Alice-Miranda in the Alps Read online

  ‘I’m Anton,’ the man said with a smile. He was a short fellow with a kind face and an air of calm about him.

  ‘We know,’ Millie said, pointing at his name badge.

  ‘Yes, of course,’ the man replied with a chuckle. ‘I’m afraid you can’t go any further unless you’d like to drive the train.’

  ‘That would be awesome,’ Sep gasped.

  The train guard grinned. ‘Sorry, you can’t actually do that.’

  Sep nodded, a little disappointed. ‘How many carriages are there?’ he inquired.

  ‘It can vary, depending on how many passengers we have and if there are any goods being transported over the mountains,’ the man replied. ‘Sometimes we need to hitch on extra carriages. We have two engines as well.’

  ‘Two? Why?’ Millie asked.

  ‘Well, sometimes we need pulling power at the back as well as the front, so there’s an engine up front and another at the back. That way, we can reverse the train at any time,’ Anton explained, impressed by the children’s curiosity.

  At that moment a huge plume of snow flew up past the windows and over the roof. The passengers in the carriage sat to attention, peering outside.

  ‘See that?’ Anton said. ‘That was the train ploughing the snow. They had a big dump up here last night, so there’s a scoop on the front of the engine that throws the snow up off the track.’

  ‘Cool,’ Sep breathed as another huge spray of powder slapped at the roof.

  ‘Does the train really cross a glacier?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

  Anton chuckled again. ‘No, they’re much higher up in the mountains. The train used to travel overland the whole way but it was too dangerous in winter. There’s now a network of tunnels so that it can run all year round.’

  ‘Hey, it’s snowing,’ Lucas said, pointing to the fat flakes pouring from the sky. It looked as if someone was standing on the roof with a bucket of white confetti and shaking it onto the ground.

  ‘Can we walk to the other end of the train too?’ Sep asked.

  ‘Sure,’ the man replied cheerfully. ‘Just watch out for Andreas.’

  Sloane frowned. ‘Who’s that?’

  ‘You’ll see,’ Anton said with a wink.

  The children waved goodbye to him and headed back the other way. They passed Hamish and Pippa having a coffee in the dining car, then Cecelia, who had her head firmly buried in a book. They continued on through another few carriages until they reached a door with the word ‘Private’ emblazoned across it.

  ‘End of the line,’ Sep announced. ‘So to speak.’

  Just as they were about to head back, the door opened and a tall man with thick caterpillar-like eyebrows and crow-black hair walked out. He had a thin moustache and wore a sneer on his lips.

  ‘What are you doing?’ he barked, eyeing Sep suspiciously. He glanced over the boy’s shoulder at the others. ‘Go back to your seats. Children are not allowed to wander around unsupervised.’

  ‘Do you think Grouchy Doerflinger has a brother?’ Millie whispered to Sloane, who smothered a giggle.

  ‘Are you an engine driver?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

  ‘Yes,’ the man said gruffly. ‘Now, move along.’

  Alice-Miranda thought the fellow seemed vaguely familiar, but before she had time to ask him anything else, he disappeared through the door, closing it behind him.

  ‘He’s not the friendliest member of staff, is he?’ Millie grumbled as the children returned to their carriage.

  ‘No,’ Sep agreed, shaking his head.

  ‘Must be why Anton warned us to watch out for him,’ Sloane said.

  ‘Come on, who wants to play cards?’ Lucas asked.

  There were nods all around.

  While the group walked to their carriage, swaying with the motion of the train, something about the engine driver niggled at Alice-Miranda. It was as if a memory were scratching at the back of her mind, refusing to come into focus. She wondered if she had seen him somewhere before. If only she could remember.

  The sun had long disappeared by the time the train pulled into the station at Zermatt.

  ‘Hello everyone,’ Hugh greeted them once they were all on the platform. ‘How was the trip?’

  Alice-Miranda ran up and hugged her father.

  ‘Stunning,’ Pippa said with a sigh. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much gorgeousness in one day.’

  Alice-Miranda tugged on her father’s sleeve. ‘Have you and Uncle Florian sorted out the problem yet?’ she asked quietly.

  ‘I’m afraid not, sweetheart,’ Hugh replied. ‘It’s a real mystery, but don’t you worry, we’ll figure it out.’

