“They didn’t leave a name, and we couldn’t tell if it was male or female.”
I remembered Shauna’s talent for altering her voice and was willing to bet it was her, but there was no way to prove it.
“Why aren’t you questioning anyone else that worked that night? I couldn’t have gotten into the restaurant—I don’t even have a key.”
“One of the waitresses lost her set a couple days ago.… And you’re the only one of my employees who has a record.”
“That doesn’t mean I’m a thief—” My voice broke. He looked at me, his face flushing like he was embarrassed. I took a breath, tried again. “Mike, you know I love this job, this place. I wouldn’t screw you over like this. For what?”
He stared down at his coffee. “We had to talk to the police and make a report. They’ll probably want to speak to you.”
“You know this puts me at risk of losing my parole. Why would I do something so stupid when I just got full parole?”
He finally met my eyes again. “It’s not only me, Toni. It’s Patty. She’s never been comfortable with you working here. But now, with Ryan back … She’s worried that maybe he needed the money, so you helped him out.”
“Come on. Give me more credit than that.”
“The thing is, Toni, trouble seems to follow you, and we don’t want any more problems.”
I didn’t have an answer to that. It was the truth. Since I first started working for him as a kid, there was always some drama around me.
“You’re a good worker,” Mike said. “One of the best I’ve had. I hate to do this.”
He was going to fire me. I distanced myself, accepted the hit that was coming. “Just say it, Mike.”
“We’ve got to let you go.”
I nodded once, twice, taking in the words. “That it?”
“Your last check, I’ll drop it off.” So I wasn’t even allowed back on the premises. He added, “Patty … she also called your parole officer.”
“Mike, you know my parole officer can send me back to prison if she believes one second of this bullshit.”
“I’m sorry.” I could see that he was, but it didn’t mean anything now. He was letting me down. I fought tears as I stood up. I wanted to leave with my head high, but I couldn’t resist a parting shot when I walked by Patty at the door, her face scared like she thought I might hurt her.
“You’re wrong about me,” I said. “I’m going to prove you wrong.”
*
I grabbed Captain from Mike’s yard, taking a moment to give the other dog a good-bye kiss. Captain was thrilled to see me, but I was fighting tears. Who had taken the money? Was it Ashley? I was sure Shauna had set me up somehow. I just prayed that Suzanne wouldn’t believe Patty and that they didn’t have any evidence other than the asshole witness, but this all felt too familiar. The crazy-making feeling of knowing you’re innocent with no way to prove it, the awful shamed feeling that you’ve done something horrible even when you know you haven’t, and the terrifying feeling that your life has slid totally out of your control.
I made it back to my boat, sat down at my table, still jittery and on edge. I tried to focus on practical matters. Would I be able to get another job? Who would hire an ex-con who just got fired for theft? The best thing to do would be to face it head-on. After a sleepless night, I called Suzanne first thing in the morning.
“I didn’t steal the money, Suzanne.”
“I’m listening.”
“There’s no way I’d risk losing a job I like over a few bucks.”
“It was almost a thousand dollars.”
“That’s still not worth the risk.”
“It might be if you wanted to help someone else.” It was back to Ryan again. I was so angry I couldn’t speak. She continued, “Maybe he’s in trouble or something, but do yourself a favor and tell the truth. Don’t cover for him again.”
I caught the slip. “I’ve never covered for him, ever, because he’s never done anything wrong.”
“I could suspend your parole right now,” she said, her tone firm, angry herself now. “You’re hanging by a thread, Toni. If the police find one scrap of evidence that you’re responsible for that theft, you’re out of here.”
“I’d like to say they won’t find anything, because I didn’t do anything, but that didn’t help me the first time around. Someone wants me gone, Suzanne. They’re setting me up to look bad.”
She was quiet for a moment, then said, “That may be, but you need to come in for a disciplinary hearing so we can sort this out.”
I closed my eyes. Damn. “When do you want me there?”