The Secret of the Scarlet Stone (A Gabby Girls Adventure Novel, Book One) (4 page)

Grandma Celeste looked over at her. “Okay, so are you ready now?”

“Yes, Grandma, I’m ready now,” she replied half-heartedly.

Grandma Celeste nodded firmly at the driver. “Let’s go, Richard,” she ordered softly.

Richard tipped his black driver’s cap, started up the car, and slowly pulled off.

Gabrielle quickly scrambled to her knees, looking longingly through the back window at Fiona the Beautiful, who stood perched on the window’s ledge. Her eyes stayed glued on the cat until she could no longer see the twinkle in Fiona’s green eyes.

R
ichard slowly pulled up to the closed, towering, wrought-iron gates, when a stern-looking man in a stiff, dark blue uniform hustled out of a tiny guard booth with a clipboard grasped in his chubby hand.

He looked over at Richard impatiently. “Name, please?” he asked gruffly.

Richard tipped his black cap politely. “Miss Gabrielle Martin,” he responded with a thick British accent.

The guard leafed through the papers attached to his clipboard; he looked up quickly. “Go ahead, they’re expecting you. Just take this road straight out to the main building.” He politely stepped back into the guard’s booth and the gates slowly creaked open.

Richard drove through the gates and down the long, windy road lined with huge, gnarled trees.

Sitting silently, Gabrielle peered warily past the trees and into the thick wooded area. A cold chill swept through her body, causing her to shiver slightly.

Grandma Celeste patted Gabrielle’s knee. “Is everything all right, Gabi? You look a tad bit nervous.”

Gabrielle smiled shakily, never taking her gaze away from the thick wooded area. “Uh, I’m fine, Grandma Celeste.” But she could not shake the feeling of utter uneasiness.

Grandma Celeste gave her a dubious glance but decided not to press her further.

At the end of the long road, Richard slowly drove up a curved driveway and stopped in front of a huge, ivy-covered brick building.

Gabi noticed the large, ominous-looking gold sign that hung prominently on the building:

Vineswell
Academy

Richard jumped out of the car and respectfully opened the door for Grandma Celeste.

She slowly stepped out and looked over her shoulder at Gabrielle. “Come on, Gabi. It’s time to get out of the car now,” she demanded firmly.

“I’m coming,” Gabrielle responded as she scurried out of the car.

A thin woman with milky-colored skin, cold, piercing green
eyes,
and brittle jet-black hair that was pulled tightly back into a bun stood on the steps. She stared at Gabrielle, her eyes narrowing as she silently looked at her from head to toe; her thin lips curled with obvious disapproval.

Then the woman looked over at Grandma Celeste. “Nice to see you again, Celeste.” Her voice cracked slightly, but she cleared it impatiently.
 

Grandma Celeste looked at her coldly then nodded her acknowledgment. But there was something in Grandma Celeste’s stare that Gabrielle had never seen from her before. It was cold; it was deadly; in fact, it was darn-right…frightening.
For anyone who knows my Grandma Celeste, ‘deadly’ and ‘frightening’ are two words that no one in their right minds would ever associate with her kind and loving personality
, Gabrielle thought. But before she could figure out what in the world was going on between them, Grandma Celeste’s eyes went completely blank of any emotion.

The thin woman cleared her throat noisily then looked over at Gabrielle. “Good morning. My name is Ms.
Vineswell
, the head of
Vineswell
Academy,” she said in a nasal voice.

Gabrielle boldly examined Ms.
Vineswell
. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but there was something about her that she instantly didn’t like, not one bit.

Grandma Celeste cleared her throat loudly as they waited for Gabrielle to say something—anything—but she stayed coldly silent.

Ms.
Vineswell’s
green eyes instantly turned frosty. “Well, then, let’s get you situated,” she declared irritably as she sharply turned on the thick heels of her black shoes, swiftly stepping into the building.

Gabrielle reluctantly followed, her steps slowing when she realized that Grandma Celeste had not moved.

Grandma Celeste smiled softly. “I’m not coming in with you, Gabi. It’s time for you to find your own way now.”

Gabrielle’s hazel eyes pleaded softly. “But Grandma…”

“No complaining, young lady. Just get in there,” she demanded. “But before you go, give me a big hug.” She leaned heavily on her cane as she waited for Gabrielle to approach her.

Gabrielle hugged her tightly like she never wanted to let her go.

Grandma Celeste patted her on the back. “All right, it’s time to go inside now.”

Gabrielle quickly blinked back the fast-approaching tears. “Grandma, when will I see you again?”

Grandma Celeste leaned down, whispering in her ear, “Oh, Gabi, don’t you worry. This is not the end; it’s only the beginning. Now get inside, young lady.”

“I
heart
you, Grandma Celeste,” Gabrielle mumbled.

“I love you, too, Gabi,” she responded softly.

