Olivia and the Great Escape (19 page)

Chapter Forty-Three

Tom and Katie were anxiously scanning the crowds pouring into the foyer of the venue. Katie was back from Yorkshire after filming her part in the TV series. Alicia and Jack were standing nearby, and several people were crowded around Jack, asking for his autograph and wanting their photograph taken with him. Others shouted out their good wishes, and a man was clapping Jack on the back, congratulating him on breaking the world record and saying they needed more heroes like him.

“That’s not what people were saying a week ago,” muttered Katie, dryly.

Tom was still looking around. “You don’t think Liv and Georgia have got lost?”

“No, look! There they are,” said Katie.

Olivia and Georgia were coming towards them with their arms linked.

“Are you both all right?” asked Tom, scanning their faces anxiously.

“Yes,” said Georgia. “I’m glad we went to the hospital to see Alex. It felt like…” She searched for the right word. “It felt right.”

“How is he?” asked Katie.

“Well, apart from a collapsed lung and the fact that he swallowed half of the Thames, reasonably OK,” said Olivia. “It was just lucky all those boats were there to pick him up so quickly or he probably would have drowned.”

“He’s different,” said Georgia, quietly. “Nicer. It’s a better way to remember him.”

“He won’t be coming back to the Swan then?”

Olivia shook her head. “I don’t think it was ever an option. His dad’s facing a police investigation but, when that’s over, Alex says they’re going to move out of London.”

“But he said he’d write to me,” added Georgia.

Katie frowned.

“Don’t you frown at me,” said Georgia. “I’m so over Alex Parks. I don’t know what I
ever saw in him.”

“Good looks? Oodles of charm?” said Katie, with a grin.

“Nah,” said Georgia, with a wicked smile. “That’s not my type.”

She linked arms with Katie and they strolled over to look at the merchandise.

Tom and Olivia watched them go.

“Do you think Georgia’s really OK?” he asked Olivia.

“Well, she’s putting a brave face on it. Of course she’s bruised, but Aeysha’s been amazing with her. They’ve talked a lot, and after we’d been to the hospital she said that although she was furious at the time, she realised that we were just trying to protect her when we laid the plan to trap Alex.”

“It was probably good that we’ve all been so busy this week with
Dream
rehearsals. The performance went well this afternoon, didn’t it?” said Tom.

“Yes, it was lovely,” agreed Olivia, “although I can’t wear my costume without thinking of Kasha hobbling out of that hotel in it. He makes such a lovely girl.”

“You’d better not tell Lucie Groves. She’d
have a fit.”

“She won’t stop asking him how he got out of the hotel, but he just says that he sprouted wings and flew,” said Olivia, with a grin. “Which reminds me, where are Imy and Gem?”

At that moment, they appeared. Olivia greeted them enthusiastically. “Tom,” she said, “this is Imy and Gem. They are Kasha’s number one fans, and he’s really looking forward to meeting them after the show.” She handed the two girls their tickets for the concert, back-stage passes and invites to the after-show party.

Imy and Gem squealed. “I won’t know what to say to him!” said Imy.

“Oh,” said Olivia, with a wicked smile. “If you’re stuck for words, why don’t you ask Kasha about my Aunt Belinda. He’s very, very fond of her. I don’t know what he sees in her myself.”

At that moment, Eel came waltzing up with Emmy and Esme, who’d come down from Yorkshire to stay for the weekend.

“Liv! This is my friend, Esme.” Eel was looking at Esme proudly. “Esme is going to the Imperial. She’s a fantastic dancer.”

Olivia smiled at the little girl. “You must be
very good,” she said.

“Eel’s as good, maybe better,” said Esme, generously.

“No, I’m not,” said Eel. “You’re the one who got the scholarship.”

“Only after another girl gave it up,” said her friend. She shook her head. “I don’t know how anyone could think of giving up a scholarship to the Imperial.”

Eel looked at Olivia and the two sisters exchanged little smiles.

Alicia came over and touched Olivia’s shoulder. “We must take our seats. Kasha’s about to come on stage.”

The final note of “Bruised” faded away. There was a tiny electrified silence and then the
sell-out
crowd began whooping and stamping their approval of the acoustic duet that Kasha and Aeysha had just sung. Aeysha looked very tiny and rather dazed, but she was beaming broadly as the audience clapped and cheered.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” said Kasha, with a big smile. “I give you my songwriting partner, Aeysha Aziz, without whom I’d never have written the number-one hit, ‘Bruised’. Aeysha.”

Aeysha bowed and the crowd roared their approval. Olivia and the others were on their feet, cheering and stamping. Eel was hopping from foot to foot in her excitement. Georgia was shouting Aeysha’s name over and over again, Tom had his hands raised right over his head and Katie was screaming her delight.

Olivia looked from Aeysha’s glowing face to those of her excited friends and listened to their happy, generous applause. She caught Georgia’s eye and Georgia smiled at her, a gentle, forgiving smile. They had all come through so much together in the last few weeks, they had had some narrow escapes but they had emerged bruised but unbroken.

Suddenly, it occurred to Olivia. “We’re growing up,” she said, out loud.

There was wonder in her voice, but nobody else heard it because there was too much noise. She looked at her friends’ shining faces.

“Growing up,” she whispered to herself, “but not growing apart.”