Chapter 20
THE CEO
DANTE
The Avon Complex was the first apartment building I’d ever bought in this city.
With its twenty floors, trailing English ivies that clung to its bricks, and Juliet balconies that overlooked the street, it was once one of my mother’s favorite places to stop and admire.
Before today, I’d never been able to make myself come back and see it.
Then again, from the way the trailing ivies were half-dead and the balconies’ iron was rusted, perhaps my resistance was for the best.
Making sure I wasn’t imagining things, I glanced at how this place looked online. Then I looked up at it again.
Hmmm.
I held the door open for Chloe and headed straight for the leasing office.
Just like it claimed online, the doorplate announced the manager as a “Mr. Daniel Kline.”
I didn’t bother knocking.
This place belongs to me…
“We’re not open right now.” The woman behind the desk didn’t look up from her salad as I entered. “Come back in an hour.”
“No, right now will have to do,” I said. “Where’s Mr. Kline?”
“He’s busy.” She stuffed a tomato into her mouth. “Come back later, or make an appointment if you want to—” She finally looked up, and her eyes met mine.
Jumping from her chair, she slammed her hand on a golden button.
Within seconds, a salt-and-pepper-haired man emerged from the back office.
“Oh my god, it’s Mr. Dante Hudson—in the flesh!” He forced a smile. “It’s an absolute honor managing one of your properties, sir.”
It doesn’t look like it. “Good to hear that.”
“I uh—” He ran a hand through his hair. “I wasn’t expecting you to drop by.”
“I’m sure,” I said. “I need you to let me into a few of the units.”
“I’ll happily show you any of our showrooms.” He waved a hand. “We just finished cleaning them.”
“No, I’d rather see the ones people are actually living in.”
“Oh. Well, we can’t barge in without notice while the tenants are here. You know, laws and stuff.”
“I don’t think they’ll mind.”
“I do.” He swallowed. “If you give me a chance to call a few of the best ones and see if it’s okay, we can go from there.”
“Okay.” I walked right past him and to the elevators.
Chloe followed, and Mr. Kline rushed ahead of us.
“Please give me a few minutes,” he said. “It’s not really the best day for an impromptu showing.”
I hit the up button, and the doors glided open.
I tugged Chloe inside with me, and Mr. Kline looked torn between joining us and staying behind.
He reluctantly stepped aboard as I chose the top floor.
“I could’ve sworn my engineer told you to get glass panels placed on these elevator doors years ago.” I looked at Mr. Kline. “And it smells like piss in here… Why?”
“I can’t control when people want to behave like animals, sir,” he said. “But you know—some people have pets, so maybe that’s it?”
“I sent every property a memo about installing a pet-friendly elevator… Is the one we’re on for pets?”
Mr. Kline said nothing.
“Mr. Kline?” I pressed him again.
He still said nothing.
The elevator doors opened, and the unmistakable smell of mildew smacked me in the face.
I let out a sigh and walked over to the hallway window. There were cracks in the edge of the glass, trapping moisture, and God knows how much bacteria and mold were under here.
Not saying a word, I knocked on Unit 7B.
No answer.
I walked over to 7C, but the door to 7B slowly opened.
“Are you here to fix my toilet?” a woman asked me. “If so, just give me and my kids twenty minutes to get out.”
“No, I’m not here to fix your toilet.” I tried to keep my voice flat. “What’s wrong with it?”
“I mean, it’s been broken for like a month.” She crossed her arms. “I’m tired of peeing in bottles and asking my neighbor to let us poo in hers.”
“Understandable…” I felt my blood beginning to simmer. “Are there any other issues?”
“Ha! Plenty!” She motioned for me to walk inside, and Chloe followed. “Look at this shit…”
I stared at the sight of the black mold covering her far-left wall and the lack of baseboards along the bottom of her floors.
The wooden doors throughout were warping faster than the floors, and before I could ask her why they looked slick like they’d been drowned in a river, I spotted why.
Water dripped steadily from the ceiling hallway, overflowing the buckets beneath it.
“How long have you been living like this?” I asked.
“Four years.” She smiled. “But look, even with the flaws, it’s a great place overall, and I love my balcony. If the asshole billionaire who owns the place could just fix the mildew and maybe cut back on some of the mold, that’d be enough to make us happy.”
“Right.” I sighed. “Thank you for letting me see.”
I looked around one last time, in utter fucking disbelief that people had been living like this under my name.
“Um, you’re coming back to fix something, right?” she asked.
I walked out of her place and into the hall, pulling out my phone.
I scrolled down to Paul’s name and immediately hit call.
“It’s still a no on the alley spouts, Mr. Hudson,” he answered. “I asked ten other engineers, just like you demanded.”
“This is about something else,” I said. “I need you to send a team to The Avon Complex now and just get to work fixing this bullshit. Start with 7B and check on every fucking unit, every shared room, and get the landscaping team out here to fix the tragedy of an entrance…”
“Right away, sir.”
Livid, I called Anthony next.
“At your service, unless it’s about that person I told you not to hire.”
“I need you to get to The Avon Complex and handle the expenses on a major maintenance project for me.”
“I’ll be there within the hour.”
I ended the call and saw Mr. Kline wringing his hands near the window.
“So, um…” He looked at me. “Am I fired?”
“You were fired the moment I stepped onto the elevator,” I said. “The longer you stand here, the longer I consider not sending you the final paycheck.”
His face paled, and then he slipped into the emergency stairwell.
I sent for the elevator and looked at Chloe.
“I had no fucking idea about this one...” I shook my head. “Did you?”
“Somewhat, yes.”
“Are the others like this, or is this the worst?”
The look on her face told me I didn’t want to know the answer to that question.