APRIL
Things happened over the next few weeks, but none were good. If possible things kept getting worse. Joe was a nice guy and he and his invisible shovel were digging her out of a hole. It would never be right, but at least she wouldn't get buried alive.
Kat discovered the restaurant community was close knit the hard way. As she applied for jobs all over the city, they turned her down without an interview. A friend from her old job confirmed. "Everyone knows you defaulted on vendors. No one will risk hiring you and losing their vendors."
Why would they turn away business just because she worked in a kitchen? Unemployed, she sat in her parents' home feeling worthless. She baked, but her mother complained about gaining weight.
She spent hours looking at the photos in the shoebox. Sometimes she talked to Pops, wishing he were still alive. Tears dripped down her cheek. Kitty Kat, you've got to pull yourself up and go on. Think outside the box. Box. Photos. Coffin. None of the above would get her back in a kitchen doing what she loved.
George had landed a job, which eased some guilt. He had kids to feed. The front of the house was Bryce's staff. She didn't care where they ended up. According to Donny, a lot of the staff got high after hours. "I thought you knew, chef."
Hell no. She couldn't blame the kid. By starting over in a new kitchen, he had lost his hope of advancing. She figured her former staff spread half the rumors. It didn't matter, because whoever was to blame she was still blackballed in Boston.
The only silver lining was Bryce left a text, because she refused to take his calls, that he was moving out of the apartment. He offered her anything she wanted. She wanted the new mattress she bought after the restaurant's initial success along with the sofa. Fuck it, she would take his TV. The night her life changed, they had taken baking equipment and supplies along with her clothes. Thankfully, Bryce hadn't been home when her father went with her. Seth Cousins was a gentle man, but his anger had peaked and he had been looking for a fight.
Building a life took a lot longer than unraveling one. For nine years, she and Bryce had moved towards each other, but the tenth year he moved away from her and she was too stupid to notice. In truth, she had been too busy to see. Work, sleep, work had been her pattern for months. They hardly saw each other at the restaurant and she thought he missed her. In retrospect, he had missed nothing but the pain pills and whatever else he bought with stolen funds. Trust eroded. She would never trust again.
Once the unraveling started, it didn't stop. After working nonstop, she had days with nothing to do but apply for jobs she would never get. She even tried some bakeries hoping they were outside the rumor mill, but she was overqualified.
Ramona frowned at her as she sat in front of the TV watching cartoons. "You can't waste your life away."
"My life imploded. I have no life."
Her mother shook her head. Kat braced herself for her mother's diatribe of lies about how she never trusted Bryce. "A failed relationship and business feels like a lot, but your life is more than that. You pick up the pieces and go on."
"It was my dream, not just my business."
"You'll have other dreams. You are young."
"Too young to be blacklisted."
"Look outside Boston."
Kat sighed. "You want me to move out?"
Ramona shook her head. "I want you to move off this couch. Do something. Go for a walk."
She looked at her mother. A walk took energy she didn't have. Plus, with her luck she would break a limb on the snow-covered sidewalk. Physical pain might push away the pain of failure, betrayal, humiliation. "I'll do something tomorrow."
Alone in her room, she looked through her grandfather's photos and wished her family still had a cottage by the ocean. Looking outside, snow coated the scraggly tree limbs like powdered sugar as they reached the sky. The beach would be cold in the winter. She wondered if it was as desolate as she felt. Feeling drawn to the place her grandparents had honeymooned, she took out her phone.
As she clicked around links, she discovered it wasn't desolate. A coffee house had featured the lead singer in a country group. A kids' book author held a signing event. She would expect these events to happen in the summer, but both had taken place in the winter.
She even found a Facebook page selling calendars to raise money for a local charity which helped needy families. It was one of those hunk calendars with half-naked men. The shirtless guy on the cover with the tool belt sizzled. Hot guys and entertainment was not what she expected.
Other links took her to an elegant inn. Maybe they were hiring? A search for jobs in the area led her to Portland. Although it was known as a foodie city, she had never been. Maybe a change would be good. It wasn't that far from her parents, but a new market with new vendors. Unfortunately, the only jobs were for line cooks. She expected to step down to sous chef or even a specialized chef in a large kitchen, but a cook wasn't a chef. The blow hurt her ego. She applied to a job south of Maine, in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It was another city she heard was up and coming.
After a few days, the thanks but no thanks email arrived. Anger bubbled just under the surface and she dialed the number. After she waited on hold, they transferred the call. It was the lull between prep and dinner service, so she hoped she timed it right.
It surprised her the head chef took her call, even though a business manager sent the rejection. He listened and said, "I remember. A failed restaurant is professional suicide."
"But my business manager embezzled the profits and..."
"Can't do it. I have a reputation. You need to build your career over. I need a dishwasher."
"I was washing dishes at fourteen. I bake pastries."
"I've got the best. Try a bakery. Good luck."
