Chapter 37
Luca
I smiled down at my phone as I sat at my desk texting with my boyfriend. After dinner last night, I made a life-changing decision, and I couldn’t wait to see his face when I told him.
Axel: God, I can’t wait to see you.
Me: Me too. I have news.
Axel: Yeah? What?
Me: Nope. I’ll tell you when I see you.
Axel: Tease. Unfortunately, we have a schedule change.
Axel: Coach wants to practice now.
Axel: That means I’ll have the afternoon off to “nap”.
Axel: Take the afternoon off. Or leave early. I need you before the game.
Me: I’ll see what I can do.
Me: But I have an appointment I can’t miss.
Axel: Reschedule it.
Me: No can do. Boiler repairs at Edith’s. I need to check in.
Axel: Only because it’s her.
Me: I’ll make it up to you.
Axel: I’ll hold you to it.
Carnal thoughts about the world’s sexiest hockey player, who was all mine, were playing like a movie reel in my head when Susannah walked into my office. “Hey. Are you okay if I head out for the day after I go to Eastover? Axel just got home, and he’s got a game tonight.”
“Yeah, sure. It should be fine.” She still didn’t look right.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
She sat down in the chair next to my desk and laid a newspaper in front of me. With her hand on top of it, she looked me in the eye. “I need to show this to you.”
“Okay.” Lifting the paper, I opened it to the sports page and read the title. Hockey’s New Power Couple was splashed across the headline.
“It’s okay. We knew it was only a matter of time before the press got word of our relationship. We don’t have anything to hide.”
Her brow furrowed. “The article isn’t about you and Axel; it’s about him and his teammate. It says it’s his ex.”
Bile rose into my throat, making it hard to swallow. Taking a deep breath, I calmed my racing heart. This didn’t add up. “I know Axel, and he isn’t a cheater or a liar.”
I looked at it again. The photos were of him and Heath on the ice, in a bar, sitting side by side. Was it damning? Yes. Did the thought of it make me sick to my stomach? Also, yes.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
I stared down at the paper and made my decision. “I’m not going to read it. It would be easy to believe, and it could destroy me. But I know him. And he’d never do this to me.”
She looked at me like it wasn’t making sense. “The article says they were overheard talking about getting back together.”
She wasn’t making me feel any better. “Still. not reading it.”
“Did you know about that guy?”
“Yes. He told me about Heath the minute he came home from practice when he was traded to the Nighthawks. It’s not him. He wouldn’t do that.”
I wasn’t going to divulge anything about his parents. That wasn’t my place. He was innocent until proven guilty. And I wasn’t about to try him in the media.
“I just don’t want to see you get your heart broken. That’s all.”
“Thank you. But it’s okay.” I folded it up and handed it back to her. “Thank you for letting me know, but I’m gonna choose to believe in him rather than hockey gossip.”
“I had to show you. What kind of friend would I be if I hadn’t?”
“It’s okay,” I replied. “I’m glad you did. If he were anyone else but Axel, I would be concerned. But not about him. I feel it in my heart.”
“Good.” She walked over to the trash can and tossed it inside, then squeezed my shoulder on the way out.
The newspaper haunted me all day long. But my resolve was stronger than my doubt until it hit social media, and the fans started to leave comments. My phone screen lit up a million times before I turned it off. Standing, I went to Susanna’s office. “I’m heading out. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Sure thing. Let me know if we need to threaten to pull funding. Money talks in this town.”
I smiled. “Okay. I’ll be in touch.”
When I walked out the door, I had no idea what was waiting for me.
I didn’t consider myself to be an intuitive person, but I had lived long enough to sense when something bad was going to happen.
Large work trucks surrounded the area, making it difficult to find a place to park.
I ended up parking two blocks away, then running the rest of the way to see what was happening.
My phone blared in my pocket with Edith’s ringtone. I fished it out and answered. “Hey, what’s going on?”
“Luca,” she wailed, “they’re saying we have thirty minutes to evacuate the building. Where am I gonna go? I have no place to stay.”
“Don’t worry about that. We’ll figure it out. I’m almost there.”
The super was pacing on the sidewalk, wringing his hands. This wasn’t good. “Carmine, what’s going on?”
He looked at me, fear in his eyes. “Mr. Vaughn. They’re saying we gotta evacuate. The pressure is coming down, but it’s still too high, and there could be a break. We gotta get everyone out.” He looked at his watch. “We got twenty minutes to comply.”
“Okay,” I said, “what can I do?”
He looked at the building. “I’ve been around and told everyone who’s home. But we gotta go back and check.”
“Okay. Do you have a list of tenants?” He looked as if I were speaking Greek. “Never mind. I’ll get it from the office. You go knock on doors.”
When he headed back into the building, I called Susanna and told her what was going on. “Email me a list of tenants. Carmine doesn’t have one.”
“Okay. You’ll have it in just a second.” I heard her clicking on her keyboard as I stared up at the building. “Okay. Should be in your inbox.”
“Thanks. I’m going to go help.”
“I’m on the way.”
“You might want to start looking for alternative housing. Thirty-two residents will be a challenge to place. I’ll call if I need you.”
“Keep me posted,” she said.
“I will,” I said, ending the call. Checking my email, I found the document and opened it. After taking a screenshot of the list, I approached a police officer who had just arrived. Explaining what I needed, I sent him the list as I headed inside.
Edith’s door was open when I got there. She was packing a bag with medication and clothes. “How much longer do you need? We have to go.”
“I need my box from downstairs. It’s got all my important papers. Can you get it?”
I checked my watch. “Okay. Get Bambino, and you go. I’ll get it.”
“You remember the code, right?”
“I do. You go. I’ve got it.”
I grabbed her bag and ushered her down the stairs. When she was outside, I headed around the side of the building, checking the time, and down the stairs to the basement. I had ten minutes to get in and out before they cut off all access.
I reached her locker and unlocked it. That’s when all hell broke loose over my head. So this was how I was going to die.