Cinderella Story Part 3

The lightning that had damaged some of the kitchen appliances had also split the old oak beside the diner. Half of the tree had fallen toward the diner, landing on the roof above the kitchen. It had knocked a hole in the roof and let the rain in. The water pipe beneath the kitchen sink had been leaking and Pa Olsen hadn’t gotten around to replacing it. The impact caused the already faulty fitting to break, and more water had poured in. A neighbor had seen the tree fall and called the Olsens, but by the time they got to the diner a small lake had built inside. They’d turned off the water and opened the doors to let the water run out but there was still the hole in the roof allowing the rain to continue to pour in. They couldn’t do anything about that until the storm had passed.

Going into the kitchen, Nina looked upward. The Olsens had had the roof patched, but the ceiling was still in need of repair. Clearly they’d chosen to spend as little as possible toward mending the place. “At least there was no major structural damage,” she murmured.

Looking under the sink, she saw that they’d also had the broken pipe fixed. She made a mental note to have a plumber check all of the pipes and fittings and to have an electrician come in and recheck the wiring.

She’d expected to be nervous and scared. The place looked a shambles, and making it into a paying proposition was going to take some doing. Instead, she found herself excited by the challenge.

Driving to her in-laws’ home, her enthusiasm grew. During dinner she, Helen and Ray discussed possible contractors. Since all three had lived in town their entire lives, they knew several and, of those, which were reliable and which were not. Helen suggested she contact the interior designer who had helped renovate the Old Elm Bed and Breakfast, and they all agreed a bit of professional help in that direction would be wise.

Anxious to get started as quickly as possible, she placed calls from her in-laws’ home to the contractors they’d decided she should get estimates from and left messages on their voicemail.