Chapter 29
Dawn was trying to break through the gloomy sky over the harbor. Kasia’s mood matched the darkness of the clouds. Even with the powerful painkillers she’d been given, sitting upright in Peggy’s old leather wingback chair was the only way she could get any sleep, and the most she had managed was a fitful doze. The doctor at the hospital had said it should heal quickly if she rested, but the last thing she needed now was to be inactive.
Finding the handwritten letter from Tierney had hurt more than she could have imagined. The careful, curly script had been so different from the occasional scrawled notes Tierney usually left around the hotel; she must have taken some time to write it. Kasia pulled it out now from where she’d slid it carefully down the side of the chair. The creases in the paper were sharp where she’d run her finger along them over and over.
Dear Kasia,
Joey’s probably told you already, but I’m heading back to Boston for a while. I’m so sorry to leave you when you’re hurting, but I’m hoping this is the best way to resolve the Waterside’s future. I can negotiate with my dad face-to-face and as soon as I have the funds I need, I can get the repairs moving from there. I’ll be back as soon as everything is sorted.
I’ve left the hotel account with funds and if you need anything else, just let me know. And please stay at the cottage. It’s more comfortable than the hotel at the moment, and you need to rest.
I’m sorry I’ve let you down, Kasia. I’m going to make this work. Please believe me.
All my love
Tierney
P.S. I’ll be at the cottage until tomorrow morning if you want to talk before I leave.
She’d chosen not to take Tierney up on the offer, and now she was watching people hurry down the slope to the ferry. She recognized Joey’s red truck when it pulled up on the quay. Standing and stretching carefully, she watched Joey haul Tierney’s backpack from the rear. The other door opened and Tierney got out.
Kasia’s breath caught. She’d told Tierney to go home, so why was she torturing herself by watching it happen?
She looked back down at the sheet of paper in her hand, now a little crumpled as her fingers clenched around it. Tierney said she was coming back and she’d fix everything, but Tierney had also said she’d fixed the roof and look what happened.
Tierney shouldered her pack and stepped up the gangplank. When she stopped for a moment, she turned. Kasia stepped back a little from the window, even though the room was in darkness, and Tierney wouldn’t be able to see her.
When Tierney reached the boat, she spoke with Jacky, then disappeared inside the passenger cabin. Kasia leaned on the window and saw Joey staring up in her direction. She turned away and pulled on her boots one-handed. She needed to talk to Joey. Anything to hear a voice other than the one in her own head telling her she’d messed everything up.
As she opened the front door, Joey was pulling up in the car park.
They followed her into the kitchen. “How’s the shoulder?”
She awkwardly filled the kettle. “What did Tierney say?”
“Sit down and let me make the tea.” Joey took Peggy’s favorite teapot from her hand. “She said she’d left you a letter explaining where she was going.”
“I don’t want to sit down. I need to keep busy and stop going over everything that’s happened.” She paced the kitchen until Joey took her gently by her good arm and led her to the table where she’d had breakfast with Tierney on the mornings when they had guests. She rested her head on the rough wooden surface until Joey returned with two mugs. “I really messed it up with Tierney. I should start looking for a job.”
“She seems to be determined to make things work. She promised she won’t be gone for long.”
“All the more reason for me to start looking.”
“Why? You’ve got a job. And you love it here.”
Kasia sipped her tea. “I don’t want to be here when, or if, Tierney comes back. We had something wonderful, but it was always temporary. And now that it’s over—” Her voice cracked, and she coughed to cover it. “I think it’s just best that I leave.”
Joey covered Kasia’s hand. “Why don’t you get some rest and not make any hasty decisions? You’ve got an income and somewhere to live. That’s enough for now.”
“And what am I supposed to do? I thrive on being busy, but I’ve been told to rest for a couple of weeks. I can’t just sit here mulling things over, Joey.”
“You haven’t played your flute in ages.” Joey’s gaze dropped to her sling. “Oh, yeah, sorry.”
She sighed. “I can’t bear to hang around staring at the holes in the roof.” She hated the self-pitying tone of her voice and shook herself. “Is there anything I could do to help you?”
Joey raised their eyebrow and nodded. “You know how you’re good at business plans? I need a refrigerated van if I want to start selling to bigger restaurants farther afield, but the bank has refused me a loan because I don’t have any real plans in place.”
