Chapter Sixteen: Just in the Nick of Time Ashleigh

Standing in front of the principal, and trying to sound confident and convincing, Calipso explained on behalf of the Super Six how they had seen the army of rats earlier that morning and that they all had a 'hunch' that the health inspector would be visiting Fernwood High School very soon .
“Hmmm, this is an interesting matter that you have come to discuss with me girls,” said Mrs Sheraton, removing her glasses from the end of her nose.
“But what exactly has brought on this 'hunch' about a surprise health inspection?” the principal asked curiously.
“Uh...how do we know about the inspection?” Chelsea asked nervously, looking at her friends for help.
Jade rescued her. “Well...we're doing a project on it...”
“Yes, a project on Health and Hygiene...” added Roxanne.
“Health and Hygiene, specifically regarding food...” Annie chipped in.
“Health violations in kitchens, restaurants, hotels, schools, that kind of thing,” said Charlotte.
“Yes, and while we were busy with our research, we read a newspaper article about health inspectors that have recently been visiting schools with kitchen facilities. It mentioned that the Board of Health and Hygiene believe that hygiene in kitchens is of the utmost importance and that they would be doing all they could to ensure that schools, restaurants and hotels in our province comply with the health regulations as outlined in the Health Code.”
Calipso swallowed and hoped that her improvised speech had been believable.
“It seems that they don't like to warn anyone about health inspections. The inspectors prefer to arrive unannounced so that things aren't cleaned up just before they arrive and then forgotten about and neglected again afterwards. If an inspection is passed successfully, it proves to the Board that those concerned are making a concerted effort to keep their facilities clean and hygienic at all times.”
Jade had liked Calipso's improvised white lie about finding an article and decided to mention more about the element of surprise behind the inspections. Between the two of them, they delivered a very convincing argument.
“Hmmm, that does make sense. I'm very impressed girls, you have clearly worked hard on this project of yours and you seem to have done some excellent research. Now, the only problem is, how do we get rid of the jolly rats?” she asked, resting her chin in the palm of her hand.
“There must be some sort of exterminating company in the area. Surely they would be able to come and lay rat poison around the school?” thought Chelsea aloud.
“Yes, exactly,” agreed Mrs Sheraton. “Do you girls have any idea about when this inspection might take place?”
“We think it might be within the next few days,” answered Calipso.
***
The next morning, as the girls were walking to their first lesson of the new week, they happened to walk past Mrs Sheraton talking to a very enthusiastic young man with a spray canister strapped to his back.
“That should do it ma’am, I've covered the whole area and have treated all the hotspots with my special potion,” they overheard the man saying. They couldn't help but giggle at his obvious excitement.
The principal caught sight of the girls and signalled to them to join her.
“Ah, girls, this is Nick, from 'Extreme Exterminators'. Nick, these are the girls that discovered the beastly little rodents on our property. Perhaps they can show you exactly where they saw them, just in case you missed that spot.”
“Alrighty,” he answered cheerfully.
The girls nodded, muffling more giggles, and led Nick past the school hall to the drain behind the kitchen.
“Yip, I've given that spot a generous spray of my lethal Pest Potion. The rats do love to huddle near the drains and pretty much wherever they can find food scraps. But they won't be around for much longer, ha!” gloated Nick, pointing his spray gun at an imaginary rat. His job clearly gave him great satisfaction.
“How long does it take for that poison to work?” asked Jade out of curiosity.
Nick suddenly broke into song. It was a rap song with actions and everything:

“It takes seconds for my potion
to kick into motion,
Ladies you can say good-bye
to every rat, bug and fly.
You can show me any pest
And I'll lay them straight to rest.”

“I see,” said Jade, not quite sure what to make of Nick's song which he sang twice, both times with very dramatic actions and dance moves.
“Not long, sweet ladies, not long at all. I best be off, enjoy the rest of this spectacular day,” he lifted his hat as he turned and walked away.
The girls turned back towards the classroom block and howled with laughter as they repeated Nick's rap all the way to English.
During the next few days, the girls checked every drain they walked past. They also found plenty of excuses to go into the kitchen, to ask for more butter, juice or napkins, and while they were there they checked every nook and cranny in the huge kitchen. They didn't see a single rat anywhere. The girls weren't sure of it was Nick's poisonous spray or his awful singing that had chased te rats away, but whatever it was it seemed to have worked.
A few days later, the girls were deep in conversation while walking to the swimming pool for an afternoon swim. They had to walk past the front office to get from Oak House to the pool, and just as they rounded the corner, they saw an elderly man in a grey uniform walk into the office block. They looked at each other with eyes as big as saucers and there was no need for them to say a word, they knew exactly who the man was.
“Quickly, behind that bush,” whispered Annie.
The others followed her and they all huddled behind the rose bush underneath Mrs Sheraton's office window. They heard the knock on Mrs Sheraton's door and then a deep voice introduced himself as Mr Snickhelberg. He went on to explain that he was a Health Inspector and was at the school to inspect the health and hygiene of Fernwood's facilities.
“Certainly Mr Snickhelberg, it's a pleasure to meet you,” replied Mrs Sheraton, who did not show as much surprise as Mr Snickhelberg had expected.
If you would like to follow me, you can start your inspection right away,” said Mrs Sheraton, and they heard two sets of footsteps leaving her office.
The girls stayed hidden behind the bush and looked at each other in amazement. They couldn't believe that they had been right yet again. A job well done was what the girls were thinking. They began congratulating each other when they suddenly heard somebody clearing their throat right behind them. They hadn't been as well hidden as they thought they were, and they were startled to see Mr Snickhelberg and Mrs Sheraton standing behind them on the path.
“Good afternoon Sir, welcome to our school. My name is Calipso, and these are my friends Annie, Roxanne, Chelsea, Charlotte and Jade.”
“That's fantastic,” the short little man replied sarcastically.
“Now, if you would kindly step aside girls, I have a school to inspect and if I find one health violation, I'm closing down this school!” he spat and marched smugly down the path.
The girls waited for Mrs Sheraton to reprimand them for hiding behind the bush and eavesdropping, but instead, their principal followed the grumpy inspector without a word. The six girls stood frozen on the spot as they watched her walk away. Just before she disappeared around the corner, she turned to face the girls and winked. They beamed and felt certain that their school would pass the inspection with flying colours.
That night, just before they all went to bed, Jade did another rendition of Nick's rat potion rap and the others collapsed in fits of laughter. They had received a message from Mrs Sheraton after supper, letting them know that Fernwood had passed the health inspection. They were feeling very chuffed with themselves and agreed that the special power that the dorm under the stairs had given them had allowed them to rescue their school from a dire situation. Apparently Mr Grumpy was not able to find one health violation at Fernwood and he actually remarked on the wonderfully clean and well-kept state of the kitchen and the school grounds in general. Mrs Sheraton thanked the girls repeatedly in the note she had sent them, and said that she thought that the six of them deserved an extra sleep-out weekend before the end of the term. The girls were very excited about that as it was always refreshing to have a change of scenery.
Jade flicked the light switch once she had finished imitating Nick and climbed under her duvet.
“Well girls, we saved the day...just in the Nick of time!” she sighed.
They all giggled at Jade's clever pun. Their giggling soon died down and they lay quietly in their beds feeling content, relieved and proud of themselves. The girls eventually drifted off to sleep, a smile on each one of their peaceful little faces.