The line went dead. The entire northeast had banished her. Who was she kidding? Any reputable restaurant. She could list her previous position, but then she would lie about a gap in her work history. Feeling disappointed, she looked at the images of her grandparents' beach online.
Pops, help! Send me a sign.
She scrolled down and stopped. A job listing. Manager, The Landing. What was The Landing? A place without Facebook or social media. She found an article about the best lobster rolls. It was not exactly gourmet, but they were also known for coffee and coffee meant pastries. She could bake and find her way back away from Boston.
Knowing she was overqualified, but with nothing left to lose, she applied without mentioning it to her parents. The Zoom interview left her unsure of the position. Obviously, they zeroed in on her being over qualified. She omitted the part where she owned the mismanaged restaurant. Part of her thought she was crazy to take a job making sandwiches. Maybe she could add some dinner entrees. Honestly, if the old guy on Zoom could run the place, she could with her eyes closed. He wasn't as old as Pops, but he was well past retirement age.
The biggest surprise of all came when they invited her for a second interview. Nervousness mingled with excitement as she put distance between herself and Boston. The lies kept piling up and she told her mother she was getting out of the house for a while. Ramona didn't question her because Bryce had shown up at their door the night before.
Livid didn't describe the thief's response to being served with a civil lawsuit. In addition, they had reported the embezzlement to the police. It seemed futile because she couldn't get money from a stone. Meanwhile, Joe was negotiating to reduce the debt with their vendors. If he wasn't successful, bankruptcy was the only option. They would sell all the equipment leaving Kat with only her knife set. Tears formed at the thought of losing her commercial pans and large mixer. She could use them if she really took the job at the beach.
Luckily, Bryce left on his own because her father threatened to call the police. She remembered yelling, "You ruined it all. You ruined us." Tears poured out. She once dreamed of raising a family together.
As Kat drove north, she couldn't let the mortification get to her. Put on a confident, cheerful face, she repeated. When she drove on the narrow road with marsh on both sides, she imagined her grandparents doing the same. When she stepped out of her car and stretched, the knot tightened in her belly.
The bell rang as the door opened. The brightly lit place had a comfortable, homey feel and the scent of coffee overpowered anything else. Before she reached the counter Rick met her with an outstretched hand and a woman beside him.
"Kat, this is my daughter, Jen."
"Do you work here too?"
Jen smiled. "Not since summer during college. My husband is a regular customer. We have a lot of them." She smiled. In the kitchen, she rarely met customers. "Here, I'll show you the grocery section. It's small but people rely on it."
Retail was not her thing, but how hard could it be. She smiled when she stepped behind the counter. The sandwich board was clean and up to standards. She didn't see an oven. She wanted to bake. From the muffin selection in the case, she knew she could up the standards.
"Come sit. Coffee."
She nodded although she preferred lattes. Rick led her to a small table and put a cup down in front of her. Her sip was one she would always remember. Maybe the Maine water was better, but it tasted delicious.
"I assume you have established suppliers."
"They're all local. We buy the lobsters from Evan's here on The Point. The new owner insists that won't change."
"Who does the manager report to?"
"An investment group."
She nodded. "A lot of restaurants are owned by investors." Maybe if she could have found one to save her own kitchen. Too late, as she contemplated reversing her career momentum. Call it penance for being stupid.
The guy near them was listening which left her uncomfortable so she asked to see the apartment.
Through a supply room that could use some organizing, but might not be big enough for baking, there was a set of stairs. At the top, she entered a time capsule. The furnishings reminded her of her grandparents' old place.
"How long has The Landing been here?"
"Way back, but before I bought the old place, it was all groceries."
"How long ago was that?" Maybe her grandparents shopped in the store.
He smiled. "A long time. Jen was three."
She could see the potential of the apartment, but more than that she would have her own space. Living with her parents was another step backwards. In the kitchen, there was room to bake. She smiled, at least the oven was relatively new. To really bake, she needed renovations or to rent an off-site kitchen. Those were challenges for after she got the job.
When they returned to the restaurant. Or was it a store? A line had formed for lunch. Rick smiled. "Go sit. You have a long drive. I'll bring you a lobster roll."
An older man said, "Sit with me. I'm John and I'm a regular."
She laughed. "You sound like AA."
He chuckled. "My grandkids like my jokes. Where are you from?"
By the time she bit into her lobster roll, she knew John was a retired professor from Boston. "This is incredible."
"Best in Maine. You could be part of carrying on the history."
"And a part of the family. I'm John's better half, Kelly. He disappears and never answers his phone."
"I went for a walk and then I stopped in to meet Katherine. She's a manager candidate."
"Kat, please."
"It's an early release day, I need to meet the bus. Jack has a meeting."
"You have an hour. Let's have lunch."
Kelly winked. "Twist my arm."
Kat smiled. Everyone was so nice. As she drove south, she felt more apprehensive than ever. Pops, what should I do?
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