Even If It Hurts -H.S. AU

65

I'm listing my building today.

It's been three weeks since Phoebe's attack and I'm finally taking the steps to get this place out of our lives for good. Letting it go has been hard, but the more I think about it, the more of a relief it is.

This place was my safe haven for awhile, but it was also home to such loneliness for me. So many times I sat alone in my little apartment and cried or drank myself to sleep from how miserable I felt. The dark windows, along with the fading blood stain on the sidewalk outside, is only a reminder of the despair I've felt inside those walls.

I'm sitting in Harry's Nova outside of my building, waiting for Cam. He's supposed to meet me here, but it's ten minutes past the time we decided on. He's a little sporadic by nature, but never this late. Just as a sinking feeling starts to form in my stomach, my phone rings.

"Cam, is everything okay?" I ask immediately.

"No, shit-" he sounds out of breath and a little panicked. "One of the stoves caught fire and damaged the whole north wall of my kitchen."

"Oh my god!" I cover my mouth with my hand, shocked.

"Violet, I'm so sorry. Can we reschedule? There's no way I can-"

"No, no. You deal with your restaurant, Cam. Don't worry about me, I'll figure it out."

"Thank you. I'm sorry!" He says again before the line beeps as he hangs up.

I drop my phone into my lap and run my hands over my face. What am I gonna do now?

I consider calling Harry, but he's in a massively important meeting with one of the hotel partners that's detrimental to the success of the company. He's already nervous about not being here with me, and I really don't want to panic him by calling.

I don't want to reschedule. I need this done and over with. I need this token of bad luck out of my life.

I groan and throw my head forward to rest on the steering wheel. I'm about to call my realtor, who is also a client and friend of mine, to reschedule, when my phone beeps. I open it up to find a text from him.

From: Collin
Hey! I'm inside.

I dropped off a key at his office last week and told him he's free to do whatever he needs to do to get this place ready to sell. I've known Collin for a few years now, he was one of my first clients and trusted me to stage his multimillion dollar listings in the Hamptons even though I was just starting out. