Bobby's Arc

Chapter 8 of 8

Friday morning comes cold and clear. Bobby wakes at the refuge before dawn, loads the last boxes into her truck, and drives them to the banquet hall. Claire's already there when she arrives, standing in the kitchen with both hands on the counter. The building smells like fresh paint and sawdust. Bobby sets down the boxes and checks her watch. The inspector's due at ten. They spend the next two hours making the space perfect. Bobby scrubs counters that are already clean while Claire arranges purple signs outside that say come one, come ALL. The building itself looks strange in daylight, shaped like a giant silver soup pot with copper handles on either side of the entrance. Claire picked it because nobody could mistake what it was for. At nine fifty, Bobby spots the county car pulling up the drive. A woman gets out holding a clipboard. She walks slow, looking at everything. Bobby meets her at the door and hands over the paperwork with both names on it. The inspector doesn't smile. She walks through the kitchen, checks the sinks, opens every cabinet, runs her hand along the stovetop. She asks about capacity and Bobby says four hundred. The woman writes something down. Then she asks who's in charge. Bobby opens her mouth and Claire says, "We both are." The inspector looks at them for a long time. Finally she signs the bottom of the form and hands Bobby a copy. "You're approved for operation," she says. "Both shifts, full capacity. Congratulations." She leaves without waiting for a response. Bobby stands there holding the paper. Her hands shake now, after it's over. Claire takes the form and pins it to the wall next to the purple banner. They don't say anything for a while. Then Claire asks when the first meal service starts and Bobby says tonight. They have six hours to prep. Claire nods and ties on an apron. Bobby does the same. Outside, the silver building catches the light like something you could see from the road. Like something that was always meant to feed people. Bobby turns back to the kitchen and gets to work.