I had no idea if that was what Tobias was doing. I had no idea what bad things had happened to Crew in his past. I didn’t know, so I shouldn’t assume. Assuming only made me anxious, and being anxious only made me itch more.
At least, that was what I was trying to tell myself. I was desperately trying to convince my brain to calm down and that everything would be okay. Truth outweighed emotion. Logic vetoed automatic panic.
No matter what I knew about Crew and his habit of running whenscared, I couldn’t possibly know how he would react to a hypothetical situation.
With a growl meant only for me, I shook my head and tried to keep my hands busy with anything but scratching at my skin. It was difficult, but I found a few tasks I could easily run through without too much brain power. When I was at a standstill, I grabbed an orange pad of Post-it notes and a light blue marker. I drew insensible things, some even coming out as weird doodles.
I checked the cameras every so often, which didn’t help anything. Everyone knew where the blind spots were outside. Crew, especially, since he’d go there when he needed a minute alone. All I was accomplishing was worrying myself more than necessary, which might be none at all.
Chatter filtered down the hall from the kitchen. Orders were being called out at a measly pace, indicating just how slow we were. I frowned, realizing how out of the ordinary it was for us to be so dead at a time like this. Looking back at the cameras, I frowned at how much snow had accumulated.
An alert chimed on my phone, stealing my attention away. I had been watching the snowfall get thicker every few seconds, which started to worry me. Usually, we’d get a nice, steady pace of it around this time of year. It was coming down much faster than that.
I turned my phone screen on, staring at the notification.
Winter Storm Warning Issued for Crescent Planes, NY
From the National Weather Service
WHAT…Heavy mixed precipitation is expected. Total snow accumulation for surrounding areas is between six to twelve inches, and snow and sleet accumulations are near two to five inches. Ice accumulations up to one inch.
WHEN…Until 6 a.m. EST Thursday.
I stopped reading after that, immediately calling Matthew. I never called Matthew. He trusted me to fix issues as they came up, and I usually did, but this was not good. Not in the slightest.
The phone rang for far too long. The moment he picked up, I rushed my words so fast, I wasn’t sure how he understood me. “There wasn’t a single fucking alert about this until now, but there’s a huge storm coming. Like, massive. They’re talking twelve inches; can youbelieve that? No warning! Boss, I need to close down. No customers are here anyway. Not really, at least?—”
“Slow down, kid.” He practically shouted into the phone. “Do what you need to do. I believe you. I just got the warning myself. I don’t know shit about weather, but I’m guessing this was a surprise to everyone. Close down and get out as soon as possible. Don’t worry about doing full duties. Employees are our priority.”
I wished that last sentence rang true. I wished I could say he was a great guy, always putting us first. I couldn’t, though. Not when he let Brandt run me over like he did. Worst of all, I had no idea if Matthew knew how Brandt treated us.
Either way, I accepted the phone call for what it was. Permission to do whatever possible to get everyone out before we were stuck. The moment I went to rise from my chair, Callum was at my doorway, a frantic look on his face.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen him look like that before. He looked stressed as hell. I stood, nodding as I started to reassure him. “I got the alert, too. I’m about to clear everyone out.”
He looked at me like I was spitting nonsense. “What alert?”
“The winter storm? What else?”
Callum shook his head, his light brown bangs whipping him in the face. “No, no, something is wrong with Tobi. Really wrong. He’s crying outside, and I don’t know what to do. I tried to help, I really did, but he won’t listen to me.”
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
I took a deep breath, realizing this was what my brain was trying to warn me about. “I got it.” Did I? “Get everyone ready to leave. Don’t worry about fully closing or cleaning; just make sure everything is turned off and all perishables are put away. Don’t worry about doing it in an orderly fashion. They just released an alert that we could get a shit ton of snow, and I need everyone to go home.”
“We’re closing?”
“Yes, Callum. We’re closing. Get everyone on their way home and lock the doors. Can I trust you to do that?”
His face steeled at that, a sudden seriousness taking over his panicked face. “Yeah, I got you, boss. You get Tobi, I’ll take care of the store.”
I nodded at him before grabbing my jacket and racing towards the back exit. A tickling, buzzing sensation began to crawl from my wrist to my inner arm, teasing me with the need to scratch. I was barely at the door before Callum called out behind me.
“Wait! Where are the keys?”
“There’s a spare in Brandt’s office. Take them to lock up and don’t fucking lose them! I’ll text you all when it’s time to reopen.”
“Got it! Stay safe, boss!”