  ‘I can’t believe it took eight hours to get here,’ Hamish said. ‘It was all over in a blink, really.’

  Millie rolled her eyes. ‘That’s because you were asleep for half the time, Daddy.’

  ‘I spoke to Cyril last night,’ Cecelia said. ‘He was being released from the hospital this morning and he’s promised me he’s going to get plenty of rest so he’s fit to fly by the weekend.’

  Hugh grinned and gave his wife a kiss on the cheek. ‘That’s good news.’

  ‘Dolly sent a message to say that she and Shilly arrived in Zurich and have already done the red bus tour and visited several galleries. I think they’re going to need a holiday from their holiday once we get home,’ Cecelia laughed.

  A man with a thin moustache and eyes as black as coals approached the group. He was dressed in a long navy coat with capelet shoulders and a peaked cap. ‘Excuse me, sir, would you like me to load the bags?’ he asked Hugh.

  ‘Yes, thank you, Marius,’ Hugh replied. ‘Come on, everyone, that’s our ride over there.’ Hugh pointed to a shiny navy-blue carriage pulled by two handsome grey horses.

  ‘Wow!’ Millie exclaimed. ‘That’s gorgeous.’

  ‘You’re right about it being different to St Moritz,’ Jacinta said.

  She looked around at the railway station, where several horse-drawn carriages were being loaded. A line of electric minibuses resembling oversized golf carts sat nose to tail on the roadway. The lights in the village twinkled, revealing the wash of houses and chalets halfway up the mountainside. It all seemed more intimate and modest than the sprawl of St Moritz.

  ‘Where’s the hotel?’ Sloane asked.

  ‘It’s that way.’ Alice-Miranda pointed to their right. ‘We could walk – it’s not very far.’

  ‘Can we go in the carriage just this once?’ Sloane pleaded.

  Alice-Miranda grinned at her friend. ‘Of course.’

  The man in the long coat began to load the bags onto the top of the carriage. Alice-Miranda wondered why he didn’t just use the little trailer which was attached to the back. It seemed like it would be more troublesome to haul the cases onto the roof.

  ‘Hello,’ Alice-Miranda said as she passed her small red suitcase to him. ‘My name is Alice-Miranda Highton-Smith-Kennington-Jones. I don’t think we met last time we were here, Herr …?’

  ‘Roten,’ the man said.

  Millie guffawed but was quickly silenced by the glare he threw her way.

  ‘How do you spell that?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

  ‘As it sounds,’ the man said through gritted teeth. ‘Why don’t you get into the carriage? I have many bags to secure.’

  ‘Perhaps you could use the trailer instead,’ the child suggested. ‘It would be much easier to load.’

  Millie shook her head. ‘It’s full of those big white Fanger’s Chocolate carriers,’ she said.

  ‘What are you doing looking back there?’ The man jumped down and stormed around to secure the lock on the trailer.

  ‘It’s only chocolate,’ Millie muttered. ‘You’d think he was carting around gold or something.’

  Marius returned to the pile of bags.

  ‘Well, it’s lovely to meet you, Herr Roten. Thank you for driving us,’ Alice-Miranda said. She was just about to walk away when she stopped. ‘You know, you look a lot like a man we met
on the train. His name was Andreas.’

  Marius grunted. ‘I don’t know anyone on the Glacier Express.’

  ‘That’s uncanny,’ the child said. ‘Don’t you think so, Millie?’

  But Millie wasn’t listening. She was watching the funicular head slowly up the mountain. ‘Sorry, what did you say?’ she asked.

  ‘Don’t you think Herr Roten looks a lot like Andreas?’ Alice-Miranda repeated.

  Millie raised her eyebrows. ‘Yes,’ she said, studying Marius closely. ‘You could almost be his twin.’

  ‘I don’t have a twin,’ Marius said sharply. ‘Now, if you wouldn’t mind moving along, I know that your party would like to get to the hotel before dinner.’

  ‘His name suits him that’s for sure,’ Millie mumbled.

  The two girls walked around to give the horses a pat. ‘If I remember correctly, I think this old boy is Harry and that’s Hazel,’ Alice-Miranda said.

  ‘Do they belong to your Uncle Florian?’ Millie asked.

  Alice-Miranda nodded. ‘They live in the stables at the back of the hotel.’

