Finger Food by Helen Lederer Page B

hiss.
    â€˜You may have lost me this pilot, Bella, and if you have I will personally see to it that your life is ruined. Now I have to go back and try and persuade Tony Trimble to give this show another chance.’
    She turned and retreated upstairs.
    There was a pause. Juliet eyed the knife in Bella’s hand, as if deciding whether it might be safe to make a run for it.
    From the gallery came the sound of Yvonne speaking in a little-girl voice which Bella had never heard before.
    â€˜Tony, darling, once we get rid of Bella we can nail the audience figures! It’s a fantastic idea of mine! You said so yourself.’
    â€˜The audience seem to be finding Bella rather … engaging,’ replied Tony.
    â€˜Oh darling!’ smooched Yvonne, ‘you’re so sweet when you’re puzzled. Come here. Come closer.’
    â€˜Just for a quickie then. My wife promised to check in on the show.’
    A ripple of shock ran through the audience.
    â€˜Better than Emmerdale ,’ repeated the old man happily.
    There was a sudden scream.
    â€˜Noooooooo!’ It was Fiona. She had just made sense of what Yvonne had said about her.
    â€˜I need my job!’ she raged. ‘Zee Zee and I are saving for our wedding. I can’t be sacked!’
    She swept the cakes off the counter and threw two wine bottles across the set. They smashed against the neon ‘Finger Food’ sign.
    â€˜Nooooo!’ she yelled again, tearing apart the box of melon rubbish.
    Bella ran to calm her down. But before she could get to her Fiona had dropped the box and was tearing off her shoes.
    â€˜I’ll show them, Zee Zee!’ she screamed, aiming a shoe at the gallery. ‘If it’s an insult for you, it’s an insult for me!’
    By this time Juliet had also understood what was going on up in the gallery. ‘Tony, how could you!’ she asked in disbelief. She then decided that a fit of hysteria might be the best way to get attention. Trapped between Bella and Fiona, the strain was too much. She began wailing at the top of her voice.
    In an instant, the St John Ambulance lady was on set, pushing Juliet onto the sofa and soothing her.
    Normally Bella would have been interested to see the queen of daytime television reduced to wailing. But the moment Fiona had taken her shoes off, all Bella’s attention was on her feet.
    She pointed at Fiona’s toes.
    â€˜Fiona! Fiona, your toe.’
    â€˜What about it?’ Fiona asked, pausing mid shoe-throw, and wiggling her sixth toe.
    â€˜I have one of those as well,’ said Bella. ‘I have six toes too! It runs in the family,’ she added, ‘on the mother’s side.’
    Fiona shrugged. ‘I never knew my mother,’ she said. ‘I was given up for adoption as a baby. The papers said my mother was a Girl Guide who was forced to give me up because of her pushy mother. I’ve only just tracked down my real father ’cos Zee Zee said I had to, and he said that was all true. Oh …’
    She slowly looked at Bella. Bella’s mouth fell open. Could it? Could it be?’ Your father,’ she said very quietly, ‘what is his name?’
    â€˜Ian,’ said Fiona, equally quietly, ‘Ian Smith. I wanted to find my real parents because of the wedding. But I only found one of them.’
    â€˜Fiona!’ Bella could hardly breathe. ‘It was me! I was the Girl Guide! I was the one who gave you up. And I’ve wished every day since …’ The words began to choke her. ‘Every day since, that I’d kept you.’
    Fiona gasped. Bella threw off her shoes and waved her six-toed foot at Fiona who waved hers back. The audience went wild.
    Bella ran to Fiona and they embraced.
    There was a party atmosphere on set. The camera was rolling and it looked like a very happy TV show. Fiona’s phone went and this time it really was Zee Zee. She gave him a long excited run-down of the events of