Page 62 of Derek

“Derek? I’m sorry. I guess I woke up to an old nightmare.” She smiled ruefully. “I’m glad it’s you.”

“Me, too. Let’s get you out of the car and up to your apartment to bed.”

“Will you stay? Please, Daddy?” Sonja couldn’t help the slight tone of wheedling in her voice.

“Not tonight, precious. I’ve got to go in to work tomorrow to get caught up on my reports. If I stay here, I might be too distracted and not go in at all.”

“Okay, Daddy. Will you at least stay long enough to read me a bedtime story?”

“I’d love that, babygirl.”

Derek kept his arm around Sonja as they went into the building and over to the elevator, but she was fully awake now and eager for her story. If he couldn’t stay over, at least he would read to her. She loved listening to his deep, full baritone. Once they were upstairs, she got ready for bed as quickly as she could. In less than fifteen minutes, she had fed Snuggles, brushed her teeth, washed her face, and was in her favorite nightshirt getting into bed with her favorite bear in her arm. “Ready for my story, Daddy.”

Derek chuckled. “That was quick. Where’s the book?”

“Right here, Daddy.” Sonja picked it up from her nightstand. They were readingA Cricket in Times Square, an older book Derek recalled from his childhood. Sonja was really enjoying the story of Chester Cricket and his adventures in New York City with Tucker Mouse and Harry the Cat. They were just getting to the spot where Chester was starting to be homesick for the fields of his home in Connecticut and Sonja couldn’t wait to find out what would happen next. However, tonight, was not the night for that. Once in bed, Sonja could barely keep her eyes open. She was fast asleep before Derek had finished the chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Sonja and Suzie were in the office after the café closed the week before Christmas, going over plans for upcoming specials. “We need to do something to invigorate the flow of customers. I don’t know why they’re not coming in the way they were, but we can’t afford this hemorrhaging of patrons,” Suzie said.

“I think we should do another coupon, half off on your next visit,” Sonja was saying when a knock sounded on the door. “I thought everyone was gone?”

“Me, too,” Suzie replied.

Before either could get to the door, it burst open to reveal Yvonne holding a bunch of papers.

“What are you doing here, Yvonne?” Sonja asked. “You didn’t work today.”

“I found out why business is down!” Yvonne exclaimed. “Look at these reviews I found online. They’re terrible! People hate the café!”

“What are you talking about, Yvonne? Online reviews?” Suzie was puzzled. “Since when does anyone review us?”

“I’ve been wondering about the drop in business, and I’ve heard customers saying things that didn’t make sense to me, so I decided to look into it,” Yvonne said.

“What kinds of things?” Sonja asked.

“One couple was raving over their dessert and saying they were so glad they had come even though the reviews hadn’t been very good. I didn’t know what they meant, so I decided to do some research. I found two websites where people review local establishments, restaurants, stores—just about everything.”

“What did you find?” Suzie interrupted.

“Some people are saying awful things about the café online. This one says the dishes are dirty and the desserts are stale. Here.” She handed sheets to Suzie and Sonja. “I made copies.”

“Oh my god. This one says they got food poisoning from our potato salad. That can’t be right. We would have heard from lots of people if someone got sick from our food. That doesn’t just happen to one person.” Sonja was incensed.

“This one says they saw a roach in the ladies’ room,” Suzie read.

“A roach! Not in our establishment. We get top marks from every health department inspection.” Sonja read more. “These are nonsense. Who waits to complain about dirty dishes online instead of when they’re here? And I don’t believe for a second that anyone could have seen a rat in our kitchen.”

“You’re right. These don’t make sense. So, what’s going on?” Suzie asked.

“I don’t know, but we know someone who can probably help us find out,” Sonja replied.

“Who?” Suzie and Yvonne spoke together.

“Laura, of course,” Sonja answered.

“What does my sister have to do with restaurant reviews?” Suzie asked.

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