With a wave of her wand, Irene stepped out of camera range and stood smiling and bowing to the studio audience as the curtain descended. Judy forgot to look at the advertising. She was seeing only Irene.
“She’s the star of this show. Francine Dow can’t be any more wonderful than she was,” Judy whispered.
“I hope she’s here.”
Was Pauline worried, too? Clarissa was heard to whisper, “Oh dear, I left my two bottles of shampoo back there in the witch’s dressing room.”
“You can get them after the show,” Flo whispered back. She turned to Pauline and said something about the commercial. Several people left their seats during the intermission, but Judy stayed where she was. She didn’t want to miss anything.
As soon as the commercial was over, the cameras were again on Irene. She stood in front of the curtain.
“The king has issued a decree commanding that every spindle in the kingdom be burnt, but it is no use,” she said sadly. “Fifteen years have passed. The witch’s curse is almost forgotten, but look what’s hidden away in a dusty old room at the top of the castle!”
The curtain opened on the set she had described. There, before an old spinning wheel, sat the witch spinning flax. For a time nothing was heard except the whir of the spinning wheel. Then a door opened, and a lovely young girl tiptoed in. Judy breathed a sigh of relief.
“It’s Francine Dow! Her hair is golden just as I knew it was,” Pauline whispered.
“It could be a wig,” Flo whispered back.