Part 2: The Silver Tray
I walked back into the kitchen without saying a single word in argument.
“Did you hear the terrible things she was saying out there?” Gavin asked me with deep indignation.
“I heard every single word, Gavin.”
“Then why on earth are we still serving them our finest food?”
I turned and looked through the kitchen window toward the private dining room.
“Because I want Beatrice to take legal and financial responsibility for every single word she speaks today.”
Three months earlier, I had noticed unusual bank transfers leaving the restaurant account without my authorization. When receipts for high-end hotels and jewelry stores began turning up, Lucas claimed he knew nothing about them. So instead of confronting him right away, I quietly gathered screenshots, bank statements, and tax records.
Just three days before this surprise banquet, I discovered overdue loan notices hidden in his coat pocket, totaling nearly forty thousand dollars. That was when I understood that Lucas was not only spending money on a mistress but was also drowning in personal debt.
To make matters worse, my corporate lawyer had recently uncovered documents that Lucas had secretly drafted in an attempt to trick me into surrendering my majority share of the business. A simple signature could not legally hand him the company, but his intention was clear: he wanted to use my successful business as a financial lifeline to save himself.
That was the moment I realized my marriage was over, and I immediately filed for divorce.
That very morning, my attorney had given me the certified copy of the final divorce decree. Lucas did not know yet, because he assumed I would end up forgiving him, just as I always had.
Meanwhile, Beatrice kept celebrating lavishly in the dining room for nearly three hours, ordering extra rounds of fine wine, additional courses, gourmet coffees, and our most expensive desserts.
“Do not be stingy, girls,” she repeated loudly. “It is my treat today!”
The final tally reached an astronomical $23,289.
Just when I thought her arrogance had hit its limit, Beatrice summoned me back to her table. Beside the empty wine glasses sat a thick Manila folder.
“Sign these right here, Camilla,” she ordered bluntly.
I opened the folder and skimmed the first few pages, recognizing the fraudulent business transfer documents Lucas had prepared.
“What is the meaning of this, Beatrice?”
Beatrice frowned at me in deep irritation.
“Do not play dumb with me, Camilla. The ownership of the restaurant will be transferred to Lucas so he can handle the important business decisions, and you will simply continue working here in the kitchen.”
Several of her friends nodded along in agreement.
“A man can certainly make a business grow much faster,” one of them commented smugly.
Beatrice beamed at her friend’s remark.
“Exactly. Camilla cooks, Lucas manages, and that way the whole family is taken care of.”
Something cold and final closed inside my heart. For years, these people had called me family whenever they wanted free meals, money, or my silence, and now they were trying to steal the very business I had built with blood, sweat, and tears, just to bail out a cheating husband.
“I will review these papers later,” I said calmly.
Beatrice took my quiet tone as proof that I was terrified of her authority.
“Perfect. When you bring the final bill, make sure you hand everything back to me fully signed.”
I went straight to my private office and printed the master itemized receipt. The paper strip seemed endless, listing tasting menus for thirty-nine people, reserve wine bottles, imported cheeses, artisan desserts, and premium coffees, for a total of $23,289.
I laid the bill neatly on a polished silver tray, and beneath the paper I slid three specific items: the certified divorce decree, copies of the unauthorized bank transfers, and clear photographs of Lucas entering a boutique hotel with his mistress.
When the women finally began rising to gather their designer purses, I stepped out into the dining room to meet them.
“Just a moment, please, ladies, because we still need to settle the final account.”
Beatrice burst into a loud, obnoxious laugh.
“What on earth are you talking about, Camilla?”
I held out the silver tray to her. Her arrogant smile vanished the instant her eyes landed on the final number.
“You have completely lost your mind! You know very well that I am not paying this!”
“You stated multiple times in front of everyone that you were inviting the entire room today.”
“That was obviously just a figure of speech! Tell Lucas to handle this bill!”
“That sounds like an excellent idea, so please go ahead and call him right now.”
Beatrice pulled out her smartphone with a triumphant sneer.
“With great pleasure!”
She immediately put the call on speakerphone, wanting to humiliate me in front of all thirty-eight of her friends.
Lucas answered after several nervous rings.
“Hello? Mom?”
“Son, I am at the restaurant right now, and your crazy wife is trying to charge me $23,289! Tell her immediately to stop playing games and sign the transfer documents to hand the business over to you!”
The silence on the other end of the line was so heavy that even Beatrice stopped smirking.
Finally, Lucas spoke in a shaky, terrified voice.
“Mom… what on earth did you just do?”
