirk back on her lips again. “It’s common sense.”

“It might be common sense to you, Ms Black, but it isn’t to everyone.” That’s almost exactly what Kennedy said to Ella earlier, in the meeting, and I can see the anger rising in Kennedy’s face. Ella’s taking tremendous risks here, unless she’s trying to get herself fired.

“I think it’s best if you leave me to handle this,” Ruby says, trying to calm the situation. “It’s not really a contractual issue. It’s more of a… a time-management one.” She struggles to find the right phrase to placate Kennedy, but gets there eventually.

“You’re not wrong,” Kennedy says, backing up towards the door. “Time is money. And so far, all you’re doing is wasting it.” Her eyes are fixed on Ella as she’s talking. “I expect to see some results, young lady,” she says, with a threatening tone to her voice, and then she turns and leaves the room.

“Well… that was only slightly patronising,” I murmur, quietly enough that she won’t have heard.

“Hmm… Kennedy’s good at patronising.” Ruby looks up at me, and then sits down again, sinking into her chair.

“I’m sorry.” We both turn to Ella as she speaks. She’s looking down at Ruby, biting her bottom lip. “I didn’t mean to get you in trouble.”

“Don’t worry about it. Kennedy and I have these battles now and then, but she and I both know she can’t afford to fire me.”

“She can’t?” I ask, feeling confused. “I wouldn’t have thought Kennedy would let anyone have a hold over her.”

“I don’t have a hold over her, as such,” Ruby says with a smile, and then leans forward, resting her elbows on her desk. “You’ve probably noticed that Kennedy doesn’t pay very well.”

“It hadn’t escaped my attention,” I say. “Although I’m getting more here than I was in my last job.”

Ella looks up at me, a little confused, and then turns back to Ruby. “I can’t say I’d noticed,” she says with a shrug of her shoulders.

“Well, she doesn’t… except in two departments.”

“What are they?” I ask. “Certainly not acting.”

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