Star of the Show

Table of Contents

 

 

 

GROSSET & DUNLAP
Published by the Penguin Group
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eISBN : 978-1-101-17108-0

Prologue

Storm, the young silver-gray wolf froze as a terrifying howl rose into the air.

“Shadow!” Storm gasped. The big, fierce lone wolf, who had attacked Storm's wolf pack and left his mother wounded, was very close.

Storm had to act fast. He decided to use his magic. Suddenly a dazzling flash of bright golden light and a shower of sparks filled the air. Where the young wolf had stood there now crouched a tiny rusty-colored spaniel puppy with wavy fur, long floppy ears, and midnight-blue eyes.

Storm's puppy heart beat fast as he bounded forward across the snow. He looked from left to right, trying to find a hiding place, but the flat plain stretched in all directions like a white desert.

He saw a tiny speck in the distance, which was growing bigger as it came closer. It was an adult wolf.

Storm whimpered with terror.

His wobbly legs collapsed beneath him and Storm felt himself sinking. Chunks of snow rained onto the little puppy as he sank down into an ice cave. He lay there trembling, hoping that his hiding place would protect him.

Moments later, Storm heard paws scraping above him as a large animal stood in the entrance to the cave. This was it.

A wolf's head appeared, framed by the night sky. “Are you hurt, my son?” growled a soft velvety voice.

“Mother!” Storm woofed in relief, wagging his little tail. “I am fine now!”

Canista slid right in and crouched beside her disguised cub. She licked his muzzle in greeting. “I am glad to see you again, but it is not yet safe for you to return. Shadow is very close. He wants to lead the Moon-claw pack, but they will not follow him while you live.”

Storm's midnight-blue eyes sparked with fear and anger. “Perhaps we should face him and fight him!”

Canista showed her sharp white teeth in a proud smile. “Bravely said, Storm. But Shadow is too strong for you to face alone. And I am still too weak from his poisonous bite to help you. Use this puppy disguise to hide from Shadow. Go to the other world and return when you are stronger.” She winced and her eyes clouded with pain.

Storm huffed out a warm glittering puppy breath. It shimmered around Canista's wounded leg in a golden mist and then sank into her gray fur. “Thank you. The pain is fading,” she rumbled softly.

Suddenly, another fierce howl seemed to tear at the icy air.

“Shadow is coming! Save yourself. Go . . .” Canista urged.

Bright gold sparks ignited in the tiny puppy's wavy reddish-brown fur. Storm whined as he felt the power building within him. The golden light around him grew brighter. And brighter . . .

Chapter ONE

Tessa Churchill's tummy lurched with excitement as she saw all the huge trucks and trailers in front of Harpford Manor. There were lights and equipment everywhere and lots of people pushing carts and racks of costumes.

“I still can't believe that I'm going to be in
Timepiece
with Donny Jenton. I'm so nervous,” Tessa said to her mom.

“That's not surprising. This is your first part in a movie,” Mrs. Churchill said, giving her a hug. “Come on, let's go and find Judith Raunds, the woman who will be taking care of you.”

Tessa nodded as she and her mom began walking toward the main house.

She was also looking forward to meeting the other two girls who had parts in the movie—Tessa had been excited to hear that they were about the same age as her. It would be great to hang out with new friends while she was here.

A woman came out of a side door and greeted them both. “Hello, Mrs. Churchill, I'm Judith. And this must be Tessa. I'm delighted to meet you.” She had a light-brown ponytail and a nice round face and was wearing a blue T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers.

Mrs. Churchill shook Judith's hand. “Hello, Judith. It's nice to put a face to the voice. And thanks for being so understanding when I called to say we'd be arriving late,” she said.

Judith smiled. “No problem. Delays at airports are a fact of life these days.” She turned to Tessa. “Let's go inside. Kelly and Fay arrived earlier. They're having dinner. I'll introduce you.”

“Okay.” Tessa smiled at Judith who seemed really nice. She felt herself starting to relax. She turned to her mom. “I'm fine. You don't have to stay with me.”

“Sure? All right then, sweetie. I'll get going.” Mrs. Churchill kissed her daughter on the cheek. “See you next week. And don't forget to call.”

“You bet! Give my love to Dad when you get back to the yacht. Bye!” Tessa said. She waited until her mom drove off and then followed Judith into the house.

They went through a maze of hallways until they reached a very large room. It had paneling on the walls and a high domed ceiling, which was painted with clouds and angels. Expensive-looking paintings of very serious people were hung all around.

A self-service counter with hot and cold food had been set up along one wall and there were neat rows of tables and chairs. The room buzzed with voices and laughter.

“This is where you'll have all your meals. Catering is 24/7, so you can get a hot drink or food whenever you want it,” Judith explained. She led Tessa over to two girls who were sitting at a table by themselves. “These are your young costars, Kelly Lucas and Fay Hinson. Kelly, Fay, this is Tessa Churchill.”

“Hi,” Tessa said, smiling.

Fay and Kelly smiled back.

“I'll leave you all to get to know one another. I've got a few things to do, so I'll come back in a bit and see if you need anything,” Judith said to Tessa.

“Okay, thanks,” Tessa said, smiling at the two girls as Judith moved away.

Kelly's friendly expression suddenly changed. “So you're the kid with rich parents. I bet you loved keeping everyone waiting, so you could get all the attention when you
finally
arrived!” She looked about twelve years old, two years older than Tessa, and had a thin face and short dark hair.

Tessa felt her face turning red. At her first acting school, she was bullied because she had rich parents, so now she kept quiet about it. Kelly must have listened to Judith on the phone to her mom and heard about the trip on the family yacht, which Tessa was cutting short to work on this film.

Tessa took a deep breath to calm her nerves before answering.“Let's get something straight, Kelly. Acting is all that matters to me and I just want to do my best, just like you. So leave my mom and dad out of it. Okay?” she said.

Kelly looked surprised and even a little impressed. She looked like she was going to say something else and then she shrugged. “Whatever,” she said, getting up and wandering over to the service counter.

Tessa looked at Fay, hoping that the other girl might be easier to get along with. “Which acting school do you come from?” she asked her.

“Ashton School of Drama,” Fay murmured without looking up. She was stirring her plate of pasta around with a fork and seemed to be in a world of her own.

Tessa tried again. “Have you seen Donny Jenton yet?”

“No. Someone said they'd seen his little pug dog, Lady. So he's here. But there's tons of security around him. We'll probably only get to meet Donny when we're acting in a scene with him,” Fay said gloomily. She pushed her plate away and slouched forward to rest her chin on her elbows.