“Seriously! What the hell kind of timing is this?” I screech.
Logan lowers my legs from his shoulders and reaches for my purse with his free hand.
I take it from him, and fish the phone out to check the screen.
Sofia.
I haven’t heard from her in days, since she texted anall is wellupdate about Myrna.
“Hello?”
“Oh my God, Banner. I didn’t know who else to call.”
The panic in her voice has me sitting up and closing my legs. “What’s going on?”
“She’s dead. I just found her. She’s dead.”
Sofia can only be talking about one person, but for some reason, I have to confirm what I already know as tears sting my eyes. “Myrna?”
She sobs into the phone. “Yes.”
“Did you call 911?”
A muffled sound comes next.
“What did you say?”
“They just took her body. Her daughter can’t get here until the day after tomorrow. I feel so terrible. She was all alone, sitting in her chair with Jordana right next to her.”
I can picture Myrna, and I figure if the old lady was ever going to depart from this Earth, that’s probably how she would have wanted it. But even that doesn’t stop the grief from welling in my chest.
Logan looks at me, and I can see the question in his eyes.
“What can I do?” I ask Sofia. I lived across the hall from the older woman for five years, and despite all the words we tossed between us, I’m devastated.
“Can you come home? Her daughter told me I need to start organizing things to get rid of, and told me to hire whoever I needed.”
“Already? Jesus.” It doesn’t surprise me as much as it sounds like, however. Mrs. Frances’s daughter has barely bothered with her mother in the last five years, so it’s not like death is going to change much.
“Yes, and she sounded so heartless. I just ... I know you had your issues with her—”
Yeah, like she got me evicted. But I can’t hold that against her because getting evicted turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to me.
“I’ll be there. It’ll be okay. It won’t be until tomorrow, though.”
“That’s fine. I’m going to stay here tonight with Jordana, so she’s not alone.”
The poor weird little dog. I wonder if Myrna’s daughter is going to want to take her. I know for a fact that Sofia’s apartment is pet-free, so that’s not going to work.
“Okay. I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know when I’m in the city.”
“Thank you, Banner. I truly didn’t know who else to call.”
I hang up the phone and see the questions in Logan’s eyes.
“What the hell happened? Who died?”
“Mrs. Frances. My old neighbor. The one from across the hall who ratted me out for not having a job.”