door?” asked Cal. “You don’t want to see this thing going between floors.” He shuddered.
“Don’t worry—I can close my eyes if I need to.” Anthony held his finger at the button. “I’ll give you a head start. See you on the third floor. Last one up has to unload all the luggage.”
Cal turned and sprinted to the spiral staircase. “Don’t push the button till I hit the first step!”
Liv watched him take the stairs two at a time and climb round and round. She followed, enjoying the pull of the steps on her leg muscles and feeling strong. “Up to two, up to two,” chanted Cal ahead of her, passing a closed door that appeared to lead off to a hallway. “Up to three, up to three,” he panted, stopping at the next landing and heading down the hall to look at apartment doors.
Liv knew the brass numbers would read two-oh-three, twooh-four and two-oh-five, so why was Cal stopping here? She looked toward the elevator shaft. Here came Anthony, staring at Cal while the little cage passed the floor and continued its ascent. Brother and sister shrugged at each other as Cal raced back up the hall and tore into the stairs again, barely catching up with Liv at the end. The elevator was emptied of luggage, and Anthony said, “Sit down and catch your breath. We’ll carry everything to the apartment.”
Liv jumped in to be sure Cal understood his mistake. “Guess you didn’t realize the lobby is the ground floor. After that, you start counting first and so on. The third floor is actually the fourth story.”
“And I was supposed to know that how?” Cal grumbled. “I don’t like being outsmarted by a building.”
Liv picked up two suitcases and congratulated herself for choosing not to invite a friend on this trip. Friends could be high-maintenance.
It didn’t take long for the efficient Mrs.Wescott to get everyone on task, settling into the apartment and unpacking while she worked on a grocery list. Sleeping assignments were made: grownups and Anna in the large bedroom, Liv in the second one, about the size of a walk-in closet, with the boys sleeping on the pullout sofa in the sitting room. Anthony and Cal slid their suitcases under the end tables flanking the sofa. The three agreed that Liv should keep the box in her room for now.
“If we each take ten minutes to freshen up in the bathroom,” Mrs. Wescott instructed them, “we can hit the pavement, ready to sightsee, in under an hour. We’ll pick up groceries on the way back.”
“Ten minutes?” asked Anthony, sniffing his armpits. “What do I need to do that will take a whole ten minutes?”
Mrs. Wescott handed him a bar of soap and pointed to the bathroom. “Come out clean.”
Chapter Eleven
Liv finished brushing her teeth and looked up, where her reflection in the mirror met her gaze with customary directness. Her curly, dark hair, pulled back into its usual ponytail, was just beginning to frizz in the humidity of an unair-conditioned London summer. Her blue eyes might have been more striking with makeup, though Liv couldn’t imagine bothering. Her build was slim but solid from years of soccer and running and her nails would always be trimmed short, because the piano was a love she intended never to be without.
Hmm. . . A piano. Soccer. Running. She’d gone without any of them for more than a day, and she was feeling withdrawal. Not much she could do about the first two, but maybe she could convince her parents to let her take a run somewhere. There was a park visible from the huge windows of their sitting room. It would be fun to explore.
The street and neighborhood looked like a scene from Mary Poppins, and the flat itself was like a movie set with its high ceilings, elaborate plaster moldings and chandeliers. A ringing phone interrupted her reverie.
Brring-brring. Pause. Brring-brring. Pause. Even the sound of the phone was charming.
Through the inch-plus gap under the bathroom door, Liv could hear her mother say, “Hello?”
“Don’t worry—I can close my eyes if I need to.” Anthony held his finger at the button. “I’ll give you a head start. See you on the third floor. Last one up has to unload all the luggage.”
Cal turned and sprinted to the spiral staircase. “Don’t push the button till I hit the first step!”
Liv watched him take the stairs two at a time and climb round and round. She followed, enjoying the pull of the steps on her leg muscles and feeling strong. “Up to two, up to two,” chanted Cal ahead of her, passing a closed door that appeared to lead off to a hallway. “Up to three, up to three,” he panted, stopping at the next landing and heading down the hall to look at apartment doors.
Liv knew the brass numbers would read two-oh-three, twooh-four and two-oh-five, so why was Cal stopping here? She looked toward the elevator shaft. Here came Anthony, staring at Cal while the little cage passed the floor and continued its ascent. Brother and sister shrugged at each other as Cal raced back up the hall and tore into the stairs again, barely catching up with Liv at the end. The elevator was emptied of luggage, and Anthony said, “Sit down and catch your breath. We’ll carry everything to the apartment.”
Liv jumped in to be sure Cal understood his mistake. “Guess you didn’t realize the lobby is the ground floor. After that, you start counting first and so on. The third floor is actually the fourth story.”
“And I was supposed to know that how?” Cal grumbled. “I don’t like being outsmarted by a building.”
Liv picked up two suitcases and congratulated herself for choosing not to invite a friend on this trip. Friends could be high-maintenance.
It didn’t take long for the efficient Mrs.Wescott to get everyone on task, settling into the apartment and unpacking while she worked on a grocery list. Sleeping assignments were made: grownups and Anna in the large bedroom, Liv in the second one, about the size of a walk-in closet, with the boys sleeping on the pullout sofa in the sitting room. Anthony and Cal slid their suitcases under the end tables flanking the sofa. The three agreed that Liv should keep the box in her room for now.
“If we each take ten minutes to freshen up in the bathroom,” Mrs. Wescott instructed them, “we can hit the pavement, ready to sightsee, in under an hour. We’ll pick up groceries on the way back.”
“Ten minutes?” asked Anthony, sniffing his armpits. “What do I need to do that will take a whole ten minutes?”
Mrs. Wescott handed him a bar of soap and pointed to the bathroom. “Come out clean.”
Chapter Eleven
Liv finished brushing her teeth and looked up, where her reflection in the mirror met her gaze with customary directness. Her curly, dark hair, pulled back into its usual ponytail, was just beginning to frizz in the humidity of an unair-conditioned London summer. Her blue eyes might have been more striking with makeup, though Liv couldn’t imagine bothering. Her build was slim but solid from years of soccer and running and her nails would always be trimmed short, because the piano was a love she intended never to be without.
Hmm. . . A piano. Soccer. Running. She’d gone without any of them for more than a day, and she was feeling withdrawal. Not much she could do about the first two, but maybe she could convince her parents to let her take a run somewhere. There was a park visible from the huge windows of their sitting room. It would be fun to explore.
The street and neighborhood looked like a scene from Mary Poppins, and the flat itself was like a movie set with its high ceilings, elaborate plaster moldings and chandeliers. A ringing phone interrupted her reverie.
Brring-brring. Pause. Brring-brring. Pause. Even the sound of the phone was charming.
Through the inch-plus gap under the bathroom door, Liv could hear her mother say, “Hello?”
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