Queenie's Cafe

by SUE FINEMAN

  Luke raised his fist. “It wouldn’t give me the same satisfaction as punching his lights out.” He stared at her and softened his voice. “Did you see a doctor?”

  “Jay took me the morning after it happened.”

  “Did he take X-rays?”

  “No, Luke. I can’t afford—”

  “Get dressed. We’re going out.”

  “I can’t go out today. I have to get some rest.”

  “Do you need help getting dressed, honey?”

  “No, thanks.” He’d seen enough without showing him any more. She hadn’t worn a bra since the attack, and not just because she couldn’t fasten it. Having that strap go across her sore shoulder would just add to the pain.

  She dressed and walked outside with Luke. The air always smelled different after a storm, fresher and more alive. The parking lot had been washed clean. Everything looked cleaner and brighter. Lake Whitfield was already shrinking to a puddle when she and Luke walked out to his car.

  “I should check the men’s room in the café to make sure the patch held.”

  Luke helped her into the car. “I’ll do it later.”

  Minutes later they were at the hospital emergency room in Vero Beach, where she was diagnosed with a separated shoulder and a hairline fracture. The doctor put her arm in a sling and handed Luke a prescription for pain pills. “Make sure she gets plenty of rest.”

  In the car, she said, “I can’t work with my arm in a sling, and those pills will make me sleepy.”

  “Then sleep. You’re not working for at least a month. I’ll take care of things at the café. No arguments!”

  “Yes, sir.” She hurt too much to argue. If it all went away today, so be it. She couldn’t work like this, and she couldn’t take another one of Earl Windsor’s beatings. Maybe Carmen could find a buyer right away, so she could leave Kingston before Earl returned for a repeat performance. And he would. He said he’d be back, and she had no reason to doubt him.

  Luke stopped at the drug store for Laura’s pain pills. He bought her a bottle of juice and insisted she take one right then. She took the pill, leaned her head back, and dozed off. When she woke, they were parked in front of a beautiful ranch house surrounded by acres of rolling green lawn. “Where are we?”

  “My mother’s ranch.” Before she could ask, he added, “Earl won’t come here.”

  Luke’s mother was in the kitchen, wearing her robe and sipping coffee. He gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Mom, I’m glad you’re back. This is Laura Whitfield. Earl attacked her the other night, and her shoulder is in bad shape.”

  “Oh, no.” Barbara’s heart went out to the girl. “Did he rape you, too, honey?”

  “He tried.”

  Barbara pulled out a chair for Laura. “Sit down, both of you.”

  Laura sat at the breakfast table and Barbara poured her a cup of coffee. Luke didn’t move. He had a stunned look on his face. He’d wanted to get to know his father, and now he knew him. It was a tough way to find out, to see someone he cared about in pain, but Barbara couldn’t keep quiet any longer. Luke was a grown man, and it was time he knew the truth.

  “Did Earl rape you, Mom?”

  She looked him in the eye and nodded. If her parents had stood up for her when she was raped, Earl might have served time in prison. But things had been strained between her and her parents in those days. She’d dated Earl twice, against her parent’s wishes, and on the second date, Earl had insisted she put out. He’d become enraged when she refused. She’d been a little wild back then, and her parents hadn’t believed she’d been raped. They hadn’t wanted a pregnant daughter, especially one they couldn’t get along with. Her father shouted, “Don’t you dare give that bastard my name.” So she stayed with a friend until she recuperated from the beating, then left town for good. Because she couldn’t name him Snowden, her father’s name, she named her son after the man who’d raped her. Years later, her father apologized, but it was too late.

  Luke was already a Windsor.

  “Mom, why didn’t you tell me?”

  “It isn’t the sort of thing you dump on a kid. Life was hard enough for us when you were growing up. After you were born, it didn’t matter to me how you came to be. I loved you enough for two parents.”

  “I know that, Mom, but you could have told me before I went to work for him.” His fists clenched. “I want to kill him.”

