Down Home and Deadly

to Bob’s pleading to stay , I’d finally done it. I’d quit. I took a deep breath of fresh September air and exhaled slowly. Would I be sorry? Eventually, maybe, but not today.
    My cell rang before I got to my vehicle. I glanced at the caller ID. Bob. Probably couldn’t find the groomer’s number. I ignored the call and stowed my stuff in the front seat of the SUV. Before I could turn the key, Sister Sledge belted out , “ We Are Family. ”
    I jumped. Since my old phone was at the bottom of Table Rock Lake , I’d been forced to get a new one. And I still hadn’t gotten used to the personalized ringtones my nephew Zac had set up for me. What was it with teenagers and technology? And why did my youthful thirty suddenly seem so old?
    At least I had sense enough to know that ringtone was my sister, Carly. Just what I needed—a sympathetic ear.
    I flipped the phone open.
    She started to talk so fast I couldn’t understand a single word.
    “Carly. Slow down.”
    “The. Grand. Opening. Of. Down Home . Diner. It’s two weeks from Fri day . That’s sixteen days.” She enunciated her words as if English was my second language. Or third.
    Even though buying and refurbishing the Lake View Diner had been Carly’s dream, the realization of that dream was proving a wee bit stressful. “I know that. Remember , I made sure I wasn’t on the schedule at the athletic club that day so that I could help you?” I started the engine. “Not that it matters now.”
    “What do you mean, it doesn’t matter now?” The frantic tone was back. “It matters to me. I need your help!”
    “You’ve got it. As much as you need.” I resisted the urge to peel out of the parking lot as I raged about the injustices I’d endured. She sympathized until finally my white - knuckle grip on the steering wheel relaxed. When I was almost home, I half-laughed. “Sorry for ranting so long. But that’s it. I’m not working there anymore.”
    “When I called, I was going to ask you to see if Bob could let you have a few days off. But now, with you quitting, well, this is just perfect.” I guess she heard herself, because she hastily added, “Heaven knows I’ve been so irritated at Bob since he brought Lisa in and made you a flunky.”
    “Thanks for clearing up any remaining delusions I might have had about my job.”
    “Hey, that’s what sisters are for.” Carly paused. “You okay with this?”
    “Sure. I will be.” I slowed at my street and turned on the blinker then glanced in the rearview mirror. Not a car in sight. So at least my boss hadn’t followed me home. “And I really don’t want to talk to Bob for a few days , anyway.” With any other job, I’d have felt bad about not giving notice, but I had been giving notice ever since Lisa came. Bob just hadn’t been listening.
    “Great. How fast can you get over here?”
    *****
    “Who put that table with a checker set on it out on the porch?” Alice asked, her graying brows drawn together.
    Carly looked up from a booth where she’d spent the morning interviewing wait staff and cooks. “I did.”
    Alice pursed her lips and nodded.
    Carly gave me a look that said , “Can you handle this, please?” and turned back to Marco , a young Italian who’d done a great job working at the health club for several months. Until Lisa fired him a couple of days ago out of the blue. I’d asked Carly to interview him, so I owed her.
    I put my hand on Alice ’s arm. “You’ve been working hard. I made some tea awhile ago. Want some?”
    Alice nodded. “That sounds good.”
    I picked up my cell phone off the counter and slid it into my pocket as I pushed open the double doors. Something about the new phone made it hard to keep up with. I didn’t even remember putting it there.
    Alice followed me into the kitchen. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m thrilled your sister wanted to buy our diner, but she sure has some strange ideas.”
    “Change is never easy.” I smiled at my reflection in the stainless steel side - by - side refrigerator. I’d been moonlighting incognito for about a year as local advice columnist Dear Pru. Now I was starting to sound like her in my everyday conversations. “You loved the diner just like it was.” I handed her a glass of ice.
    She gave me a sharp look.
    “I mean, everyone did. Love it,” I stammered. So much for being wise. “But it’s normal for Carly to want to do some things to make it her own.”
    “Carly might do well to remember what