AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He turns and heads across the driveway toward the sidewalk. “Hey, I meant to ask—where’s the Porsche?”
“I left it at Gasthaus Rodriguez. I’ll be staying there tomorrow, and they said I could park in their carport. They were really nice about it.”
“Suave and Amanda are good people.” He says the name the Spanish way: swah-vey.
“Suave?”
“We’ve called him that since he moved here in high school. That song was really popular.” He glances at me, and I raise my brows. “Rico Suave? I guess I’m dating myself. Anyway, we decided Rico was short for Rodriguez, and then it kind of…”
I slap his arm. “I know the song. And you aren’t old.” There I go again—being all coy and flirty. Rein it in, Nica! “Where’s the rehearsal? And what role are you playing?”
“Rehearsals are at the fire hall—they have a community room we use. The actual show is at the festplatz.” He takes pity on my confusion. “It’s an empty lot near the high school that we use for some of the bigger festivals. Polkafest, Christkindlmarkt, SommerFest. The Brauns own it. They could sell it for a fortune, but they prefer to keep it for the community. I’ve heard it will be bequeathed to the town in their will, but Naked George is a fickle guy, so no one is counting on it.”
“Naked George?”
“As advertised. When he’s not nude, he wears a pretzel costume. And don’t let him see you kissing anyone.” His face goes pink, and he looks away.
“Why not?”
“The pretzel is inflatable. He likes to it ram into anyone he thinks is getting too friendly. He only gets away with it because everyone knows he’ll strip down if we complain.”
I laugh. “I do not need to see that.”
“No one does.” He shakes his head. “Anyway, at different times, he’s also sworn he’s selling the property to the US Navy or donating it to the Freiberg royal family. He likes to keep people guessing.”
“What would the Navy do with an empty lot in the mountains?”
“Who knows?” He stops at the corner to look both ways—the only car in sight is parked in a driveway with a cover over it. “No one is particularly worried about it. And in the meantime, we’ll keep holding events there. They’ve started putting up the stage for the musical, and we’ll have all the regular food and vendor booths during the show. If you’re still in town, you should come.”
“I will.”
We cross the paved plaza between city hall and the fire department. The wisteria gives off a faint floral scent, but the blooms are fading. Across the road, the fire hall looks more like a Tyrolian hotel than a public works building. The balconies on the upper stories have boxes overflowing with red geraniums. We enter through a double glass door under one.
Inside, people mill around a big room, chatting. Blue painter’s tape marks out a large section of the floor, and folding chairs are scattered across the rest of the room. As we enter, the chatter turns to whispers. I catch people staring, so I smile and nod. I’ve grown somewhat accustomed to this reception, but it still makes my skin crawl a little.
A woman with long, frizzy curls that used to be red steps away from a group as we approach. “Matt! I see you’ve brought a friend.” She wears an ankle-length, brightly patterned skirt and a loose top with multiple necklaces. A fluorescent green scarf holds her hair away from her weather-beaten face—a face I recognize.
“Dame Edith Reeves?” I stare in awe. This woman is a British theater legend. “I didn’t know—”
She smiles smugly at my stuttering and holds out a hand. “Call me Edie. Pleased to meet you…” She raises an eyebrow at Matt.
“This is Nica Holmes.” Matt jumps in quickly. “She’s an actor.”
“As are we all, dear.” She waves a hand at the assembled crowd.
“No, but Nica’s a professional. She just finished shooting a movie with Hugh Harper and Ryan Davis.”
“I’m afraid I don’t follow the film industry.” She says “film” in a tone that cements its status many rungs below “stage” and turns to me. “Auditions were held months ago, but you’re welcome to watch the rehearsal. If you can sing, there might be room in the chorus, but you’ll have to learn all of the songs. Of course, this is The Sound of Music, so you probably know most of them. What’s your range? We’re low on altos.”
Matt’s dumbfounded face is hilarious. I pat his arm. “Thanks, but I’m not really looking for a role. I just came to watch.”
Edie’s left eye—the one Matt can’t see—closes in the barest of winks. I’m ninety percent sure she knows who I am, but I can appreciate her desire to keep me in my place. Some actors can be such prima donnas. She looks at the clock, then claps three times. “Let’s begin our warmup!”
I grab a seat as the others move to the blue tape “stage” and begin a sequence of familiar movements and vocal exercises. When they’ve completed the warmup, they start running through a scene. Despite the sparse props and lack of backdrop, I recognize the scene immediately—the one where Rolf brings a telegram for Herr Dettweiler. The captain’s dialogue rolls off Matt’s tongue, and his facial expressions are fabulous.
Then the children enter from stage left. They’re playing tug-o-war and inching onto the stage bit by bit. The young woman playing Maria forgets her lines more often than she gets them right. On the third run-through, someone lets go of the rope, and everyone falls. Maria screams.
“Continue!” Dame Edith calls out