  She didn’t blame him for being angry, but she couldn’t let him beat Earl to death. Earl deserved it, but she didn’t want her son in trouble with the law. “Luke, listen to me. There’s no sense in rushing into something you’ll regret later on.”

  “Killing is too fast,” said Laura, “and too kind.”

  “That’s right,” said Barbara. “He needs to suffer first. Let’s take some time to think about this. We’ll figure out a way to make sure Earl never hurts another woman.” Luke was normally an even-tempered guy. She hoped in time his anger would subside somewhat, so he didn’t go off and do something foolish.

  “Can Laura stay here, Mom?”

  “Of course.” She couldn’t let the girl go back to her place where Earl could find her again. He didn’t get what he wanted the first time, so he’d be back, and she couldn’t let it happen again.

  “That’s nice of you to offer,” said Laura, “but I can’t stay here. I have to open the café in the morning. I’ll keep a knife with me in case Earl comes back.”

  Luke’s hands fisted so tightly the knuckles turned white. “If he comes back, he’s a dead man.”

  Laura sipped her coffee. “Maybe if I’d let him do what he wanted, he wouldn’t have hurt me like this.”

  Barbara shook her head. “He took what he wanted from me and beat me anyway. I still have the scars to show for it.”

  “I’ll beat him to a pulp,” Luke muttered.

  Laura looked up at Luke. “Not unless I can help, and I can’t beat anyone now. Isn’t there some way we can undermine his business or hurt him in another way?”

  “I want to make him lose his arrogance and self-confidence.” Barbara smiled. “Or we could cut off the offending body parts.”

  “He asked me if I had condoms, as if I kept them around in case he happened to drop by.”

  Barbara rubbed Luke’s arm. “I’ll take care of Laura. Why don’t you check on things in the barn?”

  Mom was giving him time to work off his anger. That creep beat and raped his mother. That was why she’d never talked about him, why he’d never paid any child support. And now he’d gone after Laura. For the first time in his life, Luke understood how a man could justify killing another man. He wanted to beat on Earl until there wasn’t anything left to beat.

  He’d always wondered why Mom wouldn’t talk about his father. For years, she didn’t talk about his grandparents. Their relationship was still strained. He’d never felt accepted as their grandson. Not really. His grandfather was a rigid man, highly opinionated, and he’d never forgiven Mom for having a child without a husband. Aunt Betty had been married several times and had a child or two from each marriage, but Mom wasn’t married when he was born. He didn’t understand why that should make him any less their grandson than his cousins, but it had in his grandfather’s eyes.

  He shouldered part of the blame for Earl’s actions this time. He’d told Earl he was going to Jacksonville and leaving Laura behind. Damn! He had that man’s blood in his veins. Did he inherit the cruel genes from his old man?

  It killed him to see Laura in such pain. She was a gutsy woman to fight Earl off and get away from him, but to keep working with that kind of injury was just plain foolish. Didn’t she know her health was more important than business success? She didn’t have anything to prove. Hell, hadn’t she already proven she could go it alone and build a successful business?

  He walked around the property for several minutes, knowing Mom would take good care of Laura. He felt calmer when he went back inside, but the anger had settled into a simmering rage deep in his gut. He’d
use his mind instead of his fists if Mom and Laura insisted, but Earl wouldn’t get away with what he’d done to Laura and his mother.

  Somehow, he’d make him pay.

  <>

  Barbara’s friends, Meg and Judy, came to the ranch that afternoon. Laura liked them both. They all sat in the living room and talked. Meg was short and round, a sweet dumpling of a woman in her sixties, with beautiful white hair and a soft, friendly smile. She reminded Laura of a friend’s grandmother. Judy was tall and middle-aged, with curly reddish hair and a strong, sassy disposition.

  Barbara explained what happened to Laura and asked if they’d like to help out at Queenie’s Café while Laura’s shoulder healed.

  “Sure,” said Meg. “I’ll take the breakfast shift.”

  “I’ll help you, Meg,” said Luke. “The regulars are used to seeing Laura there in the mornings.”

