Ella

by Ryan Scott

  Chapter 9

  Ella began the walk to Jenner-by-the-Sea the next morning, keeping warm in her mother’s wool coat. As she approached River’s End, she stopped to catch her breath and noticed a seedy beer joint overlooking the ocean and a few weathered shanties clinging to the hillside. When she looked down, she saw the river colliding with incoming waves and piles of broken driftwood tangled with dead seaweed littering the beach. She bitterly thought that mess down there is like my marriage--a shipwreck. She thrust her fists into her pockets and continued to walk.

  When she arrived at Mueller’s resort, she saw red and yellow umbrellas fluttering on the veranda and a faded blue sign on the roof. "Mueller’s Resort. Fishermen's Headquarters, Cabins, Restaurant, Groceries."

  She smoothed her hair and stood erect, braced for a disappointment, and then she saw a hand-written Help wanted sign in the window. Maybe my luck is going to change for the better, she hopefully thought. She took a deep breath and pushed the door open, causing a little bell to jingle. A large bald man with big yellow teeth stood behind the counter, looking her up and down. In a honey-sweet voice he asked, "What can I do you for, young lady?"

  She held her mother's coat to her throat and replied, "I’m looking for Mr. Mueller."

  The man stepped down from a platform behind the counter, saying, “You're looking at him, Sweetheart. Are you applying for work?"

  His diminutive stature surprised her, but she step forward, saying, "Why, yes. Yes, I am."

  "Well, Sweetheart, if it were up to me, I'd hire you on the spot, but my wife takes care of those details. She'll be back soon. Why don't you come into the restaurant, and I'll get you a cup of coffee? There's no harm in being friendly, is there?" he asked with his belly nudging her.

  She wanted to run, but forced herself to smile. "Well, I guess a hot cup of coffee would help to warm me up."

  She followed him into the adjoining restaurant and sat at the booth he indicated. "Just make yourself comfortable, Honey. I'll be back in a second," he said, leering at her legs.

  When he returned with the coffee, he sat down next to her with his knee pressed against her thigh. "Say, aren't you living in the old Rule Ranch? I've been hearing about you."

  She moved her leg away, replying, "Yes, I am. Thanks for telling my mother about that place. I noticed the sign outside. Can you tell me about the job?"

  When the back door slammed, He suddenly jumped up and spilled coffee down his shirt. With a knowing wink, he whispered, "That’s my wife; I'll go tell her you're here, but we can get together later."

  A tall, horse-faced woman with her hair tied in a severe bun came to the booth and sternly said, "I'm Mrs. Mueller. I understand you're looking for work."

  Ella slid to the end of the bench and stood up. "Yes, Ma'am. My name is Ella Ferrari. I noticed your Help Wanted sign in the window."

  "Well, I must say, your timing is good. I just placed that notice this morning. I had to fire a girl last night. She wanted to sit down every three or four hours and rest. I can't afford to pay someone for just sitting around doing nothing. I expect a full day's work for a full day's pay. Do you think you could give me an honest day's labor?"

  Ella cleared her throat. "Yes, Ma'am, I believe I could. I'm young, healthy, and willing to work."

  A hint of a smile appeared on Mrs. Mueller's face. "Well, I'm glad to hear that. What experience have you had?"

  "I was a cook for the crew on one of Mr. Carlini's dairies. I prepared the food and served the workers."

  "That’s good. Working in the kitchen and waiting on our customers are two of the duties. In addition, you would clean the cabins every day and look after the store for several hours during the afternoons. I'll show you how to run the register. Of course, there's always sweeping, cleaning, and scrubbing. The hours are seven in the morning to seven at night. There's a 15-minute lunch break. The soup is free, but all tips must be turned over to me. The pay is $1 a day. If those terms are acceptable, I'm willing to give you a try."

  "What would my days off be?"

  Hard lines erased the thin smile from Mrs. Mueller's face. "You get Thursdays off. Look, if you don't want the job, there are plenty others who do."

  "I want the job. When do I start?"

  Mrs. Mueller held her elbow, tapping the corner of her mouth. "You begin right now. I'll show you what needs to be done, but of course, I can't pay you for today. This is just a training period, you understand. If your performance meets my standards, you may start tomorrow on a regular basis."

  With a knot in her stomach Ella replied, "Yes, Ma'am, I understand."

