Dexter left some cash and took off with a smile. His plan was to find a bookkeeping accountant to handle the finances for the restaurant and the fruit store—taxes, payroll, and buying insurance for Veronica and V.
This stuff was a total pain, but necessary. After all, the IRS is not someone you want to mess with.
By evening, everything was on track. Dexter returned to the restaurant. Veronica and V were busy making fruit platters. Mickey, who looked slightly more adjusted to this work schedule after the last few days, was leaning back, watching TV.
Dexter mentioned that the fruit store was opening tomorrow. Then, finding a spot to sit, and since he had some downtime, he started opening treasure chests.
The business trip would have to wait a while. In the meantime, he needed to rack up some more cash.
> [You opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Congrats, you won $9,000.]
> [You opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Congrats, you won Handgun Accuracy Increase (80% → Upgrade → 90%).]
> [You opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Congrats, you won the uisine - Premium Rich Pork Noodle Skill (includes all raw ingredients needed for ten servings).]
> [You opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Congrats, you won the Cuisine - Premium Braised Beef Noodle Skill (includes all raw ingredients needed for ten servings).]
> [You opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Congrats, you won Speed +1 meter/second (Limit State).]
Ooh, running faster! Not bad, that's a good pull.
> [You opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Congrats, you won Lifespan +10 days (Real World).]
"!!!!"
Holy cow, after opening so many chests, he finally hit the jackpot!!! It was only ten days, but that was still awesome!
Dexter was thrilled. He figured his luck for the day was probably tapped out, so he quit while he was ahead. His Merit Points were currently at 10,349.
Before the trip, if I take out Patrick and then Monica, I should be able to bank about 20,000 points.
Thinking this, Dexter didn't waste any time. He took out his phone and got busy.
It didn't take long. Dexter registered the 'Show's Restaurant' account on Twitter. Then, he got up, walked outside the restaurant, took a picture, and posted an update.
With this account, if he promoted it well before he left, and then let V take over as the chef, the restaurant should stay afloat for a while.
Thinking of V...
"V," Dexter put his phone away and walked back into the restaurant, calling out.
"Yeah, what's up?" V asked, turning around.
"Start practicing your cooking more, okay? I'm heading to New York in a little while, and you'll be the chef here," Dexter said with a smile. "You up for that?"
All three of them—V, Veronica, and Mickey—froze: "????"
Naturally, Veronica immediately started worrying. The Alibi Room just started renovations, and now Dexter was leaving?
"Boss, how long are you gonna be gone?" Veronica asked anxiously.
Dexter shook his head. "I'm not sure. Maybe a week, maybe two."
Okay, that's not too long. Veronica breathed a slight sigh of relief. Then, after thinking for a moment, she asked, "Boss, you are coming back, right?"
Dexter laughed, understanding her concern. "Of course, I am."
"Good," Veronica finally relaxed.
Seeing that Veronica seemed done with her questions, V nodded to Dexter. "Sounds good. I'll be the chef. But Boss, if I run the place into the ground, you can't blame me."
Ha ha! That won't happen. At worst, it just won't make money and will close temporarily. No biggie.
"No blame," Dexter nodded. "Alright, let's get organized and ready to open. We have two new dishes tonight: Premium Rich Pork Noodles and Premium Braised Beef Noodles. I'll try to serve forty meals tonight."
Forty meals! That means plenty of tips. Veronica was ecstatic.
Mickey's face dropped. He felt like he'd been scammed—the work just kept increasing! How many dishes was he going to have to wash now?
Bastard. Scam artist. Mickey muttered to himself. Then, he pulled out his phone and texted Mandy, "Come to the restaurant for dinner tonight. The boss has new stuff."
Mandy had just finished school. She saw the text and grinned. "Will do." She was genuinely happy that Mickey was finally working and earning money, instead of living the way he used to.
---
### The Gallagher Household
As night fell, all eight members of the Gallagher family gathered for a mandatory family meeting. (Liam was just there for atmosphere, of course). Steve was at work—i.e., stealing cars—so he wasn't around.
Fiona, looking miserable, recounted the day's events. "What are we going to do?"
Debbie was panicked. "If we lose the house, where are we going to live?"