  “Then I’ll be there ’round ten, ten-thirty for lunch,” said Judy.

  Barbara said, “I’ll cook dinner.”

  Laura couldn’t believe they were doing this for her. It might all be for nothing if Earl put a lien on the property. Could he take it all away from her because she owed him money for the carpet and flooring? They had a verbal agreement that she’d pay him as she got the business up and running.

  She should have gotten something in writing.

  <>

  Luke hated to leave Laura, but he had things to do. While she napped in his recliner in the living room, doped up on pain pills, he went out to the barn and talked to Carlos. “Keep a close eye on the house. If you see anyone, I want to know right away.” He handed him the phone number for the café. “I’ll be here or on my cell phone.”

  “Something going on I should know about?”

  “There’s an injured girl staying here for a few days. Laura. Someone attacked her and I don’t want him near her again.”

  “In that case, I’ll load my gun,” said Carlos. “He won’t get past me.”

  “Just don’t shoot the UPS man.”

  “You got a description?”

  “Earl Windsor. You’ve seen him on television. If he shows up, shoot the bastard, but don’t kill him. I’d rather do that myself.”

  Carlos put his hand on the gun in his holster. “I’ll aim low.”

  Luke smiled for the first time since he found Laura injured. “Watch for a tall, skinny guy with dreadlocks and a nose ring. We think he left the area, but you never know. He might still be around.”

  “Do you want me to shoot him, too?”

  “Only if he tries something, but be careful. He has a weapon, probably a gun.”

  “I’ll keep my eyes open.”

  Luke checked on Laura again and then drove to Kingston, about thirty minutes away. He put Laura’s bloody sheets and ruined uniform in a plastic bag to preserve the evidence. Using an old suitcase from the closet shelf, Luke packed some of Laura’s things to take to the ranch. Mom could buy her whatever else she needed.

  He puttered around the café for a few minutes, checking supplies and washing fingerprints off the front door. The ceiling and wall in the men’s room showed no sign of a new leak. The patch had held in the storm. Everything looked clean and ready to go, so he took the suitcase and drove back to the ranch to be with Laura.

  Jay was right about Laura having sass, maybe too much for her own good. She took an old run-down café and made it a pleasant place for people to come. The success belonged to her alone, but he couldn’t let her do it alone any longer. She could get herself killed the next time.

  No matter what the women said, if he got his hands on Earl, there wouldn’t be a next time.

  <>

  The next morning, Luke helped Meg open Queenie’s Café. He spoke with each one of the regular customers and told them that someone had attacked Laura after work one day last week. “Laura would appreciate your business while she heals,” he told each customer. Many expressed concern about Laura, and he was concerned about her, too. He told no one who had hurt her. He was ashamed to speak the name.

  Luke pulled Jay aside to speak with him in private. “I took Laura out to my mother’s ranch. The doctor says her shoulder is separated and she has a hairline fracture. It’ll take time to heal.”

  “Damn! I told her to take some time off, but she don’t listen so good. What about her business?”

  “We’ll keep it open. My mother and her friends will be around until Laura can work again.”

  “You tell her I said to behave herself and get better. It won’t be the same ’round here without her.”

  When he left the café, Luke drove to his father’s Vero Beach store and paid Laura’s bill. Earl had charged her twice what he would have charged anyone else, but Luke paid it anyway, in cash. He bribed the clerk to forget who paid it and asked for a signed receipt.

  Earl was there, talking and laughing with customers like a good ole boy, but Luke avoided him. Laura was right, beating wasn’t enough to punish Earl for what he’d done, and he didn’t want to end up in prison for murder.

  Back at the café, he found Rusty in the kitchen, wearing a big plastic apron. He was rinsing dishes and loading the dishwasher. “Rusty. How’s it going?”

  “Where’s Laura?” he asked anxiously.

  “She’s at my house for a few days. Her shoulder hurts too much to work right now, so Meg and Judy and Barbara are helping out until Laura gets better.”