  "Good. Come with me and I’ll get you started."

  That evening Ella glanced wearily at the clock and rubbed the small of her back, feeling exhausted from scrubbing greasy pots and pans, Good, It’s closing time! She thought and went to lock the door, but a large man entered the restaurant and took a seat.

  Mrs. Mueller smiled and nodded, indicating they would serve the late customer.

  Ella quickly gave a menu to a weathered-looking man. "Good evening sir. What would you like tonight?"

  He looked at her with sad blue eyes and replied, "I’ll take a cup of coffee and the usual. You’re new here, aren’t you? My name is John. I eat here all the time. What's your name?"

  "My name is Ella," she answered. Under her breath, she whispered, "Mrs. Mueller doesn’t want me visiting with customers."

  When she finally finished her shift, she exchanged her apron for her coat. "Mrs. Mueller, should I come back tomorrow?" she anxiously asked.

  The businesswoman gave her a small smile. "Yes, Ella, your work was satisfactory, but I expect you to improve. I’ll see you tomorrow, and don’t be late!"

  When Ella began her long walk back to her house, she thought about her family, putting all thoughts of John and his sad blue eyes aside, wanting the warmth of her mother’s smile and the security of home. I wonder how Mama made out with the kids. She thought, walking past River’s End. The yellow lights spilling across the highway and the honky-tonk music coming from the cliff side saloon caught her attention. A cold beer sure would taste good, but no money, no beer, she thought, thrusting her hands deeper into her empty pockets. She continued her solitary journey, accompanied with a distant foghorn plaintively mourning.

  Breathing heavily, she finally trudged up their rutted road, but when she saw a candle glowing in the mist, she ran the rest of the way home and threw the door opened. Rico ran to her, shouting, "Mama’s here! Mama’s here!"

  She picked him up and gave him a squeeze, but Kenny shyly stood back. She knelt down, saying, “Hello Kenny, would you give me a hug too?"

  When he threw his arms around her neck, she picked him up and staggered to the sofa where she sat down with both boys on her lap. Laughing, she said, "Mama, it's so good to be home!"

  Frances pushed up from her chair with a grunt and asked, “Hello Honey. Did you get the job?"

  "Yes, I was hired at Mueller’s Resort.”

  “How much are those cheapskates paying you?

  Ella shook her head from side to side. “They pay me a dollar a day for 12 hours. My day off is Thursday.”

  Frances clicked her tongue. "That's mighty low wages. Maybe you shouldn't work for them."

  “I’m willing to give it a try, but we can talk about it later.”

  After Ella put the children to bed and kissed them good night, she asked, “Mama, what are you cooking? Something smells awfully good."

  "It's cottontail stew; I got lucky with the shotgun so sit down and eat your fill."

  "Thanks, I'm starved, but I didn't know you knew how to use that gun."

  Francis chuckled. "Well, there's a lot about me you don't know. Don't forget, I'm a pioneer woman. Eat your dinner, and I’ll get your bath ready."

  While her mother filled a galvanized tub with hot water heated on the back of the stove, Ella quickly undressed. As she soaked in the sudsy water, she said, “Mama,
this is pure heaven! Thank you so much.”

  After her bath, she dressed in her mother’s old robe and sprawled on the sofa with a cup of coffee.

  Francis settled in the over-stuffed chair, asking, “Well honey, how did the Mueller's treat you?”

  "He's a dirty old man, and she's a greedy old battle axe, but other than that, they’re quite lovely.

  “What are your duties?”

  “I mostly clean the cabins, the store and the kitchen, but I hate scrubbing the pots and pans. During meal times I wait on customers, and in the afternoon I run the store. That's enough about that stuff for now. How did you manage with the boys?"

  Frances sighed. "Those little dickens about wore me out with their games. ‘Spit on the truck' was a duzy. I caught them on top of that old arch trying to spit on passing trucks.”

  "Those little devils could be killed. What did you do?"

  I gave them a good spanking with the hairbrush, and then I discovered them in a little nest they had burrowed in that stand of wild dill. They were giggling, so I peeked in and saw them poking little straws in their thingies. They were chanting, 'putt-putt motors, putt-putt motors.' I didn't know what to do, so I decided to wait and tell you."

  Ella banged her cup on the floor. "Those nasty little boys. If I ever catch them doing that, I'll give them a real good spanking."