Giving Blood at the Danton Bakery

6. Brownies

Mason sat comfortably at one of the bakery tables as he watched Theo pace back and forth. Edith was in the blood room, organizing everything the way she liked it and Theo was having a nervous breakdown.

"Theo," Mason said. "You can't go getting nerves now. If this baker of yours works out, you can open your shop soon."

"I know." Theo sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "But what if she's a terrible baker? Or what if Edith falls and breaks a hip? Or what if-"

Mason had stood up, walking over to where Theo was panicking and he faced his friend. Mason put his hands on Theo's shoulders. "You can do this. It will work. Just calm down, and when Beatrice gets here we'll eat her pastries and made a decision. You're going to open this bakery. It's going to be a huge success and all your dreams will come true."

Theo nodded anxiously. "Do you really think that?"

"No," Mason admitted. "But you do. Deep down you do. And I'm not going to let you quit before you've tried."

Theo let his tense shoulders slump down, and he sighed as he sat in the nearest chair. "Thanks, Mason. You're a real friend."

"Anytime. If you think this sweet blood thing can make you happy, then I'm going to help you see it through." Mason joined Theo at his table and pulled his phone from his pocket. "Now I'm no businessman and I'm no chef. So when you asked me to taste test I looked up some articles about judging baked goods."

"You can still back out if you want to," Theo said sheepishly. "You know it will make you terribly sick later."

Mason waved a hand at Theo. "How many times have you come drinking with me and had a bad night after because of it? Don't worry about it. I'm here for you. And don't forget about Edith, she knows what tastes right these days."

"When was the last time you ate a pastry, Uncle Mason?" Edith came from the blood room, pulling a pack of cigarettes from her pocket and smacking the pack against her wrist.

"I dunno." Mason shrugged. "A few decades. But I still know what I like. Eating food is like riding a bicycle. Probably."

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," Theo said, nervously.

"Aw, don't listen to kiddo over there. Edith, look what you did. He's got the anxiety all over again."

"Sorry, Uncle Mason," Edith said, not looking sorry in the least. "I'm going to go smoke before this baker of yours shows up."

"Right, yes." Theo nodded. "Thanks for coming, Edith."

"Don't thank me, Theo. Just make sure to pay me." Edith pulled a cigarette from her pack and pocketed the rest, making her way out the back door.

"I hope I have all the ingredients," Theo muttered. "Maybe I should look at the list, just one more time."

Theo pulled his phone out of his pocket to see Bea's text message, when Mason snatched it from his hand.

"Oh no you don't," Mason said. "You've gone over this damn thing ten times already. It's fine, you've got it all. Just sit down and wait."

Theo grumbled incoherently and stared at his watch. Every few minutes, he would open his mouth to say something and Mason would cut him off. Edith finished smoking and came back inside, pulling a newspaper off the counter and sitting with it at one of the tables. After a little bit of waiting, the bell over the door finally jingled. Beatrice had arrived.

"Hello," Bea said from the front door. "It's nice to see you again, Theo. Hello everyone else, I'm Bea."

"Hello, Bea," Mason stood from his seat at the same time as Theo. Beatrice walked in and shook his hand.