Page 111 of Honor

CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE

Reid

Since I haveno idea what’s ailing Evangeline, I’m at her apartment building with a multitude of things I hope will help her feel better. That includes supposedly homemade chicken soup from a bistro on the Upper East Side, a dozen different chocolate bars from Wolf Candy, a puzzle with a thousand pieces from a toy store in Times Square, and a bottle of the best red wine I’ve ever had. Naturally, I also come bearing a dozen pink roses.

I press the button next to her surname on the pad located near the locked door to her building. I glance at the rusted intercom speaker while waiting for her to respond.

A woman brushes past me with a key in hand. Her arms are even more overloaded with packages than mine are. “I’m sorry. I found a few too many bargains today. I didn’t mean to bump you that hard.”

“Allow me to help,” I say, still glancing at the intercom. Concern settles in my gut because what if Evie is passed out in her apartment? What if a fever has incapacitated her?

The woman shoves practically everything in her hands in my direction. I rearrange what I’m holding to help her out.

“Those flowers are to die for.” She bats her eyelashes at me. “Is a lucky lady in this building getting those?”

Something tells me that every person in this building has experienced Evangeline’s kindness, so I take a leap of faith and say her name. “Evie Starling.”

“Oh, Evie.” She turns the key in the lock. “She’s such a sweetheart. You’re on your way to see her now?”

“I am.” I take one last fleeting glance at the intercom.

“Follow me up.” She grabs hold of one of the bags she tossed at me. “I live a floor above her.”

I don’t hesitate as I trail her into the building because the unease that washed over me when Cleo first told me Evie wasn’t feeling well earlier has now taken root inside me in the form of dread.

A knockat Evie’s apartment door unveils a surprise I couldn’t have seen coming.

Charlotte answers the door with a stern look on her face. If I didn’t know better, I would think I’m in shit.

“I thought you were the delivery guy,” she explains her expression away. “I ordered a smoothie for Evie twenty minutes ago packed with all kinds of good stuff, and it’s still not here.“

I dip my chin to lure her attention to everything I’m holding. “I brought these for her.”

“Flowers?” She singles out the bouquet by snatching it from me. “These are gorgeous, Reid. Evie may have been wrong when she called you a boss from hell.”

I glance past her to see Evangeline standing near the window. Her back is to me, but I can tell she’s traded the dress she wore earlier at the office for jeans and a yellow sweatshirt. “Evangeline? How are you?”

“Fine,” she says before she spins to face me. “What are you doing here? How did you get in the building?”

Although not the response I was hoping for, I answer both questions. “Cleo told me you weren’t feeling well, so I brought you a few things. One of your neighbors let me in. I buzzed, but you never answered.”

I leave out that I’ve also called her twice and sent her three text messages, but all have gone unanswered.

“It’s hard to hear,” she explains. “I usually ask people to call me when they’re downstairs. That way, I can buzz them up.”

As if on cue, her phone starts ringing. She tugs it out of the back pocket of her jeans to answer it. “Hey. I’ll buzz you up.”

She ends the call with a fleeting glance at the screen. It would seem as though she was ignoring me on purpose.

Charlotte heads over to a panel on the wall to buzz the delivery person in, so I motion toward Evie. “Can we talk?”

She shakes her head but then shrugs. “I guess?”

I take that as a yes, so I motion to the hallway since the only private space in the apartment is her bathroom.

“I’ll go meet the delivery person halfway,” Charlotte offers. “It’s a lot of stairs for anyone to climb.”

As soon as she’s out of the apartment, I approach Evangeline. “What’s wrong? Tell me how you’re feeling.”

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