Poor Joey had done so much to help her. But Kasia had always been so busy, she’d never had time to help them. This was the perfect time to pay back her generous friend.
“Of course, I can help with that. You should’ve said—No, I should’ve asked you how things were going. I’ve been so wrapped up in all of this I haven’t been the friend you deserve.” Not to mention engrossing herself in a new project would help take her mind off the shit show of her own life for a while. “Are you going out on the boat today?”
Joey nodded.
“Why don’t you take me back to your place, show me your figures and what you’ve done so far, and I’ll get started while you’re at work.”
“Really? You want to get stuck straight in? It’s only eight a.m.”
“Oh, good point. I’m starving. Shall I make us breakfast first?” She pushed herself up from the table and rummaged through the refrigerator. There was plenty of food since she’d shopped for two. The thought made her pause and lean her head against the wall. She took a long breath to settle her emotions before she continued her food preparations. She had two choices: wait and hope Tierney could convince her dad to invest, or cut and run.
“How about a bacon sandwich?” she asked.
“Sounds perfect.” Joey turned from the table. “You okay? You sound a bit shaky.”
“I will be. The last couple of days have been a lot. Let’s eat, then make some plans to build your empire.”
“Empire, ha. All I can say is my family have been doing the same thing for generations, and we’ve never quite starved. But I’ve probably seen more changes in the industry than the three generations before me. I can’t keep going like this.”
Kasia understood Joey’s comment better when she pored through the spreadsheets they kept on the oldest laptop she’d ever seen. She made a note to add updated technology to the business plan. Joey’s profit margins were low. They kept fastidious records of income and outgoings, as well as the volume and quality of their catch. But the effort and cost of personally delivering to customers ate into the profits. The small oyster farm they’d started a few years ago to help them through the lean winter months had potential, but to grow the business, they needed to have a system to get their product to market.
She wished she could talk it through with Tierney. Her years at business school had taught her more than she seemed to be aware of, and she would undoubtedly be able to add value. They’d worked so well together on the plans for the hotel.
Slamming the laptop shut, she stood. “I need to stop obsessing about Tierney. It hasn’t even been a day since she left.” The door handle rattled and Kasia jumped. Joey tramped in, wearing waders and carrying a second pair.
They grinned. “Were you just talking to yourself?”
“Not about anything useful. What are you up to?”
They held out the rubber outfit. “I thought you might want to come and watch me shake the oyster bags. So that you know a bit more about what I do to help with the business plan.”
Kasia suspected Joey was just trying to keep her busy, but she’d spent a few hours hunched over the laptop and was grateful for the chance of some fresh air. She pulled on the waterproof kit and adjusted the straps over one shoulder, careful not to put any pressure on her injured side. “How do I look?” She spun around.
“Perfect.”
Joey led the way down to the beach. Now that the tide was out, Joey’s few trestles were visible farther out in the bay. Kasia followed and watched as Joey shook each of the bags.
“You can help when your shoulder’s better.” As they walked around the beds, Joey explained about collecting the oysters ready to harvest. “It’s all about scale. There’s stuff I can do as things stand, but if I get any bigger, I need proper equipment for grading and to harvest. And it’s not that lucrative. I think I’d be better to focus on my own catches and let other more established oyster farms do this.”
“Are there other producers locally?” Kasia was already thinking about opportunities.
“Yeah, a few, but they have the same problem as me: getting their product to buyers. It’s easier to sell to a distributor who has the infrastructure to get the goods to market which, more often than not, is outside the country.”
“But then someone else takes their cut. What about a cooperative? Where you share the costs but keep more of the profit?”
“It’s been tried before, but the fishers often argue about sharing profits, and it descends into chaos.”
“But if you led on it, everyone loves you, and you could keep them all in check.”
Joey lifted a bag. “I don’t know. I just want to have the ability to serve a few more restaurants beyond the island and Portrinn without having to sell to a distributor.”
It was a big deal for them to be looking to modernize their processes. She should probably just help with what she’d been asked to do rather than push them any further. What did she know anyway? It wasn’t as though her own grand plans had come to anything.
As she followed Joey back up the beach, she pondered staying and putting herself at Tierney’s mercy. It made so much more sense to leave and start over. She hated to leave Joey, but if she could help with the loan application before she did, it would help lessen her guilt a little.