Gabrielle reluctantly
unwrapped
her arms from around Grandma Celeste’s body and hesitantly walked towards Ms.
Vineswell
, who was impatiently standing in the doorway, tapping her feet. As Gabrielle stepped through the doorway, Ms.
Vineswell
firmly shut the heavy, dark wood door with a very loud thud.

“Follow me,” Ms.
Vineswell
demanded briskly.

She quickly turned on her heels and strode away; with every step, her black skirt swished back and forth stiffly.

Gabrielle huffed and puffed, barely able to keep up with Ms.
Vineswell
as she walked through the horseshoe-shaped hallway.

Ms.
Vineswell
stopped abruptly, spinning around with an impatient look on her face. “Keep up, Miss Martin. Stop dawdling,” she demanded. She angrily turned on her heels and continued walking.

Tired and annoyed, Gabrielle stuck out her tongue at Ms.
Vineswell’s
departing back.

Ms.
Vineswell
suddenly screeched to a stop and turned around.

Gabrielle quickly pulled her tongue back into her mouth and pasted a far-from-innocent look on her face.

“Miss Martin, I know that you are used to doing exactly what you want, when you want, but here at
Vineswell
Academy, I run a very tight ship,” Ms.
Vineswell
declared. “I assure you that rude behavior will never be tolerated.” Then she walked away.

Gabrielle looked at her departing back with stunned disbelief. How in the world did Ms.
Vineswell
know that she was sticking out her tongue? She shook her head again and scurried to keep up with her.

Ms.
Vineswell
abruptly stopped in front of a heavy door with a large gold plate nailed smack-dab in the middle that clearly stated:

Headmistress

Ms.
Vineswell

She impatiently pushed open the door, allowing them to step into the huge office. Swiftly, she strode around the huge oak desk and sat down in the huge leather chair that was tucked behind it.

She glared at Gabrielle. “Have a seat.”

Gabrielle threw herself into the leather chair in front of the desk and defensively crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Ms.
Vineswell
placed her black horn-rimmed glasses onto her thin, pale face. She picked up a neat stack of papers from her desk and slowly started to leaf through them.

Gabrielle glanced curiously around the office as she reached up and pulled a lollipop out of her ponytail. She quickly
unwrapped
it and popped it into her mouth.

Every few seconds, Ms.
Vineswell
would glance up from reading, looking over at Gabrielle as she shook her head disapprovingly. When she was finished reading, she stacked the papers neatly onto her desk.

Over the black rims of her glasses, Ms.
Vineswell
glared coldly at Gabrielle. “Well, well, well, what a checkered past you have, young lady. So, let’s start by getting a few things straight, shall we?”

She took off her glasses, placing them carefully onto the desk. “
Vineswell
Academy is a top-rated and highly respected institution, and I intend to keep it that way.”
 

Gabrielle rolled her eyes skyward. “Whatever,” she muttered under her breath.

Ms.
Vineswell
slammed her thin hands onto the desk, angrily leaning forward. “Martha
Vineswell
, the academy’s founder, strongly believed that a highly structured environment breeds a highly structured and disciplined young lady, but from what I just read in your school records, you are neither structured nor disciplined.”

Gabrielle smirked rudely.

Ms.
Vineswell
sniffed snootily. “Given that little tidbit, under normal circumstances you would have never been accepted into
Vineswell
Academy.” Smiling spitefully, displaying her stained teeth, she said, “But I made a special exception to the rule and granted you admission based on the fact that your grandmother is a highly respected woman with highly respected friends…but more importantly, she is a
Vineswell
Academy graduate.”

Gabrielle glared at Ms.
Vineswell
, her lips loudly licking and smacking the lollipop as it rolled around in her mouth.

Ms.
Vineswell’s
cold green eyes flashed angrily as she pointed to the trashcan with a boney finger. “How dare you disrespect me in my office? Throw out that lollipop right now, young lady!”

Gabrielle rebelliously took one more lick before grudgingly tossing it into the trashcan.

“I assure you that none of your rude behavior will be tolerated at
Vineswell
Academy. I will personally see to that,” Ms.
Vineswell
scoffed. “Do we have an understanding, Miss Martin?”

Gabrielle gritted her teeth. “Yes, Ms.
Vineswell
. We have an understanding,” she said with forced politeness.

Ms.
Vineswell
looked coldly at Gabrielle as she picked up the glass water pitcher that was tucked in the corner of her desk and slowly poured water into a thin, long glass.

Gabrielle crossed her arms against her angry, heaving chest. Her eyes narrowed as Ms.
Vineswell
pressed the glass against her thin lips.
 

Gabrielle smirked spitefully as she thought,
Who
does she think she is, talking to me like that? Wouldn’t it be so funny if that glass of water spilled on that pretty white blouse of hers?

As if on cue, the glass slipped from Ms.
Vineswell’s
fingers, splashing water all over her pristine white blouse. She quickly jumped up and began to frantically wipe the front of her soaked blouse.