Page 25 of Darling Girls

They spent the afternoon cleaning. It was odd, since as far as Alicia could see the place was already cleaner than Grammy’s had ever been, and Grammy was extremely houseproud. The other girls didn’t even complain.

‘You show her the ropes, Norah,’ Miss Fairchild said.

Alicia, as it turned out, wasn’t very good at cleaning. She did everything so badly that Norah had to go over it again after Alicia had finished.

‘Sorry,’ Alicia said as Norah peered down at the sink which Alicia had been cleaning with a rag for several minutes. ‘I’m not very good at this. My skills lie more in the area of making a mess.’

Norah frowned. ‘Have you ever cleaned anything before?’

‘Not really. Grammy does the cleaning at home. I guess I am pretty spoiled.’

Norah considered this for a moment. ‘What happened to Grammy? Did she die?’

‘No, no,’ Alicia said cheerfully. ‘She had a fall, but she’ll be fine. She’s recuperating in the hospital. When I go home, I’m going to start cleaning to help her out.’ Alicia decided on the spot that that’s what she’d do. ‘So, I need you to teach me how you get the mirrors sparkling like this one.’

‘All right.’ Norah seemed, if not flattered to be asked, at least prepared to help. She pointed to the edge of the tub. ‘Sit there. The trick is to dry it with newspaper . . . and don’t use too much spray. Watch.’

Alicia watched Norah’s long spindly arms fly across the glass in quick, sharp movements. When she was done, she showed Alicia how to clean the toilet, including those hard-to-reach spots at the back.

‘You’re a cleaning ninja,’ Alicia said admiringly. ‘A wizard!’

‘You should see Jessica,’ Norah said, before adding: ‘She’ll probably reorganise your stuff and remake your bed if she’s not happy with it. Let her do it; it’s easier.’

‘Roger that,’ Alicia said, appreciating the intel.

‘And she’s weirdly territorial about Miss Fairchild. She’s been with her since she was little and –’

As if on cue, Miss Fairchild poked her head into the bathroom. ‘Goodness,’ she said when she saw Alicia sitting on the edge of the tub. ‘You’ve finished already, have you, Alicia? You must be an excellent cleaner.’

But her expression said that she didn’t believe that at all. Alicia rose awkwardly to her feet.

‘Sheis,’ Norah said. ‘And fast! I still have the sink to go.’

Miss Fairchild’s gaze slid to Norah. Clearly she wasn’t stupid and didn’t like being treated as such. ‘Is that right?’

‘Yep,’ Norah said, scrubbing the sink. ‘She’s a cleaning ninja. A wizard!’

‘A comediananda wizard?’ Miss Fairchild said, her eyes narrowing. ‘Lucky us. Since she’s so good at it, maybe tomorrow the wizard can clean all the bathrooms by herself!’

She stared at Alicia, who wanted to disappear under the woman’s gaze. After what felt like an eternity, she left the room and Alicia sank back onto the side of the bath.

‘Thank you,’ she said to Norah.

‘Don’t thank me,’ Norah said. ‘Just learn quickly.’

Alicia somehow knew Norah wasn’t just talking about the cleaning.

Dinner was a tiny serving of rice and beans that made Alicia ache for Grammy’s cooking.

Grammy was an old-fashioned cook. Alicia’s days started with waffles or French toast, or maybe scrambled eggs with bacon and baked beans. Lunches were thick-cut sandwiches of ham and salad, plus fruit, and dinner was meat and three vegetables, followed by a bowl of ice cream or jelly or trifle.

Alicia had always been a good eater. That’s how Grammy described it.My Alicia is a very good eater.Like it was a talent of hers. Alicia had a good appetite and always finished everything on her plate, including the vegetables.

At Wild Meadows, apparently, they didn’t evengetvegetables.

‘May I have some more rice, please?’ Alicia asked after she’d scraped her plate clean.

Jessica and Norah glanced at Miss Fairchild. Their apprehensive expressions put Alicia on guard. What had she said? She could see leftover rice on the stovetop from where she sat.