Falling From Grace: Student-Teacher Forbidden Romance

Chapter 56

[RECAP: Father Gabriel and Leonie have gone out to buy a newspaper, at Figgy's urgent insisting...]

The Sunday Telegraph was a huge thing full of supplementary magazines and papers. Leonie was glad that Figgy had given her a page number.

She opened it as soon as they got back in the car and began leafing through. "Here it is. Page forty-six." She scanned it. It was the Theatre & Arts section, and at first glance she couldn't see anything of interest.

There was a photograph of some Shakespeare production in London's West End, and a lengthy review. There was a short item on a ballet dancer. Then there was an interview with the director of some new production of a old musical, along with some vintage photographs.

Other than these main articles there was a column, titled "Encore". It had the byline "Hugh Featherstonehaugh". Leonie's eyes flicked down it. It mentioned a couple of plays the columnist had seen, then a brief paragraph of theatrical gossip.

Finally she read the following.

In a rather uncustomary diversion, Encore recently had the pleasure of attending a school production of Miller's The Crucible. The play, featuring an all-female cast, was of a surprisingly high standard, and your correspondent found himself as bewitched as any seventeenth century Puritan. Special mention should be given to the lead, a young actress by the name of Leonie Wilson, who took the role of Abigail. Miss Wilson lit up the stage with an outstanding performance, quite as creditable as any professional actress. Should she harbour ambitions to tread the boards, she is set for a glittering future.

Leonie read it three times, unable to speak. She was shocked and thrilled and confused. How had it happened?

Gabriel, growing worried, leant over to look at the paper. "What is it?"

"There." Leonie pointed to the paragraph.

He read it. "Good lord, that's high praise coming from a critic like that."

"But how did he come to see it?" Leonie asked. Then she read the name again. Hugh Featherstonehaugh. Uncle Hugh. Surely Figgy's uncle couldn't have written it, could he? Wouldn't Figgy have mentioned if she was inviting some famous theatre critic to their school play?

She shared these thoughts with Gabriel who considered it was possible. "You'll have to call her back and find out. He's a very famous critic here, but as you can see he doesn't have a photograph with his column. So while I recognise the name, I have no idea what he looks like."

Figgy's phone was answered by a very well spoken male who called her "madam" and said that he would see if "Miss Iphigenia" was available. The Davenports must have a butler or something, because it didn't sound like Figgy's father.

"So? Did you see it? What did you think?" Figgy was brimming with excitement when she came to the phone.

"Kind of shocked. How did that happen?" Leonie asked.

"Uncle Hugh. I didn't tell you because I didn't want to make you nervous. But I told him he absolutely had to come up and watch our play, because there was a girl he really had to see. I didn't even tell him which one, but of course he guessed it was you."

Leonie thought how horrific it would be if Uncle Hugh had been impressed with Suki instead.

"Hardly! I don't think you realise how exceptional you are. I was so cross about her blackmailing you and you missing out on RADA that I had to do something," Figgy said.

"I wonder if Suki will see it?" Leonie said.

"Everyone will see it. Sister Rosalind always reads the theatre pages. She even cuts reviews out from time to time, and puts them on the Drama noticeboard. She's bound to see it and share it all over the school."

Suki would be furious. As ecstatic as Leonie felt about the review, she felt a creeping fear about how Suki might react. She might be angry and jealous enough to go to Mother Benedict and tell her everything. She didn't say anything to Figgy though, because she didn't want to seem ungrateful for what her friend had done.

"It's really kind of you to have arranged it. And very kind of your uncle."

Figgy was dismissive. "It's not kind of him at all. He'd never put someone's name in his column as a favour. Let alone someone in an amateur production. Even more so to write something like that about them. It's almost unprecedented. You must have seriously impressed him."

"Stop or my head will swell," Leonie warned her.

"You're far too modest. I'm just glad you finally got some recognition."

It would be something to show her parents at least. Unfortunately they wouldn't have heard of Hugh Featherstonehaugh. They didn't know of any US critics let alone British ones. But it would surely impress them a little, being printed in a real newspaper?

Gabriel had bought another three copies - "one for me, one for your parents, one for your grandmother" - and said that they should go out to dinner that night to celebrate. "After all, this is your first proper review, and it's amazing."

"It will probably also be my last," Leonie said.

He was stern when he looked at her. "Don't say that, and never even think like that. If you want to make it in theatre, and you're committed to it, there's every chance it will happen. It's your future, Leonie. Not your parents' nor anyone else's."

He took her in his arms. "And you've got me. If I can do anything to support you, I will. I love you. Whatever happens with us, I want you to succeed and be happy."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But how is she going to become an actress with Suki's blackmail and missing out on the scholarship application?