“What made Russ want to start a restaurant? He was a little old for a middle-age crisis, wasn’t he?”
Water sloshed out of the bucket. The scent of sauteed onions wafted through the pass-through, making my stomach growl despite itself.
Growl.
Ah. I finally understood the name. Sometimes I’m a little slow on the uptake.
Noreen pursed her lips. “Russ’s always been a health nut.
When that McDonald’s documentary came out he’d finally had enough. He wanted to open a restaurant here in Freedom where people could have healthy options.”
“Did Greta have a say?”
“Greta rarely had a say.”
I thought about how sad that was, then said, “Why go in with Bill?”
She shot me a look that said she didn’t know why she was talking to me, or telling me so much. I didn’t quite understand it myself, but gift horses and all.
I swore under my breath.
138
Heather Webber
“Something wrong?”
“My mother.”
“Something’s wrong with your mother?”
“No, no,” I reassured. “Only that I’m the only one who got the defective cliche gene.”
One dark bushy eyebrow arched over a squinty eye. I had the uneasy feeling she was trying to determine whether I was crazy.
If she figured it out, I wished she’d let me know.
The bucket got another glance from behind the Sally Jesse glasses, then she looked up at me again and picked up where we’d left off. “Bill had the know-how.”
Apparently I rated over mopping. Good to know.
“Right. He’d managed previous places.”
Noreen nodded, sloshed more water over the side of the bucket. At this rate the place would be flooded soon. “They both put in some money, Russ more than Bill. He was a miser, that Russ. Saved every penny.”
“Well, it seems to have paid off. This place is doing well.”
“Thanks to Bill. Without him, the place would have folded by now. Don’t think Russ didn’t know it. Originally he’d had plans to cut Bill loose after a year, but realized he couldn’t run the place without him. Bill threatened to walk unless he was allowed to become a full co-owner. It’s been tense around here ever since. With Russ wanting the place to himself and Bill thinking he deserves it all.”
That wasn’t quite the flowery version Lindsey had told me. Again I thought of my suspicions about Bill skimming from the business and pressed my luck. “Do you know why Russ brought Growl’s accounting books home? Was he suspicious?”
“Suspicious of what?” Noreen asked. “The business is fine.”
139
“That’s right, it is,” a male voice said.
It was Bill, and clearly he’d been eavesdropping. “The floor isn’t going to mop itself, Noreen.”
She looked like she wanted to give Bill a piece of her mind, but thought better of it. The wheels on the bucket squeaked as she pushed it toward the rear of the dining area.
She didn’t look back.
“Just picking up Riley,” I said by way of explanation.
“He’ll be out in a minute. Why are you so curious about the accounting books, Nina?”
“Curious? Me?” I laughed, desperately looked around for Riley.
“You’ve heard about curiosity and the cat, right?”
“Have you been hanging out with my mother?”
Flustered, he crossed his arms, unfolded them again.
“What? Your mother? No, why?”
“Hey.” Riley dropped a duffel bag at my feet. He’d changed from his black uniform to shorts and a tee. “I’m ready.”
“Riley! Good to see you,” I said, throwing an arm around him.
He shrugged out of the semihug, looked at me like I was crazy.
