Chapter 13 #2
“The thumb goes under. Like this.” Frankie placed her hand on the keys to demonstrate, and before the sound had died, a jolt at her core made her straighten.
She’d played a melody, however short. Her hand had cooperated.
She resisted repeating the move even though she itched to see if it had only been a fluke.
Instead, she gestured to her student to have another go.
“You can do it,” she said, as much to herself as to him, forcing a tremble out of her voice.
Tonight, when she got home, she’d try again. Lord knew she needed the outlet.
Owen texted a couple of hours later during a ten-minute break between lessons, the message as reticent as the man himself. At least this older version of him.
Found nothing today so Grams will call her contacts. TTYL
Frankie pushed the bitterness of disappointment away. This was what she’d expected, she reminded herself. They’d only just started looking, and it had been a long shot.
She tucked her phone away again and was about to leave the office when two moms pushed inside, one calling, “Knock knock!” as if Frankie couldn’t already see them.
“Glad we caught you,” Mrs. Weaver said. Her daughter was a sophomore in high school and in their advanced ballet class. Right behind her was Mrs. Nolan, whose daughter Lauren had been one of Estelle’s students.
Frankie checked her watch. Her next student would be expecting her in thirty seconds. “Little pressed for time, but how can I help you?”
The two moms shared a look, then Mrs. Weaver crossed her arms. “Natalie tells me they’re still rehearsing to a track instead of your playing, and that this means more interruptions and less time on the floor.
Is that true? Because if so, we have a little bit of a problem here.
” She dragged out the “I” in little with something that mimicked humor but was contradicted by her stance.
“We are essentially paying the same amount for less practice time, and, well… it’s concerning. ”
“As is the vocal coach situation,” Mrs. Nolan added. “Stefano may be quite qualified for some of the younger voices, but Lauren needs a teacher skilled at developing sopranos. How is the hiring process coming?”
Frankie was officially late to her lesson, and to make matters worse, she didn’t have good answers for either of the women in front of her. She glanced over their shoulders, half-expecting her student to be coming around the corner looking for her.
“My husband tells me Lauren’s lessons are paid until the end of the year,” Mrs. Nolan continued. “Some deal he made with Estelle. But if things don’t change around here soon, we’ll be forced to ask for a refund and go elsewhere.”
Frankie’s gaze snapped back to her. She must have misheard. “What did you just say? You’ve paid in advance?”
That wasn’t an official practice of the school, and not one Estelle had ever mentioned. Had it been an attempt at getting ahead of bills? Borrowing against the future? That was quite a gamble.
“Until the new year,” Mrs. Nolan said. “Estelle approached my husband with the offer back in January. Little did we know…” She sniffed once, a blush spreading across her cheeks as if she’d just remembered the circumstances under which they were complaining.
“I never heard of any deal,” Mrs. Weaver said. “Was it extended to everyone?”
“Only Estelle’s voice students, I believe,” Frankie lied.
She had to buy herself some time to look into this.
If more families had paid ahead, she’d need to adjust their expected income for the rest of the year, not to mention avoid at any cost those families leaving.
Because if people started asking for their money back, it would soon become apparent to everyone that there was no money to be had.
Shoot. Now she was really late. She was going to have to think of a way to appease these parents or they wouldn’t let her through. This was exactly the reason why she’d never minded Estelle being the face of Starview. She always knew what to do. Well, Mom, a little help?
“Ms. Frankie,” a small voice piped up behind the moms, forcing them to part.
Frankie saw her chance and squeezed past her visitors into the hallway.
“I’ll be just a minute, Kimmie. Start your scales for warm-up, okay.
” She turned back to the women, who were still standing in the doorway waiting for an answer.
Above them hung a banner Estelle had kept from opening day.
“WELCOME TO THE STARVIEW FAMILY,” it said in all caps.
Families who work together stick together. Estelle’s words echoed from the past.
Yes, family, Frankie thought. That was it.
“Thank you so much for bringing your concerns to my attention,” she said.
“I know you understand the transition period this has been for all of us—Estelle’s shoes are not easy to fill—but I want to assure you I’m doing my best to get everything running smoothly.
In the meantime, we’re planning an exciting auction to celebrate Estelle’s legacy, and I’m looking for a few parents to spearhead the committee.
As both of you are engaged members of our Starview family, perhaps that’s something you’d be interested in helping with?
” She backed up a few steps before they could respond.
“Now I really have to run, but I’d love to talk more about the auction another day. How is that?”
The moms looked at each other again, a tilt of the head, a nod.
“Yes, I suppose,” Mrs. Weaver said.
“Great,” Frankie called over her shoulder. “I’ll be in touch.”
She was home free for now.