Page 31 of Dreams Come True at the Fairytale Museu
I think she might too, but I can’t believe she’d do anything like this without telling me.
* * *
Mickey’s shop is suspiciously empty. The front door is locked so no customers can get in, so I go round the back and find the back door unlocked, but my best friend is nowhere to be found.
Her shop backs onto a narrow path on the edge of the forest that surrounds this end of the street. All the shops on this side share the same back access route, and as I stand there for a moment, wondering where she could be, I hear voices coming from further along the path and I creep closer.
‘What next?’ a familiar voice says.
‘The spinning wheel was genius, but next time, we need to double-check how heavy something is before we volunteer to move it, I think I’m still sweating from dragging that pumpkin carriage out.’ That’s Darcy, the florist and castle gardener who’s also Marnie’s other half.
‘So the Notre Dame gargoyles are a no-go then, they’re solid stone.’ Mickey’s voice filters over the hedge surrounding Marnie’s bookshop garden.
‘Lumière and Cogsworth could get up to some mischief,’ Sadie suggests. ‘If we borrow some of your stock, Marnie, we could set up a scene of them reading Belle’s books.’
‘Or they could go for tea in The Wonderland Teapot.’ Cleo’s voice is quieter than the others, like she’s the only one aware that they could be overheard.
‘What about Aladdin’s lamp? That could get up to mischief… We could hang it from the Christmas Ever After arch so it looks like the genie is trying to fly off somewhere?’ That’s Franca speaking, who runs The Nutcracker Shop on the year-round festive offshoot of the street.
I clear my throat as I peek around the hedge. ‘Is this a private coordinated scheming or can anyone join in?’
A few screams of surprise fill the air, and I can’t help enjoying the little bit of vindication I feel at making them all jump so much. ‘So it’s all of you? You’reallusing Mickey’s key and going into the museum at night to move things and take things?’
‘I can explain.’ Mickey holds up both hands. ‘It’s not as bad as it sounds – we’re trying to help.’
‘We thought that if we could make it seem like the exhibits are coming to life – like thoseNight at the Museumfilms – then the museum would gain some interest and get the public talking, and then you’d be in a stronger position to fight back against those evil developers. Today’s post was just the start. We’re going to—’ Marnie looks at me before amending. ‘Wewantto carry on, every night, if you’ll let us.’
‘I’ve had quite a few visitors comment on the spinning wheel already this morning,’ Imogen ventures.
‘Ah, yes, the spinning wheel.’ I turn to her. ‘You deserve to be nominated for an Oscar over that. I thought you were terrified!’
‘Oh, thank you so much!’ She clearly misses my point. ‘Ali and I practised together all morning!’
I shake my head, unsure whether to laugh, cry, or be really, really annoyed. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’
‘We wanted you to believe in the magic that you help others believe in,’ Mickey says. ‘And I thought it would be best if you really were in the dark as well. If the evil gerbil is anywhere near as sharp as his suits, he’d figure out that you knew what was going on straight away. It was better if you didn’t have anything to hide.’
‘Yeah, but he’s invested in this now. He’s determined to figure it out. Even without knowing that Mickey has a key, he’s already guessed it was you lot. He knows I was on my way over to ask Mickey about it.’
‘Just tell him it wasn’t us.’
‘Tell him we took photos of the exhibits that had already escaped, but we had nothing to do with them escaping. This whole thing is to try and protect the museumfromhim and his rotten company, you can’t let him in on this.’ That’s Bram, Cleo’s other half and the Mad Hatter from The Wonderland Teapot. ‘It would defeat the entire object.’
They’re right, of course they are, and they’re all bloody geniuses too. I could never in a gazillion years come up with something like this, but at the same time, excluding Warren and lyingtohim feels uncomfortably prickly.
Mickey knows me well enough to know I’m the world’s worst liar, and I kind of wish I’d heard that first voice over the fence and walked away, so I wouldn’t know, and I wouldn’t be part of the deception. Just like they said.
‘This has so much potential. People are already intrigued. We’ve had more “likes” on social media since that post went up than we have in months. The more exhibits we can move, the more interest this will generate, and if there’s a lot of interest around the museum, then his company can’t waltz in and close it down, there would be a public outcry.’ Sadie nods encouragingly.
‘I’m not sure outcry makes much difference to them. Look at that poor library near Cheltenham,’ Mickey mutters. ‘As long as he doesn’t know I have the spare key, he’ll never know.’
I shake my head because although he still doesn’t know that part, it’s unlikely to be long before he figures it out. ‘What happened to the Pocahontas and John Smith comparison? I thought he was a “Mark Darcy-esque fox who needed to be taught my culture”?’ I paraphrase what she said when she first saw him.
‘I don’t know, Liss. He’s staying here until the end of the year for what reason? He’s given you nothing tangible. No set goal. He says you need to prove the museum is worth saving, but he hasn’t told youhow. No “you need to earn such-and-such amount of money” or “gain X number of visitors”. None of us understand what he’s getting out of this. Without set goalposts, he can change them at any moment. You were right to be suspicious in the first place and we all need to keep our guards up. A company like that cannot be trusted, no matter how handsome the man they’ve sent as their liaison is.’
It feels pointed, like she knows I’ve been softening towards Warren lately, especially since reading his wish last week.
‘Exactly that,’ Darcy agrees. ‘What is he really doing here? What’s his purpose? Because a man like thatalwayshas a motive, even if it’s well hidden.’
