Page 84 of You Chive Me Crazy
Was another food truck stealing my customers?
My first thought was that Alvin Marzo got out of jail and was bad-mouthing my baked potatoes to get people over to his truck.
What else could it have been?
A few more people in line were whispering to one another, many of them looking at their phones before also walking away. And just like that, over half of my customers were gone.
“I don’t understand what is happening,” I said, my muscles tensing as panic settled in. “Where is everybody going?”
“I’ve got a terrible feeling about this,” Rolando said, glancing at the space where we’d had a line of customers just seconds earlier. “They cleared out of here like someone pulled the fire alarm.” He shook his head in disbelief. “Someone just screwed you over, Zoe, and I think we all know who it is.”
“Damian,” Lucas muttered through a clenched jaw.
All the other food trucks still had long lines.
We had the shortest line of everybody.
Savannah finished picking up the menus off the ground and rushed up to the window. “They just told me there’s some guy who claims he got sick from one of your potatoes. He posted a picture of himself with your potato, then later posted a video online directly from the hospital, deathly ill from your potato, and it’s going viral.”
Her words almost knocked me over.
Another two people got out of the line.
“What?! No, no, no . . . This can’t be happening. I’m always meticulous with all the food prep. No exceptions.” I closed my eyes, feeling like I was the one who was going to be sick. There was nothing worse than news about someone getting ill from your food.
Two out of the four customers who had already paid and were waiting for their potatoes walked back over to Rolando and asked for their money back, which I immediately approved. My thoughts were on the investors coming the next day. How could I possibly salvage the situation and walk away unscathed? If the health department got involved, I could kiss that franchise goodbye.
A wave of dizziness washed over me, like I was trapped in a nightmare, unable to escape the crushing reality of the situation. I seriously did not know how to fix it.
Rolando held his phone in my direction. “I found the video of the guy. Over a million views in less than an hour. And look who it is.”
Lucas glanced at the phone and froze. “Lazlo Larson. I had a feeling he was up to something, but I never expected this.”
“I just had a near-death experience,” Lazlo said in the video from his hospital room. “They rushed me to the hospital from the Big Bang Big Bear food truck festival after contracting food poisoning from one of the food trucks there. Potato Heaven.”
I held my hand over my mouth. “This can’t be happening.”
Lazlo’s voice shook slightly. “I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. I was in so much pain and discomfort, but the worst part was not knowing if I was going to make it. Salmonella can be deadly, you know.”
“Wait, salmonella?” I asked. “That’s impossible for him to come down with salmonella so quickly. I contracted it from a bag of bad lettuce many years ago and have done a ton of research on the subject. It takes at least six hours for salmonella symptoms to show up in the body, in many cases, it can take days. He got my potatotwohours ago. The man is clearly lying.”
Lazlo really ramped up his acting and winced slightly. “I’m just glad I caught it in time and got the treatment I needed. But I want people to be aware of the risks of eating from Potato Heaven. You never know what kind of hygiene standards they’re following. And it only takes one mistake to get sick.” He took a deep breath and looked directly into the camera. “So, please, listen to me, do yourself a favor. Avoid Potato Heaven. Don't even think about eating from that food truck unless you don’t mind risking getting sick and dying.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I can’t believe he said that. No wonder everyone took off like the world was ending.”
Lazlo paused for a moment, his eyes searching the screen as he laid on the melodrama. “Take care of yourself and your loved ones. Life is precious.”
“And you’re a lying bastard!” I yelled at Rolando’s phone, then threw my hand over my mouth when a young woman wearing a California Polytechnic State University T-shirt approached the food truck.
“I don’t understand why there isn’t anybody here! This place is the bomb!” She did a three-sixty and looked around, then shook her head in disbelief. “That was by far the best baked potato I have had in my entire life. I usually eat crap at school, but my boyfriend brought me your potato, and it blew me away. I just had to come over here and tell you. Five stars.”
“Thank you,” I said, trying to push a sincere smile through the stress. “I really appreciate that. We’re just working through a few issues.”
“We’ll be back open tomorrow,” Rolando said.
“Please tell your friends,” Lucas said.
“I will. Everyone will—” The woman froze and then her eyes practically bugged out. “OMG, I can’t believe you’re here!” She shuffled through her purse and pulled out her phone. “I’ll try not to act like an idiot, but could I please get a selfie with you? My friends are going to freak out.”
