the protagonist is Roy (NOT RAY) and beatrice and mullet fingers. the protagonists are the cops and the person in charge of of building the pancake house.
Its like at the end of chapter 3 when he says something about "I didnt think things could get worse then this, but i was wrong". Not sure of the exact quote but you can look at the very last page of...
The Squares of the City by Science Fiction author John Brunner , Quarantine by sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke (short story) , The Defense by Vladimir Nabokov ,