Cam: Tragic? It was. It is. And somewhere along the way, my reasoning got lost, or maybe it ended the way it was supposed to, the same way my parents’ marriage ended—in disaster. Because holding up the Lasky brand, running that machine day after day, sucked every bit of joy out of something that, once upon a time, I thought was my destiny.

Juanita: Your former employees would agree. Accusations of mistreatment, claims of wage garnishment, improper management practices, firing staff for no reason other than you, and I quote, “didn’t like the look of their stupid face.” All in all, it sounds like working at Lasky Steak was pretty joyless.

Cam: For them, and for me. Honestly, shutting down was something I should have done ages ago.

Juanita: So why didn’t you?

Cam: Because like me or not, all those people depended on me for a job. They depended on me for a paycheck and health care. My mother depended on me. Jade and the kids depended on me. I’m the one who put a roof over everybody’s heads and food on everybody’s table.

Juanita: And not just any roof. Your roof covers six thousand square feet in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Buckhead.

Cam: Do you want it? Because I hear the bank’s still looking for a buyer.

Juanita: I can’t afford it, which is exactly my point. The asking price is well into the seven figures.

Cam: I’m sure they’ll work with you on the price. There hasn’t exactly been a run on the place after what happened upstairs. Nobody wants to live there. I certainly don’t.

Juanita: But what happens to your employees? With five locations, the number must have been well into the hundreds. That’s a lot of waitstaff and dishwashers and bartenders out of work.

Cam: They’re the best in the business, they’ll find another job. Most of them probably already have.

Juanita: That sounds a bit harsh.

Cam: Does it? I’m only saying it because it’s true. My staff were trained to serve the most demanding clientele, and any chef in town would be lucky to have them. And look, did I make mistakes? Absolutely. Are there things I wish I could go back and do differently? Hell, yes. But do you have any idea how hard it is to run a restaurant, much less a chain of them? I did what I had to to survive.

Juanita: Did you garnish their wages?

Cam: [smiling] Let me guess, we’re talking about George. For the record, I didn’t garnish, I subtracted the costs of the damages he inflicted during one of his infamous tantrums. Ask any of my former employees. George is known for his temper, and the last night he was with us he destroyed my kitchen. There were plenty of witnesses.