Chapter Fourteen

Emma

It was strange being back at the diner the following morning. I arrived before anyone else—as usual—and was shocked to find a pile of bloodied towels in the garbage bin. I appreciated that Dylan had seen to the clean up, but seeing the results—the proof—of his interrogations turned my stomach. How was it that Dylan could be such a tender man in moments of grief and pain and yet turn into such a violent force of nature? I hurried to bury the blood-soaked towels under another bag of trash and found some expired food in the fridge. It would all get taken away at the end of the day, but I knew the image of it wouldn’t leave me for some time to come.

Kate showed up a little while later and reported that Tommy had gotten off to school without issue. We worked together in silence, each knowing our roles like clockwork. Kate had started working in the diner after school when she was a junior and went full time after she graduated. She was taking night school classes—business management or whatever flavor of the month major she was currently on—but I knew it would be a while before I needed to worry about finding her replacement. She didn’t seem to be in any particular hurry.

The morning was always a blitz, especially on the weekdays when everyone was in a hurry and eager to get in and out as fast as possible. “I swear they think we’re a Starbucks or something,” Kate complained when the last of the rush died down. “How can we be expected to keep up with that when we serve a full breakfast? I only have two hands.”

“I know.” I gave her a sympathetic nod. “I wanted to work on simplifying the breakfast menu. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while now, but Tommy—well, he didn’t like the idea.”

That was putting it mildly. I think his exact words were that I was trying to undermine the business so that we’d have to close down and I could stay home all day.

Asshole.

Kate looked up from the stack of menus she was wiping down. “Not to sound...cold, but you’re the one in charge now, Em. You can do what you think is best from here on out.”

“I suppose that’s true. Although, to be honest, this was never my dream.” I looked around the diner, as though my words could offend it.

“What do you want to do?” Kate asked, starting her work again.

I sighed. “That’s the problem. I have no idea.”

“Did Tommy have a life insurance policy?”

It was an innocent question, but it ruffled my feathers. His funeral had only been a few days before. Was it really appropriate to discuss his death benefits? The words death and benefits shouldn’t go together, in my opinion.

Kate paused and frowned over at me. “Sorry, Em. I shouldn’t have asked. It’s really not my business.”

“No, no. It’s a fair question. As far as I know there was an insurance policy in place. He set it up when Tommy Jr. was born.”

As long as he hadn’t gambled that away somehow, we’d be taken care of for a little while.

I hadn’t confided in Kate about the things Dylan had told me. I hadn’t told anyone. Mostly I tried not to think about it.

“So, in theory, could you sell this place if you wanted to?”

I poured myself a cup of coffee and took my time pouring cream and sugar into it. The spoon clattered against the edges of the ceramic mug, and I stared down at the swirling liquid as it turned from nearly black to an almond color. I’d always wanted to learn how to make fancy latte art, but Tommy had refused to buy a steaming machine. He said people should be happy with plain coffee. Maybe that’s where I could start. Get a proper espresso machine and take some barista classes. The idea sparked but quickly faded.

“I suppose so,” I said to Kate as I moved to take a seat on one of the stools at the counter. “At least the business. I don’t own any real estate.” We didn’t get a lot of down time throughout the day, so when a spare moment popped up I liked to get off my feet.

“Will you?”

“I don’t know, Kate. Why so many questions?”

She shrugged. “Just curious what you plan to do.”

“I don’t know. I’d have to find something else to do with my time. The money wouldn’t hold out forever.” My knees bobbed as I tapped my feet on the floor. “You think Mom would ever want to leave?”

“Leave Brighton?”

Kate’s tone was an answer in itself. “Never mind. No one ever leaves Brighton.” I waved a hand and then picked up my coffee.

Kate set aside the pile of menus. “Dylan did. You’re really thinking of leaving Brighton?”

I dragged my eyes from the view of the street outside the diner’s front windows and back to hers. “Dylan joined the Navy. He’s back now, anyway. You and I both know that hardly anyone gets out of this place.”

“Trust me, I know.”

Something in her voice pricked at my curiosity, but before I could ask her what she meant, the doorbell chimed and a group of men in three-piece suits made their way inside. We were starting to get drop-ins from some of the new low rise construction going up, the overflow from companies in Boston looking for cheaper office space in the outskirts. A much needed uptick for Brighton. I slapped on a smile and helped them get situated in a corner booth.