Tea & Treachery. Vicki Delany

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СКАЧАТЬ much I can do about that,” she said.

      “I guess not, but if you want to truly feel the oppression of the working classes, you should try running a restaurant in the tourist season.”

      “Or working for Rose Campbell.” Having grated a mountain of cheese while we talked, Edna took containers of yogurt out of the fridge, poured milk and orange and apple juice into jugs, and got down cereal boxes.

      I laughed. “I’m glad you’re here. We’ll be busy this morning, and Edna can use the help.”

      “I certainly can,” Edna said. “But what’s this about suing?”

      “Oh, yeah,” Bernie said. “That. You probably heard Rose yelling all the way in town. I learned some new English expressions last night.”

      “Jack has to have seen the email Rose sent to the paper,” I said. “He’s suing her.”

      “Have you seen this letter?” Edna placed everything on a tray.

      “Sadly, yes.” After Cheryl called last night, I’d insisted on Rose taking me to her computer. I searched the sent folder and found the email. It wasn’t, to say the least, flattering to the property developer. She didn’t actually come out and say he was working for the mob, but it was implied. She did more than imply that he was either accepting bribes from members of town council or bribing them.

      “Suing her over an unpublished letter seems a drastic step,” Edna said.

      “It’s a good way of ensuring everyone in town reads the contents of a letter that was going to otherwise remain unpublished,” I said.

      “Jack’s a local boy who’s done well for himself,” Edna said. “Some say not entirely by following the letter of the law. He has his enemies around here, for sure. Maybe he’s expecting someone else to come out against him soon, and he decided to send them a message.”

      “And Rose just happened to be the nearest target. She’s going to have to back down. We can’t afford to pay him a cent or to hire a lawyer to fight this for us.”

      “Do you think she will?” Bernie asked. “Fight it?”

      Edna snorted, and I said, “Rose back down? Not a chance. She’s going to push forward more than ever, guns blazing. What a mess. Nothing we can do about that right now. I’ll have a talk with her later and try to talk some sense into her. Last night she was almost gleeful at the thought of taking him on. Bernie, get to work. You can slice the tomatoes and mushrooms. If we’re lucky, the suit won’t go ahead. He’s only trying to intimidate her.”

      “Little does he know,” Edna said, “that Rose doesn’t take terribly well to intimidation.”

      “Guaranteed to rile her up and get her even more firmly on the warpath.” The sausages were perfectly browned, and I turned the heat off.

      “Has she come in yet this morning?” Bernie asked.

      “No. I hope she sleeps in until I can make my escape,” I said.

      “Good morning!” a voice called from the dining room. “Anyone there?”

      I glanced at the clock. Ten to seven.

      Edna picked up the tray. “And so the oppression of the working classes begins.”

      “What do you want me to do?” Bernie asked.

      “First, slice those mushrooms and tomatoes and toss them into that pan with a splash of olive oil and give them a light sautéing. Then be ready when Edna comes back with the breakfast orders and assemble the plates accordingly.”

      * * *

      The final guests didn’t come down until one minute to nine, so it was nine twenty before I hung up my apron. We were expecting another busy day in the tearoom; I’d have to miss my relaxing time-out on the porch this morning.

      “You can run along now,” Edna said to Bernie. “I’ll clear up and set the tables for tomorrow.”

      “Thanks. I can’t wait to get home and back to my laptop. I’ve got great ideas for the scene where Tessa O’Flannahan is fired for spilling the soup in Lord Blackheart’s lap.”

      “Tell me you didn’t name a character Lord Blackheart,” I said.

      “I didn’t, but that’s what I’m calling him until I think up something better. This is the opening scene of the book. A fancy dinner party, and poor Tessa is trying to avoid Lord Blackheart’s wandering hands when she spills the soup, but she’s fired for it. Tossed out on her ear to fend for herself.”

      “Women didn’t serve at table at fancy dinner parties,” I said.

      “They do in my book,” Bernie said.

      I poured myself a cup of coffee and took off my apron and hung it on the hook by the door. Éclair knew what that meant, and she got to her feet with a mighty stretch.

      “That’s that done,” I said. “On to the next job. What are you up to for the rest of the day?”

      “Writing, of course. I’m so excited about the scene where Tessa’s fired. Having no other options, she decides at the last minute to join her aunt and uncle and take sail to America. They think they’re going to Boston but end up on Cape Cod.”

      I opened the kitchen door, and Bernie and I stepped outside. Éclair ran on ahead. “You might want to do some historical research before you get too far into it. That way you won’t have to make a lot of changes later.” Such as not having Tessa be a footman. We climbed the three steps to the ground level. Bernie threw out her arms and took several deep breaths.

      “This is so great. I’m so glad I came. All I need is some peace and quiet. Manhattan was too noisy and crowded.”

      “I have a book I’ll lend you. It was in the house when Rose bought it. Some great pictures and drawings of the early days on the Cape. You can come and get it now.”

      “Pictures are good.” Bernie fell into step beside me. “I wish I had a sea view like this one. Anything that overlooks the water is way out of my budget.”

      “You can come here anytime,” I said. “Take a seat on a bench and just enjoy, or have a walk on the beach.”

      “I’ll do that.”

      Before I could turn and lead the way to my cottage, something moved in my peripheral vision and caught my attention. “Oh, no. I was just talking about that blasted gate and the stairs this morning. Looks like it’s finally given up the ghost.”

      “You need to get that fixed,” Bernie said. “It’s a long way down.”

      The post securing the gate to the ground leaned at a crazy angle, and shards of shattered old wood hung by one hinge. I ran for the stairs. Éclair streaked past me. I needed to put some sort of warning up to keep people away. I should be able to find ribbon in the tearoom to string across the gap until we could get it fixed. I’d ask Simon to do that right away.

      When I reached the top of the stairs, I realized that СКАЧАТЬ