Thaumaturgic Tapas (Hidden Dishes #3)

There was something peaceful about the restaurant when it was closed in the middle of the night. The lights had dimmed, not so much that it was impossible to read like some of the more trendy restaurants, but enough that the yellow light gave a sense of warmth. The lingering smells of tonight's specials was drifting away, pulled away by the continuing hum of the air circulation system and what Kelly assumed was more magic.

With the guests gone and the chairs up, the floor swept clean and only the muted clatter of dishes being swept and put away, she found herself relaxing for the first time in hours. She pulled the single stool that was secreted under the bar out, slumping on the pass and staring within as her boss worked in his domain industriously.

There was a subtle rhythmn to his movements, like a dancer twirling through long memorised routine but with the very same intensity and focus as they'd have on a performance night. This was no rote movement that was as soon forgotten as complete, but the focused attention of the moment, where each action - from sweeping half-finished meals into the garbage to rinsing the plates out before throwing them into the industrial dishwasher - was taken with the proper care and reveerence of existence.

Only when the dishwasher was filled and set to running, another larger stack right behind waiting to go in, did Mo Meng stop. He raised a hand, sweeping a stray black lock out of his face as he walked over to Kelly who'd been staring, blankly at him for the last five minutes, exhaustion muddying her thoughts.

The proprietor of the Nameless Restaurant was short for a modern man, but he carried himself with the assurance of an older - a much older - man. As though nothing in this world could faze him, not anymore, and the rock of his personality unyielding to the tempest of emotions. Even so, there was always a small smile, a trace of good humor lurking in his eyes.

"Are you okay?" Mo Meng asked, his voice cultured and gentle. His accent was hard to place, most recently Canadian, but also international. Muddied from travel and time.
"Tired." Kelly rubbed her face, grimaced. "Tonight was rough."
"They won't be back," Mo Meng said, confidently. "Nor will we be serving anyone else who feels the need to raise their voice and shout when they're asked to wait a few."
"Good," Kelly said. The entire incident, brought about by the long wait times and their refusal to take reservations, had been stressful. There was something about men in expensive suits who felt their time and needs, somehow, was more important than anyone elses. "But it wasn't just them. Dealing with the crowd put me behind. And then the toilet got backed up, and we had to deal with that," thankfully, Mo Meng had stepped in there, "and then the machine went down and we had those two extra tables lingering and the desserts took longer and..."

"And once you got behind, you couldn't get caught up," Mo Meng finished. He hummed in thought, then nodded. "Finish up the numbers. I'll be back, and we'll finish this talk."

Humming to himself, he stepped away, turning the burner back on and tossing a new pot filled with water on it. Kelly hesitated, surprised by his sudden disappearance before giving herself a little shake, pulling herself over to the machine to finish the math. As hard as she worked, there was one advantage to working at the Nameless Restaurant and that was the patrons tipped well.

If strangely.

Release Date: 1. Februar 2025

Pages:

Genre: Cozy Fantasy

eBook ISBN:

Language: English

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