Lip looked serious and tried to reassure her. "Debbie, calm down. We're not losing this house."
After comforting her, Lip analyzed the situation. "Aunt Ginger has been dead for twelve years. Patrick's will is definitely fake. We can challenge that will."
Ian spoke up. "But we can't tell them Aunt Ginger died years ago, or Frank will go to jail."
Frank immediately glared. "Don't even think about it! I am not going to jail!"
Lip didn't even look at Frank. "We don't need to explain Aunt Ginger. We just need to forge a fake will that's dated earlier than Patrick's. Then we can challenge the authenticity of his will!"
Was that a solid plan? No!
Frank was smart enough to see the flaw immediately. He shook his head. "That won't work. Patrick has definitely had that will notarized, and he probably submitted it to the city hall. If you show up now with a fake will, forget whether city hall accepts it—you and Patrick will both be in deep trouble. Someone might even get arrested..."
Frank, in a rare moment of seriousness, analyzed the whole thing, then offered his own suggestion. "If you ask me, we should just tear out and take anything valuable from this house and sell it off for cash..."
"F you!" Lip was furious and shot back without hesitation. "Shut the hell up!"
Seeing Lip so angry, Monica panicked and quickly jumped in to placate Frank and try to act like a good mother. "Frank, this is our house. We absolutely cannot give up. Just stop with the crazy talk."
"What crazy talk?" Frank disagreed. "You don't know Patrick like I do. That asshole..." Frank continued to rant.
Fiona, Lip, and Ian just exchanged looks and ignored him.
"Lip, you try your idea tomorrow. If it doesn't work, we drop it, and we'll keep trying to figure out another way," Fiona told Lip.
"Maybe we could beg Patrick..." Debbie anxiously suggested. "How could he have the heart to kick all of us out?"
"Or... threaten Patrick?" Ian suggested.
Carl's eyes lit up, and an evil grin spread across his face. "We get a gun, take Patrick out, and problem solved!"
At this, Fiona and the others, who are shameless but generally lack the guts for real crime, all stared at Carl in shock.
"Carl! Absolutely not! You are not to think like that again!" Fiona was genuinely worried Carl might actually do something, and she said it with extreme seriousness.
Lip and Ian quickly added their own warnings. Carl, annoyed by the scolding, got cranky and didn't want to be involved anymore. "Whatever you guys want."
He tossed that out dismissively and got up to go do his own thing.
Frank saw him. "Carl, wheel me over to the Alibi. Let's go hang out."
Carl hadn't eaten dinner yet, and the mention of the Alibi made him think of Dexter's restaurant, and he started to drool a little. Unfortunately, he'd only managed to steal a small amount of lunch money at school lately—nowhere near enough for dinner at Show's Restaurant.
"You got cash? I'll wheel you to the Alibi if you give me money. I want to eat dinner at Dexter's place," Carl asked.
When he said that, Fiona's face subtly changed. She instinctively looked down, feeling guilty. Dexter had told Veronica to return the money Carl paid last time... Fiona hadn't told Carl, and she'd kept the cash.
Frank and Carl didn't notice Fiona's reaction. Lip was too busy being annoyed. "Carl, that dump sells stuff that's way too expensive. Don't go eat there!"
Carl looked at Lip, ignored him, and focused on Frank.
Frank actually did have a little money left over from the panhandling and fake injury scheme from a while ago, since he hadn't been mobile lately.
But fork over cash so Carl could eat that pricey stuff? Nope!
"I can give you five bucks," Frank said.
Carl frowned. "Five bucks won't get you anything at Dexter's."
Frank was about to speak again when Monica jumped in first, trying to act like a good mom. "Carl, do you really want to eat at that restaurant? I'll give you the money." She spoke to Carl pleadingly, then turned to Frank. "Frank, give Carl the dinner money. We'll cash the check tomorrow, and I'll pay you back."
Frank laughed. "I don't have any money—just five bucks! And do you know how much dinner costs at that place? It's close to two hundred bucks!"
Faced with that outrageous number, Monica gasped, her eyes widening. "It's that expensive?"
Carl, who had smiled when Monica said she'd pay, saw her reaction, and his smile vanished instantly. He didn't say another word, turning and walking towards the couch.
