Queenie's Cafe Read Online Free PDF Page A

see your new fishing camp.”
    Laura watched them drive away and wiped the tears off her face. The lump in her throat had settled into a sadness deep in her chest. She knew she wouldn’t see either of them for a long time. When you ran your own business, it was hard to get away. She couldn’t remember Dad ever taking a vacation.
    She’d lost one mother and found another, and now they were both gone. So was Dad. She didn’t have anyone to rely on but herself.
    If she screwed up and lost it all, it would be her own fault.
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    Monday morning, Laura sat in her car in front of the Kingston Bank & Trust, waiting for it to open. She’d never applied for a loan before, so she didn’t know what to expect. Without money, she could do nothing. The balance in her checking account hovered around $40.00. She had no savings, no assets except an ancient Pontiac and the motel and café. Queenie’s old car sat in the parking lot in front of the café with a FOR SALE sign in the window. It wasn’t worth much.
    She’d made a detailed list of what she needed – money for taxes, utility bills, stocking the kitchen, and operating expenses for the first two months. She probably should ask for enough to fix the place up the way she wanted, but she hated owing people money. She’d borrow only what she had to have to get started and take care of the rest as she could afford it.
    When the bank opened, she was shown in to see Frank Fosdick, owner and manager. Frank, a portly man in his fifties, had the phoniest smile she’d ever seen. As long-time mayor of Kingston, Frank wielded a lot of power in these parts.
    “Well, Laura. I heard Queenie died. So now you own the café?”
    “And motel. They’re free and clear, but they need work. I thought I’d start with the café, but I need a loan to get started.”
    Frank sat back and pressed his fingers together in a steeple. “I heard the Health Department shut that place down.”
    “Yes, sir, but I’ve done everything they’ve asked. They’ll inspect it again in a few days, but I don’t anticipate any problems.”
    “You do know that property is worth more than both businesses, don’t you?”
    “Yes, sir.”
    He dropped his hands to his desk and leaned forward. “Why don’t you sell the property, find yourself some nice young man, get married, and have a bunch of kids? Young girl like you can’t run a business like that all by herself.”
    “I’m not afraid of hard work, Mr. Fosdick.” He’d never suggest such a thing to a man. If she had any sense, she’d walk out of here right now, but it didn’t pay to make an enemy of a man like Frank Fosdick.
    That phony smile was back again. “I know someone looking for property like that. He might be interested in your place. Get you a good price, too.”
    “I didn’t come here to talk about selling. I came here to talk about a business loan. Will you help me or not?”
    His smile disappeared and his eyes grew cold. “Queenie’s is beyond help and that old motel’s an eyesore. Just be throwin’ my money away.”
    Laura stood, shaking with anger. Did he think she’d just back down and sell because he wanted her to? “Then I’ll take my business elsewhere.”
    He flipped his hand in the air, dismissing her. “Nobody’s gonna give you money to open that dump.”
    Laura walked to the door, trying to hold her temper.
    She opened the door and he called, “Let me know when you’re ready to sell.”
    “Not in this lifetime,” she muttered to herself on the way out. If she decided to sell, it wouldn’t be to him.
    Frank and his wife, Vivian, controlled this town. He wasn’t just the town banker and the mayor, he had his nose buried so deep in county and state politics, he thought he could play God with people’s lives. Like when he took the Barnett family’s home. Frank could have given Sam Barnett an extension when he lost his job, like he’d done for others, but instead, he forced them out, then turned right around and