Ex employer won't pay me, and now says they are sending me a bill for "damages"? (employee, owner)

[OreyG]

I'm in CA and the employer who I worked with, refused to pay me within 3 days of being let go due to me being "under investigation". I said I was fine with it because I had nothing to hide, and after 1 month and a few requests as to when I'd get paid, she (the business owner who I worked for directly as an office manager) says I will be receiving a bill for "damages" to her company... I was hired with prior knowledge that I'd need training to pick up all aspects of running the office on my own.

Now 2 weeks into my hire and training, she was going through a merger in which it was assumed I would be out of a job and she would close down her psychology offices. I was used as a "bargaining chip" in terms of her starting full time with her company's merge.. So then I start with a second company which I enjoyed doing work for, when I was told that 1st job's owner wasn't shutting down and "killing her baby", so she needed me to continue running things for her. I thought to myself, and expressed to her "Great, I have 2 jobs now, will I be able to work around the schedule you need me for?" all answers were positive and supportive. So now, I was working full time for this new company that expected me full time within the 8-5 timeframe, working during my lunch for job #1, as well as at the end of my day for job #2, I was literally putting in 12 hour days split between 2 jobs. No lunch, only small snacks at breaks. I was working 7 days a week to help keep up, and we had agreed long before that we needed someone to fill in the gaps and take care of smaller tasks while I was indisposed.. Now by the time she found someone, I started training them, and could not do so with all the necessary attention needed all the time, aside from weekends and after work #2... All in all, I was put on suspension for the timid new girl not being trained right (in fact it was her inability to do anything the way it was directed, nor did she have computer awareness enough to follow what I was talking about), and due to being suspended I had the time to focus on my higher paying job #2, which I liked and decided to come back from suspension and let her know I could only work weekends for her - To which I showed up to a preemptive "we need to let you go" shpiel. I was ok with that too, in fact I preferred it.

Please help, I know this is a bit much to read, but it's 32hrs at $9/hr which is $288 gross pay.. Now she's not paying me that, and saying I'll be receiving a bill for her "damages". I was hired signing a I-9, but was supposed to be her first "payroll employee" through W-4 or whatever... I worked hours that she would have me schedule her in her office, so she dictated when I worked, and also where.. So I truly was not a fully "Independent Contractor"..

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!

[OreyG]

In addition - When I was training as a new hire, it was known that I did not have all necessary exp, and that I could grow into the role. While training, I was her best friend, and she would use the previous office manager as a scapegoat, saying that because of personal problems, she was trying to "ruin her practice".. I was literally her best friend and prodigy, receiving all sorts of praise, and then those tables were turned on me once the new girl I was training was 1/4 capable of doing anything for her office. Although I had already proven to be a better asset than the person replacing me (on the day I was let go, she had hired a second full time employee just to replace my position, which I was taking on by myself before then)