Pete’s jaw dropped. “Dead?”
Starting from when they first approached the nurse’s station, she told him what had transpired. Having to wait to see Sonny, leaving to use the restroom but getting turned around. Finally being allowed in to see him. “He seemed okay, maybe a little tired, and then all of a sudden.” Carlita snapped her fingers. “He said he wasn’t feeling well and told us we should go.”
“Did you let the nurses know?”
“We did. They sent someone to check on him and issued a Code Blue alert.”
Pete’s expression grew grim. “Not good.”
“Nope. All sorts of hospital workers ran into his room. We waited and finally they started coming out.” Carlita told him thatjudging by the looks on their faces, she knew it wasn’t good. “He died…something about cardiac arrest.”
“He had a massive heart attack caused by food poisoning? I find this hard to believe.”
“I agree. Something isn’t adding up.” Carlita, shaken by the tragic turn of events, meandered aimlessly around the apartment.
Pete found her standing on the balcony, gazing out at the river. He slipped his arms around her. “You going to be okay?”
“I can’t stop thinking about how one minute Sonny seemed fine and the next he’s on his deathbed.” Carlita leaned against him and closed her eyes. “I’m sure if the doctors thought there were other underlying issues, they would have run tests on him.”
“Maybe they were in the process.” Pete tried his best to comfort his wife, assuring her she wasn’t responsible for the guest’s death.
“Elvira’s employee, Yvonne, also became ill.” A frightening thought popped into her head. “I hope she’s okay.”
“It might not be a bad idea to check on her.”
Carlita promptly dialed Elvira’s number.
“Hey, Carlita.”
“Hello, Elvira. Pete and I were talking about what happened to Sonny. We’re wondering about Yvonne. Could you find out how she’s feeling?”
“I was just getting ready to give her a call. I’ll track her down now and let you know.”
Carlita thanked her, promising to keep her phone close by.
“Well?” Pete asked.
“Elvira is checking on her now.”
“While we wait, let’s go for a walk.”
“Good idea. I want to check in with Mercedes.” Carlita grabbed a light jacket and texted her daughter to let her know she and Pete were heading her way.
Rambo, taking the lead, trotted through the parking lot and onto the sidewalk. He veered left, as if knowing where they were going.
Walking at a brisk pace, they reached the Walton Square apartment building a short time later.
Savannah Swag, the Garlucci family’s pawn shop, had long since closed for the day. Ravello’s lights were on, and as they passed by, Carlita noticed employees cleaning up after a busy day of serving guests. Only hours earlier, they had been celebrating Luigi and Dernice’s engagement. She had no inkling that the celebration would be marred by sick guests.
Turning the corner, the couple reached the alley. A jacked-up four-wheel-drive pickup, its engine idling, sat parked in the middle of the alley, directly in front of the apartment building’s entrance. As they drew closer, Carlita could see the tailgate was down.
“Someone is blocking the alley.”
“Bubba. I recognize his truck. He must be moving some stuff in.”
The door opened. A beefy man with broad shoulders and bulging muscles appeared.
“Hello, Bubba,” Carlita greeted him.