Seeing this, Monica felt bad for Carl. She gritted her teeth and asked Fiona, "Fiona, the check is with you. When you cash it tomorrow, can you deduct two hundred dollars from my half, okay? Carl wants to go, so let him have one meal there. It's okay to splurge once in a while."
Fiona heard this, rubbed her forehead, and paused for a moment.
A few seconds later, feeling guilty about scamming Carl out of his money last time, Fiona decided to agree. She asked Lip, "Lip, do you have the cash?"
Lip couldn't believe it. "Fiona, are you serious? Spend that much money on one dinner?"
Fiona was helpless. She thought for a second. "Let's talk over here."
Lip was confused but got up.
Quickly, Fiona explained what happened last time.
"You secretly used the money Carl earned?" Lip was surprised. He started to understand Fiona's request, but because he disliked Dexter so much, he still didn't want to pay. "Even so, sending that much money to that jerk is crazy."
Fiona knew Lip hated Dexter, which made her even more exasperated. "Lip, the point here isn't you, it's Carl. Besides, Monica is paying for it; I'll deduct it from her share tomorrow. Look at Carl—he really loves that food..."
Lip was silent for a while. Finally, he sighed. "Just this one time. We can't let him get used to spending that much..."
"I know. I'll talk to him tomorrow," Fiona said, her guilt slightly lessened.
A few minutes later, a happy Carl, money in hand, pushed Frank out the door. The remaining six Gallaghers continued to discuss the Patrick problem.
---
### Show's Fruit Store
Svetlana had everything set up in the store, just waiting to buy inventory tonight. Looking at the shop she had built with her own two hands, Svetlana was very satisfied and smiled brightly.
After watching it for a while, Svetlana locked up and walked toward Show's Restaurant—to eat, and to discuss a business idea with Dexter.
Having fruit wholesalers deliver would mean a lot of delivery fees, driving up the cost of the fruit. She thought they should spend a few thousand dollars to buy a cheap, used pickup truck. She could haul the fruit herself every day, which would lower the cost, make them more competitive, and increase profits.
This was a decision Dexter had to make.
In the kitchen of Show's Restaurant, Svetlana presented her idea.
Dexter thought it over. Kevin did have a pickup truck. Renting it out would give Kevin some extra income, which might help him buy a better car. But it might also inconvenience Kevin. He needed to ask.
"Tell you what, go ask Veronica first. Kevin has a pickup. See if they're willing to rent it to you."
"If that doesn't work, after closing, I'll give you the cash to buy one. If we buy a truck, we'll get a new, large one. We can use it when we open new locations. Go big or go home."
Svetlana was stunned and immediately caught the key phrase: "New locations?"
Dexter smiled. "Of course. Didn't you think about that? How much money can one fruit stand make in a year? We have to open more."
"!!!!" Svetlana couldn't believe it. "And I'd manage them all?"
"If you've got the chops for it, yes," Dexter replied with a smile.
Svetlana was thrilled. "Thank you, Boss! I promise I'll work hard!"
"Good. Now go on, I'm busy."
Svetlana didn't linger. She quickly left the kitchen to find Veronica.
### Outside the Alibi Room
"F! What the hell is this?" Frank froze and cursed loudly.
Kevin happened to be carrying stuff out of the bar. He saw Frank and smiled. "The Alibi is starting renovations today, probably closed for ten days or so, Frank. You'll have to find somewhere else to drink."
Frank: "!!!"
Frank was banned from every other bar in the neighborhood.
"Where the hell am I supposed to drink? Kevin, what are you doing, man?! Why the hell are you renovating a perfectly good bar???" Frank was furious and depressed, swearing non-stop.
Carl, pushing the wheelchair, was anxious to get dinner and interrupted. "Frank, what do we do now? I'm going to eat dinner. Maybe you can just wait here for me, and I'll take you back when I'm done."
"..." Frank was speechless. "Get lost, you little jerk."
Carl heard that, didn't say a word, and walked straight away. Frank didn't even look at Carl, just yelled at Kevin. "Kevin, I'm drinking right here! Bring me a few beers!"
Kevin just smiled. "Whatever you want, man."