Queenie's Cafe (33 page)

None of the other council members spoke. Frank ran things his way and no one ever stood up to him, until now. Marv stood up to him and the town stood solidly behind him.

Frank was losing control of Kingston, and it was about time.

<>

The next morning, the café buzzed with people talking about the meeting last night. It was almost like another town meeting, and they all looked to Marv.

Carmen said, “Marv, why don’t you run for Mayor next time? I’ll help run your campaign. I’m sick and tired of Frank Fosdick undercutting my business and cheating people.”

Laura listened quietly, filling coffee cups, as another person spoke up, then another and another. Frank had been mayor too long. This was the first time in years anyone dared to challenge his leadership in the community. “With Frank out of office, maybe we could entice another bank to come to town.”

“Great idea, Laura,” said Carol Jones. “I don’t like the way he treated us when we applied for a loan.”

“Did he at least consider it?”

“Yes.”

“When I applied, he wouldn’t even consider it. He said I should find myself a nice young man, get married, and have a bunch of kids. He wouldn’t even listen to what I wanted to do to this place. He didn’t care.”

“That’s sexual discrimination,” said Carol.

“Why wouldn’t he listen?” asked Marv.

“He wanted me to sell. I refused, but he brought a buyer out the next day anyway.”

“He had no right to do that,” said Carmen.

“What do you think, Marv? Will you run for mayor?” asked Meg.

He smiled at her. “I’ll consider it.”

Marv would do anything for Meg. Laura set down the coffee pot, took Marv’s hand, and pulled him to his feet. “Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Marv Walker, the next mayor of Kingston.”

Applause and whistles filled the room. “You’ve got my vote,” someone yelled, as others yelled words of encouragement.

Marv stood tall and proud. He’d win if he ran. He was a good man and everyone loved him. Unless Frank did something sneaky and underhanded, there was no way Marv could lose.

As people began to leave, Laura stood at the door, thanking each of them for coming. A voice behind her said, “Laura, could we have a minute of your time?”

She turned to see Clyde Higginbotham and Ben Fester, two members of the Kingston Town Council. “Find a table and sit down. I’ll be right with you.”

What did they want? She stopped Marv at the door. “Marv, would you mind staying a little longer? Clyde and Ben asked to speak with me and I’d sure feel better if you were with me.”

Marv stretched to stand a little taller. “Of course.”

Clyde raised his eyebrows when Marv sat at the table with them. “This may get a little personal, Laura.”

Ben said, “Bobby Wharton said you were working on the side... ah... you know what I mean.”

Laura looked Ben in the eye. He squirmed uncomfortably, but she wasn’t going to make it easy for him. “No, Ben, I’m not sure I know what you mean. Why don’t you spell it out for me?”

“Bobby said you was working as a prostitute,” Clyde blurted out. He looked as uncomfortable as Ben.

“And you believed him?” asked Marv. “You know Laura better than that.”

“Do you think I was selling sex, Clyde?”

“No, no, but we had to ask.”

Laura called, “Meg, please give these men a cup of coffee. I’ll be right back.”

She walked to her apartment, where Luke sat talking on the phone. He looked up and quickly ended his call. “Laura, what’s wrong?”

“Two members of the town council are in the café. Bobby swears I was working as a prostitute. It’s his word against mine.”

“And mine.” He took her hand and they walked back to the café together.

Marv rose to meet Luke and Laura. “Luke, this is Clyde Higginbotham and Ben Fester, two members of the Kingston Town Council. Clyde, Ben, this is Luke Windsor, Laura’s business partner and friend.”

Luke didn’t offer to shake their hands. “Are you the ones accusing Laura of prostitution?”

“No, sir,” said Clyde. “We’re just checkin’ out Bobby Wharton’s statement. He’s the one who’s sayin’ she is.”

“He’s lying. I know for a fact that this young lady had never been touched that way until after that night.”

“How do you... oh!” said Ben, his eyes growing.

Luke slipped his arm around Laura’s shoulders. “Now it’s my word against Bobby’s and Earl’s and whoever the hell else is saying those things about her. Is Frank behind this?”

“He said he remembers when you were born,” said Ben.

So Frank knew about Florence. Apparently everyone knew except Laura. “That doesn’t make me a prostitute, or are you tarring me with the same brush?”

“Frank seems to think...” Clyde’s voice trailed off.

Laura leaned down in Clyde’s face. “No woman, including a prostitute, should be ignored when she calls for help.”

Marv’s lips were pressed tightly together. He was clearly angry. “Next election, every damn person on that town council will be replaced, including both of you. I don’t know who we’ll get to run against you, but we’ll find someone.”

“I didn’t want to be on that damn council to start with,” said Clyde. “Frank pushed me into it, but I can’t do this no more. If Frank takes my business, he takes my business.”

“How much training has Bobby had?” asked Laura. “Is this the first time he’s been a police officer?”

“He worked as a security guard for one of those fancy hotels out on the beach,” said Clyde. “He said they gave him training.”

Laura shook her head in wonder. Frank liked the idea of Kingston having police, but he wouldn’t hire trained officers. The next time someone called for help, they could die, because Bobby wouldn’t have a clue what to do in a real emergency.

“Maybe it’s time to give Frank Fosdick a taste of his own medicine,” said Luke. “Get him where he lives. Boycott the bank. If he threatens to foreclose on anyone, we’ll find another bank or finance company.”