  Millie reached up to give one of the horses a rub. The beast whinnied and threw its head back and forth, jerking the carriage and almost causing Marius to fall off the back.

  ‘Hey!’ Marius shouted. ‘Don’t touch the horses!’

  Millie stepped away and cooed at the creature. ‘It’s all right. You don’t have to be scared.’ But it was clear the beast was terrified. ‘Look at him – he’s shaking,’ Millie said. She spied a long whip sitting vertically in an ornate bracket beside the driver’s seat and pointed to it. ‘Maybe Herr Roten uses that on them.’

  ‘I don’t think so,’ Alice-Miranda said, horrified at the thought of it. ‘All the carriages have whips but I’m almost certain they’re just for show. I’ve never seen any of the drivers here use one. Besides, they can’t do more than a slow trot in the village or they’d run people over.’ She stood in front of the other horse. It was pawing the ground, its eyes wild. ‘Come on, Hazel, you’re all right,’ the girl whispered.

  ‘You’d think these two would be used to having lots of people patting them,’ Millie said.

  Alice-Miranda thought so too. She didn’t remember them being skittish the last time she and her parents visited.

  ‘All aboard,’ Hugh called.

  Millie and Alice-Miranda scurried around to the open door and hauled themselves up. The carriage was large enough to take the whole party together, although Hugh and Hamish elected to walk.

  ‘We’ll see you up there in a minute,’ Hugh said as Marius climbed into the driver’s seat and grabbed the reins.

  Alice-Miranda looked out of the window at the station.

  ‘I’ll be back soon,’ she heard Marius shout. She couldn’t see who he was talking to but, when they pulled away, she caught a glimpse of Andreas standing by the tourist office and she could have sworn he’d nodded his head.

  The children stared out at the shops and cafes that lined the main street of Zermatt. The carriage moved slowly along the roadway as hordes of skiers walked back to their hotels and chalets. Some were even skiing along the snowy footpaths.

  ‘I can’t wait to get up on the mountain tomorrow,’ Lucas said, peering out the window. ‘I think I might give snowboarding a try.’

  ‘I’ll snowboard with you, if it’s all right with Mummy and Daddy,’ Millie said, looking to her mother.

  ‘I don’t see why not,’ Pippa replied. ‘You’ve done fabulously well on your skis this past week, so I’m sure you’ll be great on a board too.’

  ‘What about you, Alice-Miranda?’ Millie asked, turning to her friend.

  The girl shook her head. ‘It’s skis all the way for me – at least for this year.’

  ‘I’m with Alice-Miranda,’ Sep chimed in. ‘I need to get better on two planks before I try one.’

  The carriage continued up the hill before turning left into the driveway of the Grand Hotel Von Zwicky. Right next door was the Matterhorn Museum, which was mostly underground and accessed by a glass entrance at road level, and further along was a beautiful church with a tall spire. They were surprised to see Hugh and Hamish standing beside the Baron and Baroness.

  Giselle von Zwicky held her arms wide as Cecelia stepped down from the carriage.

  ‘Are you all right, my dear?’ Cecelia whispered when the two women embraced.

  ‘All the better for seeing you,’ Giselle replied softly. She stepped back, her eyes shining.

  Cecelia then embraced Florian and proceeded to introduce everyone as they spilled out onto the hotel steps.

  The Baroness hugged Alice-Miranda tightly. ‘My darling girl.’

  ‘Hello Aunt Giselle.’ Alice-Miranda kissed the old woman several times on both cheeks.

  ‘Five kisses!’ the Baroness gasped. ‘To what do I owe such grand affection?’

  ‘Just because,’ the child replied as the Baron scooped her into a big bear hug. ‘Uncle Florian, I’m sorry I didn’t keep your secret,’ she said.

  The Baron shook his head. ‘It is I who am sorry. I should not have asked that of you,’ he said, returning her to the ground. ‘Come, everyone,’ he called, ‘supper will be ready soon. Marius will take your bags.’ With a sweep of his arms, he gestured for them to follow.

  ‘Where is Schlappi?’ Marius asked hotly.

  ‘I have given him the night off,’ the Baron replied.

  Marius scowled. ‘But I have to return some boxes to the train.’

  Millie’s eyes lit up. ‘Oh, the chocolate boxes?’ she said. ‘We went past the Fanger’s Chocolate factory in Disentis.’

