TWENTY-NINE
James didn’t sleep. He went into work half an hour early. The first thing he did was start a pot of coffee brewing. He partly worried about Tubs. He never called the boss back last night. The man deserved an explanation. He and Charlie missed an entire shift. Tubs was a fair man, at least. He knew James didn’t have a phone. He also knew James lived in the house behind the diner. At some point, he must have seen the car in the driveway.
While he prepared food for the morning breakfast rush, James kept an eye on the back door. He kept expecting to see Charlie walk in.
At seven, Tubs walked through the back door, and took off his coat in exchange for his cook’s coat.
“Hey, boss.” James scratched at the top of his head. “About yesterday—”
Tubs held up a hand.
“But—”
“You’ve