  “Oh, okay. Mr. Windsor hurt Laura’s shoulder and I called the police.”

  “She told me. I’m sure glad you were around to help her, Rusty.”

  He smiled shyly. “Laura’s my friend.”

  “She’s my friend, too.”

  “I know.”

  Rusty was slow, but loyal. Laura was one of the few people who treated him like a person of value. Luke suspected he was a little in love with her, and he couldn’t blame him. He was falling in love with her himself.

  The lunch crowd was gone when an attractive blonde came in. “Is Laura here?”

  “She’s off for a few weeks. I’m Luke. Can I help you?”

  “I’m Cindy. I’ve been staying at the motel, and I hate to leave without saying goodbye.” She looked him over and smiled. “How ’bout a free one for the road, big boy?”

  He’d never patronized hookers, and he didn’t intend to start now, even if it was free. “I appreciate the offer, but no thanks.”

  She shrugged. “Too bad. Will you give Laura a message for me? Tell her Frank Fosdick wants to put her out of business.”

  “How do you know? Is he a customer?”

  “Every Tuesday night, but you didn’t hear it from me.”

  “I’ll tell her.” If Frank gave Laura any grief, this might keep him in line.

  Luke puttered around, talking with Laura’s customers and wiping off tables. He checked the storeroom and freezer, then paid Laura’s bills. It was the least he could do, since he owned some of her pain. If only he’d known Earl’s history before he left Laura alone.

  On his way out, he ran into Carmen Messina.

  “Luke, are you still interested in buying a café in this town? Queenie’s Café is for sale, with the motel and land. I thought you might be interested.”

  Why would Laura do this without telling him? “When did she list it?”

  “Last Friday.”

  His surprise turned to hurt and then fury. He couldn’t believe Laura would leave him like this. “It’s not for sale.”

  By the time he got to the ranch, he’d worked up a good head of steam. He stormed in the door and found Laura in his recliner, right where he’d left her. “I saw Carmen Messina today. Were you planning to run out on me?”

  “You know Carmen?”

  “Hell, yes, I know Carmen. Answer my question, damn it. Were you going to run out on me?” He stood in front of her, glaring down at her. “Were you going to tell me?”

  “No,” she whispered.

  “Damn it, woman. Don’t you care anything about me?”

 
; “Of course I do, but Earl said he’d be back to collect what I owed him. I can’t go through that again, Luke. I spent every night in Dad’s recliner, with a knife in my lap, waiting for him to come back.”

  Her eyes filled with tears and his anger dissolved. She wasn’t leaving him, she was just trying to survive.

  “I don’t want him to hurt anyone else because they helped me. I thought if I left town, he’d leave them alone. Earl owns the police in Kingston.”

  If that was what she really wanted, he’d help her get a fresh start somewhere else. “If you want to leave, I’ll buy the property, all of it.”

  She pushed herself out of the chair. “I don’t really want to sell it, Luke. I just need enough to pay Earl’s bill so he won’t have a reason to come back.”

  He touched the soft skin of her cheek. “I paid it this morning. You don’t owe anybody anything.”

  “Of course I do. I owe my suppliers.”

  “Paid. Promise me you won’t leave. I need you, Laura.” He didn’t realize he did until he spoke the words. “I’ll protect you from Earl if you promise to stay.”

  Gazing into his eyes, she said, “Then I promise to stay.”

  “What about our partnership?”

  “Did you get that appraisal report?”

  “Yes.” He should ask for sixty percent, but he couldn’t. She wouldn’t agree anyway. Laura didn’t want someone else, even him, to have a controlling interest in her businesses. “How about fifty-fifty?”

  “Whatever you want, Luke. I would have lost it all.”

  “You would have done it on your own. It just would have taken longer to get the same results. Your customers come because of you, not because we’ve fixed the place up inside.” She’d taken a dumpy little café and made it into a place people wanted to come, a place they felt welcome.

  He gazed into her eyes. “I really need a hug, but I don’t want to hurt you.”

  She pulled his head down for a kiss. “Did I say thank you?”