“I have two checking accounts and a sizable savings account in that bank. I’m moving it all today,” said Marv.

“Frank financed my house and my business,” said Clyde. “I can’t move anything.”

“Hold off a few days, Clyde,” said Luke. “I’ll make some phone calls and see if I can’t find a bank to take you on. Ben, what about you?”

“My house and my daughter’s student loans. My in-laws financed the business.”

“Is your daughter still in school?”

“She has one more year, if she can get another loan.”

“We need another bank in Kingston,” said Laura. “I don’t want to deal with Frank, but it’s too inconvenient to drive twenty minutes each way to make a deposit.”

“I agree,” said Marv. “There’s enough business here in Kingston for another bank. A few years ago one of the banks in the Melbourne area wanted to open a branch office here. I wonder what happened.”

“Frank Fosdick, that’s what happened,” said Laura. “He’s got friends and political influence, just like Earl Windsor.”

“Earl’s political influence is gone,” said Clyde. “I don’t know what the hell y’all did to him, but I gotta hand it to you. You got him good.”

Yes, they did, but they didn’t get rid of a bad cop. Laura filled their coffee cups again. “I have to get to work before the lunch crowd gets here. Stay as long as you like.”

The men sat talking for nearly an hour before the meeting broke up. Laura asked Luke what happened.

“Clyde and Ben both agreed to stay on the council. Marv and I are going to talk to the other two members and see if we can’t get some cooperation. Frank is up for election this fall, but Marv doesn’t want to wait that long to get rid of Bobby Wharton.”

Laura had never been involved in politics, and she’d never wanted to stir the pot this time, but she had. With any luck, they could not only get rid of an ineffective police department, they could also get a new bank in Kingston.

And a new mayor.

Chapter Eighteen

“I
t’ll be all right, Bruce,” said Florence. “The real estate agent said he’d take care of the fishing camp while we’re gone.” They only had one guy interested, and he wouldn’t pay them anywhere near what they’d paid for the place. Most of the Queenie’s life insurance money was gone for good, and they both knew it.

“This is all Queenie’s fault. If she hadn’t blackmailed us and stolen all my money, we could have gotten a fresh start back when Laura was a baby.”

Florence wasn’t so sure about anything at this point, except that she loved Bruce in spite of his negative attitudes. Years of living an unhappy life had made him cynical.

“Come on, Bruce. Help me pack. Luke has a job waiting for you in Kingston, and there ain’t no sense staying here.”

“I hate like hell going back to that dump.”

“It ain’t a dump no more, Bruce. They been fixin’ it up real nice, and wait ’til you see the café.”

He threw a shoe into the suitcase. “I don’t ever want to set foot in Queenie’s again.”

“Queenie ain’t there no more. It’s Laura’s. She’s damn proud of the place, and she’ll be real disappointed if you don’t look and see what she’s done with it.”

Bruce grumbled under his breath and packed his clothes. She knew it bruised his pride to go back to Kingston, but he needed a job, and he couldn’t seem to find one anywhere else.

Florence stared at her bare fingers. “Bruce, what would you think ’bout going respectable?”

He turned to face her. “You mean get married?”

She nodded. “If we’re gonna do it, I want to do it now, before we go back to Kingston. Shoot, we’re living together like we’re married anyway.”

“Okay, then let’s do it.”

It wasn’t the romantic proposal she’d been waiting for, but she’d take it.

<>

Charley repaired the stucco on the café and put the first coat of paint on. It took three coats of creamy white to cover the ugly flamingo color someone had put on long before Laura was born. She knew it would look better painted outside, but she wasn’t quite prepared for the transformation. It looked clean and bright and prettier than it had ever looked before. The blue trim around the windows and door and roofline finished it off perfectly.

The café was a little plain looking from the street, but the sunroom addition would change that. So would landscaping.

Charley had just started painting the section of the apartments directly behind the café when Laura’s parents arrived. They’d brought both cars, and when Laura saw the boxes in the backseats, she knew they’d come home to stay.

Dad stared at the café as if he’d never seen it before, but Florence bolted out of her car and into Laura’s arms for a big hug.

“What’s with Dad?”

“He don’t especially want to be here, honey. Bad memories.”

Laura had bad memories, too, but she was making new ones. So would he, if he’d give it half a chance. Sometimes she thought Dad liked being miserable.

Florence gave her a last squeeze and released her. “You look happy, Laura.”

“I am. We’ll talk later.”

Dad finally pried himself out of his car and Laura hugged him. “Welcome home, Dad.”

“The café looks better.”

“So will the apartments when Charley gets finished painting them.”

Florence had already seen the new apartments, but Dad hadn’t, so Laura showed him to the apartment Florence had stayed in before, the one they’d live in for now. “The manager’s apartment is all torn up, so you’ll have to stay here until it’s finished.”

“I like the new roof and the parking lot looks great. Queenie wouldn’t let me—”

“I know, but Queenie doesn’t own the property now.”

He walked around the little apartment, inspecting the work, nodding his approval. “Nice job. New windows?”

“New everything. We still need to do something about the landscaping. I thought we could let Morris take care of it after it’s in.” She motioned at the space between the motel and the parking lot. “We’re putting a patch of grass here in the front, and Jay is building a raised planter over there, between the parking lot and the grass. And we’re putting a sunroom addition on the diner.”