What was Prince Nerl of the North Waddo Islands doing in New Stirling, and why was he meeting with Hiram Scalmo? Bea gave a fleeting thought to running after him, but by the time she\u2019d decided to do it, he\u2019d climbed into a taxicab and sped off.<\/p>\n
\n\tBea turned around to see Odin and Nola bursting excitedly from the front door of Tylo\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThis should be quite interesting for you,\u201d said Odin, indicating his laptop. \u201cWhatever you were suspecting, it\u2019s probably correct.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cLet\u2019s listen at home,\u201d said Bea. \u201cI\u2019d rather not play it to the general public just yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tIt was a short walk to 107 Crotchett Street. They trooped up the marble steps, went in, and hunkered down on the living room sofa as Odin opened his computer.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cC\u2019est quoi?\u201d asked Michael-Dan. \u201cMusica nueva?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cNo, not music,\u201d replied Bea. \u201cThe goods. I think we\u2019ve got the goods on Hiram Scalmo. He has possibly just incriminated himself. Play it Odin.\u201d <\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cPlay what?\u201d asked Gordy, as he and Kitty squeezed onto the couch, each of them gnawing on a Koo-bar.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cPlay Hiram Scalmo,\u201d said Bea. \u201cThe man who makes your favorite food. Play it Odin.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tOdin punched a button. The first obvious noise was the rattle of a teacup against a saucer, and the tinkle of a stirring spoon. Then Scalmo\u2019s voice:<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cYeah, so like I said–I\u2019ve got a couple of minor problems…\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe snack bars are not selling?\u201d<\/em> inquired a smooth voice with the obvious lilt of a Waddongan accent. Prince Nerl.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo, the bars are selling like hotcakes,\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHotcakes?\u201d<\/em> said Nerl, sounding slightly confused.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThat means good,\u201d<\/em> said Scalmo. \u201cThey\u2019re selling really, really well. There\u2019s absolutely no question we\u2019ll be the most popular food in the state before we even begin to tap the national market. And that\u2019s coming…soon.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\tNerl apparently took a noisy slurp of tea before speaking. <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThis is very good news,\u201d<\/em> he said, \u201cfor the Waddongan economy. The working people of the Islands should be very pleased with me when it\u2019s time to elect a new Prime Minister. Very pleased.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOnly thing is,\u201d<\/em> said Scalmo, \u201cI\u2019ve got a little bit of a problem with…government regulation issues, and your girl, the grad student…Flannery, who really ought to study something else. Why did you people give her those samples, anyway?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201c\u2018Twas not my idea,\u201d<\/em> responded Nerl sharply. \u201cI was against it. But I am NOT the Prime Minister…yet.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYeah,\u201d <\/em>said Scalmo, sounding very unconvinced. \u201cWho knows with elections? You might lose! Which is why I\u2019m taking a serious look at growing my own koohoo.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou must not!\u201d<\/em> hissed Nerl. \u201cI will give you this warning: Do not attempt to grow the koohoo plant yourself!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOh, I see,\u201d<\/em> said Scalmo, \u201cbecause how will you make money if I grow my own? I get it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo,\u201d<\/em> replied Nerl. \u201cThat\u2019s not the reason. Legends abound about the koohoo plant. In our folklore…\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cFolklore?\u201d<\/em> interrupted Scalmo. \u201cLike what? Koohoo\u2019s going to grow into a thorny barricade around the city and Prince Charming\u2019ll have to save us? Give me a break.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHe\u2019s very rude,\u201d said Nola.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSshhh,\u201d said Bea.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cFortunately,\u201d<\/em> said Nerl, (and here there was the sharp scrape of a chair moving–Nerl, apparently getting up,) \u201cany attempt you make to grow koohoo will inevitably fail. I would be very concerned for you if this were not the case. Now, I have an airplane, and you have my telephone number. We will leave things on that cordial note.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHe\u2019s leaving through the front door now,\u201d said Nola, narrating.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cRight,\u201d said Bea. \u201cAnd just about now he winks at me.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tBut there was a bit more on the recording. Scalmo, muttering to himself.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cInevitably fail, will it,\u201d<\/em> he said with a chuckle. \u201cObviously, you haven\u2019t seen my greenhouse.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThen he left,\u201d said Odin. \u201cOut the side door.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cTime to wash up!\u201d yelled Petra, suddenly bustling through the living room with a basket of freshly washed sheets. \u201cDinner bell\u2019s gonna ring in fifteen minutes!\u201d <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAnd you better be hungry,\u201d said Nola, eyeing Gordy and Kitty as they popped the last bits of koo-bar into their mouths. \u201cOr Petra\u2019s going to tie you in the kitchen.\u201d <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo worries,\u201d said Michael-Dan taking a critical look at Kitty\u2019s hair, which now looked as if it had never been cut. \u201cIt\u2019s gotta take quite a bit of fuel to grow hair that fast.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAnd Gordy,\u201d added Nola, \u201cyour hair looks like a flaming carrot!\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSo,\u201d said Bea, almost to herself as she leaned back into the sofa, \u201cNow Prince Nerl is breaking Waddongan law, by illegally exporting koohoo…Scalmo is trying to take over the world with his koo-bars…or at least the country for now…and Hort\u2019s research is going to have to be safely locked up…what else am I forgetting?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe dinner bell and the door bell rang at precisely the same moment.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOh, for heaven\u2019s sake,\u201d exclaimed Petra as she tossed a basket of rolls on the dining room table and ran to open the door.<\/p>\n \n\tAs Mr. and Mrs. Professor Flannery wandered into the foyer, and the kids and Hortensia clustered in the doorway to the living room, Dierdre Fidelius breezed through the doorway, past Petra.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI have some news,\u201d she said briskly, addressing the Professors. \u201cI felt it would be more considerate to deliver it in person, as soon as possible, rather than make you wait for the mail.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d said Mrs. Professor Flannery, \u201cI don\u2019t believe we\u2019ve met.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOf course,\u201d said Ms. Fidelius, without extending a hand. \u201cDierdre Fidelius, Personal Assistant to Mervin Frostly. The news I bring comes directly from Mr. Frostly\u2019s office.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tBea sensed Gordy getting ready to emit his usual \u201cthanks\u201d refrain, and elbowed him sharply in the side.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAs you know,\u201d continued Ms. Fidelius, \u201cfunding for this residence, and scholarships for these young students come directly from Mr. Frostly\u2019s foundation.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYes, we do know,\u201d said Mr. Professor Flannery.<\/p>\n \n\tMs. Fidelius nodded. \u201cI regret to inform you that, due to a reconfiguration of the Foundation\u2019s priorities, the scholarships are to be eliminated, and this house sold, effective in 3 weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tNot a word was uttered in the foyer, and scarcely a breath exhaled, as Dierdre Fidelius turned on her clicking high heels, and exited.<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What was Prince Nerl of the North Waddo Islands doing in New Stirling, and why was he meeting with Hiram Scalmo? Bea gave a fleeting thought to running after him, but by the time she\u2019d decided to do it, he\u2019d climbed into a taxicab and sped off. Bea turned around to see Odin and Nola […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=349"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":400,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349\/revisions\/400"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}