  Alice-Miranda nodded. ‘Brigitte at Fanger’s told us all about the big award they won for their innovative packaging and recycling.’

  ‘Fanger’s boxes?’ The Baron frowned. ‘I cannot imagine we would have many of them – we are certainly not going through chocolate the way we used to. Besides, the train will not leave until the morning.’

  Marius gulped and looked daggers at the girls before trudging away to deal with the luggage.

  ‘Is he always so accommodating?’ Hugh chuckled, slapping the Baron on the back.

  ‘My friend, you of all people know that not all employees are happy all of the time,’ the Baron replied with a grin.

  ‘How long has Marius been working for you?’ Hugh asked as the pair walked inside.

  ‘Only about a year,’ Florian replied.

  Hugh nodded. He couldn’t help but wonder about the timing.

  The party followed the Baroness through the hotel foyer and into a vast lounge that was every bit as grand as Fanger’s Palace.

  ‘Where is everyone?’ Millie whispered to Alice-Miranda, surveying the empty room.

  Alice-Miranda glanced around, her face grim. ‘It wasn’t like this last time we were here.’

  ‘You must all be exhausted,’ Giselle said, clasping her hands together. ‘I’ll arrange some refreshments, then we can have an early dinner so that everyone is well rested for a full day of skiing tomorrow.’

  As the group settled onto the plush couches in the lounge, Alice-Miranda and Millie excused themselves and headed to the powder room.

  ‘I wasn’t joking before,’ Millie said, turning to her friend. ‘Where are all the people?’

  Alice-Miranda shrugged. ‘No one knows. That’s why Daddy came over with Uncle Florian a couple of days ago – to see if they could work out why there are hardly any guests.’

  Millie gazed around at the elegant decor. ‘It’s so weird. This hotel is gorgeous.’

  ‘I know,’ Alice-Miranda replied. ‘Hopefully Daddy and Mummy can help sort it out before it’s too late.’

  ‘Too late for what?’ Millie asked as she pushed open the powder-room door.

  The room was huge, with a double row of toilets and an expanse of marble countertop with inlaid porcelain sinks and brass taps. Millie marvelled at the luxurious lounges and coffee table at the end of the room, although she couldn’t imagine why anyon
e would want to stay in the loo any longer than necessary, no matter how lovely it was.

  ‘Well, they can’t run a hotel without guests,’ Alice-Miranda replied, walking into one of the cubicles and closing the door.

  ‘Good point,’ Millie said, ducking into the next stall.

  The girls heard the clacking of heels across the marble floor and the sound of a tap running.

  Alice-Miranda flushed the toilet and walked out to find a slim woman in a smart uniform applying lipstick in front of the mirror. With her hair pulled into an elegant French roll, she was pretty in a sharp sort of way. The child smiled at her. ‘Hello, I’m Alice-Miranda.’

  ‘Good evening,’ the woman said cordially. ‘I’m Valerie. I work in reception.’

  Millie walked out of the cubicle and smiled at the woman before washing her hands. Just as Alice-Miranda was about to say something, Valerie’s pocket began to ring. The receptionist packed away her lipstick and pulled out her phone.

  ‘Don’t mind us,’ Alice-Miranda said, wiping her hands with a fresh handtowel.

  Valerie shrugged, then rejected the call with a swipe of her manicured hand. ‘Aunt Delph–’ she said, swallowing the rest of the word, ‘can wait.’

  ‘Delph?’ Alice-Miranda said, her ears perking up at the name. ‘We just met a lady called Delphine Doerflinger in St Moritz. She’s not your aunt, is she?’

  Valerie laughed delicately, blotting her lips with a tissue. ‘No, everyone in Switzerland has an Aunt Delphine.’

  ‘Really?’ Millie said, surprised that the guidebook had left out such an interesting bit of trivia.

  Alice-Miranda shook her head, grinning. ‘Valerie just means that it’s a very common name here, that’s all. Like everyone has an Aunt Mary at home.’

  Millie raised an eyebrow. ‘I don’t.’

  Valerie checked her lipstick one last time before walking out of the room. ‘Enjoy your holiday, girls,’ she trilled.

  ‘She seems nice,’ Millie said, drying her hands. ‘It can’t be the staff that’s the problem then, unless you count Rotten Marius.’

  Alice-Miranda grinned. ‘He’s not that bad.’