Page 4 of Sensing Selma
Susan smiled and blushed.
“If you’re looking for work, I’d be more than happy to take you on.”
Her face lit up. “That would be wonderful.”
“Only one problem,” Abbie interjected. “This movie is going to be shot in Derbyshire, not Bath. Are you okay with that?”
“Absolutely.”
“Not to outshine my brilliant sister,” Holly said, her chin high. “But I was contacted about a month ago by a woman named Ayra something.”
Susan cast her gaze to the floor. Undoubtedly, this wasn’t the first time her little sister sought to outshine her, despite her claiming the opposite.
“Ayra is my music arranger and co-founder of the Jane Austen Association in America,” I said, puzzled. “Are you saying that she contacted you for...?”
“Singing,” Holly said. “I’m a trained singer. And I play piano. Ayra was rather vague when she spoke to me, simply saying that she was looking at various options. But she’d somehow gotten a hold of a recording I’d done last year that went viral on YouTube, and was impressed.”
Analyzing the situation, I chewed on my bottom lip. Would hiring the two sisters increase friction, for clearly there was friction between them. Or would they prove to be quite capable of doing their respective jobs...perhaps hardly needing to see one another.
“In Derbyshire,” I said, “we shoot at Moon Manor. It’s a large estate where Ayra lives, and her husband run as a boutique hotel.”
“Moon Manor,” Holly said, a dreamy look in her eyes. “I’ve heard of it. Some have said that it may be grander than Selma Sanctuary, though I seriously doubt it. But I certainly would be eager to make the comparison.”
“When we last filmed there,” I went on, “the cast and crew lived right there on the premises. A large portion of the manor has been turned into a hotel for tourists, but we’ve booked all of the rooms in order to be housed there during the shoot.It helps me get the production done under a tight schedule.”
“That’s brilliant,” Susan smiled.
“Would we live in Moon Manor?”Holly said, her eyes wide.
“That’s right.”
“Our mother,” Susan said, showing herself to be more concerned with the practical aspect of my proposal. “We can’t leave her on her own. She needs us...every day. She’s in a wheelchair, and while she can get up and take a few steps here and there, she is unable to tend to her needs.”
“I’m sure we could work something out.”
The book club members were growing restless and eager to get the meeting going again.
“We’ll settle this tomorrow,” I quickly told them. “I’ll call Ayra to make sure she’s on board, and then, well, I think we’re all set.”
Susan nodded, while Holly gave a small smile.Although they appeared a bit relieved, they still looked worried.
