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When I got home, I worked the dinner shift at Hairy's not so much because they needed my help, but because I needed some time to think about what I learned that day. Knowing that Harry and Dutch had taken payments from the government bothered me. I felt like it tarnished my memory of Harry just a bit. It wasn't like what they'd done had hurt anyone and, if I was starting to understand all of this, it might have even protected the animals from exploitation, but it was an uncomfortable feeling.
After the dinner rush, I fixed myself a plate and took it upstairs. I opened my laptop and started searching for information on the organization Harry mentioned in his letter—BITES. After passing over a lot of food related sites, I found what I was looking for. It didn't really provide much information. If I didn't know they had something to do with cryptids, I'm not sure I would have learned that from the website. I copied the link and opened my email app planning to send the link to Chance, but I saw he'd sent me a message earlier, so I read that first. Great minds think alike, I guess. Chance sent me the link I was planning to send him.
I pulled out the check copy Karen had given me. On the check was a line that said DHS|BITES. At least some of the pieces were starting to fit together. Now, we just needed to figure out why it mattered.
I emailed Chance about what I learned at the bank, and my phone rang as soon as I hit send. "Hi, Chance. How are you feeling?"
"I'm OK. How are you? Sounds like you've had a busy day."
"I didn't know your mother was Hairy's accountant. She was really nice."
"She gave a similar ringing endorsement of you," he said. “She knew about the payments Dad received. She always hated that dad was involved with the cryptid community. She felt it was all silly nonsense, in her words. He told her there was a secret government lab in the mountains and he and Harry were being paid to offer advice on the local animal population."
"Well, there is some shred of truth in that, I guess."
"Have you decided about the convention?"
"Yes. I'm in." Actually, I hadn't thought much about it consciously, but apparently my subconscious was already on board with the idea.
"Good. I think it will be good for you and Hairy's. Good night, City Girl."
After the call from Chance, I did some cryptid research online until I got too sleepy to continue. Before going to bed, I checked my to-do list for the next day. The last article I was reading was about a giant spider cryptid. I kind of have a thing about spiders, so I expected the J'ba Fofi to plague my dreams, but it didn't.
XXX
When the alarm went off, I fought the urge to hit snooze. It was Friday, and I planned to make progress on my changes to the cafe before my date with Jim for dinner.
I placed my breakfast order on my way through the cafe, so I could get to the office and turn on my laptop. I printed out the menu I mocked up. I went out front and picked up a menu. Back in the office I took the old menu and marked each item as keep or lose. I walked out front to make a cup of tea and go over my idea with Rita. "Rita, can you look over this when you have time. The things that say 'lose' I'm thinking of eighty-sixing. If you think there's something marked that we should keep, let me know."
As I headed back to the office, I said, "Could you go over it with Sally when she comes in?"
"Sure, Everly. Do you want suggestions for additions too?"
"Yeah but write those on a separate paper."
While Rick and I worked in the kitchen, I brought up another change I wanted to make. "Rick, I know you hold down the fort around here. I think we should make that official," I said. "I'd like to make you the manager, and I want you to hire a part time cook to handle breakfast."
"You sure?"
"I'm sure. Does that sound OK to you?"
"Sounds great. I know a guy who might be good for the morning cook slot. I'll talk to him. If he's interested, I'll let you know so you can set up a meeting with him."
"Great." I headed back to my office pleased that my focused approached seemed to be paying dividends. I'd already crossed several things off my lists and made some actual progress. Rita brought me the marked-up menu and her list of suggestions. After getting her input, I sent her back to the cafe and asked her to send Sally back to see me. I solicited Rick's feedback before finalizing the new menu. I printed some samples and handed them out to the staff.
"When are we going to start using this menu?" Sally asked.
"Let's try the new dishes as specials over the next week or so. Once we're committed to the new menu, we'll do some kick off for it. Think about what might work."
For now, I was only making small changes, but I had started a file on my laptop where I was putting the bigger ideas like offering pizza. I wasn't ready to tackle that yet.
By the time I went upstairs to shower and get dressed for my date, I was feeling good about things. I was still confused about the whole cryptid thing, but I'd made real progress at the cafe and I'd spent the afternoon packing up Harry's stuff from the office and storeroom. Rick helped me carry the boxes upstairs so I'd have everything that needed sorting in one place.
I'd learned that most things in Wilkins’ Gap were casual, so I wore nice jeans and a thin sweater. I was always cold. Someone told me it was because my blood was thin from living in a warmer climate for so many years. I'm not sure if that's true or not, but I never seemed to get truly warm. At least I hadn't until I opened the door and Jim wrapped his arms around me. He kissed me much more passionately than he had before and suddenly lack of heat wasn't a problem.
I pulled back and said, "Hi, Jim."
"Hi, Everly. Sorry. I've been waiting to do that all day."
"Well, I hope it was worth the wait."
"Absolutely. Are you ready to go?"
"Just let me grab my jacket."
He was wearing a cotton dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up. "Still cold?" he asked, as he held out my jacket for me to slip my arms in.
"I am. I ordered some heavier clothes, but it still may not be enough to survive the winter here."
He closed the door behind me and wrapped his arm around my waist. "I'll be happy to warm you up."
Before he started the car, he leaned over and kissed me again. I was getting the vibe that Jim had decided it was time to move our relationship forward. It was going to be an interesting night, since I wasn’t sure that’s what I wanted.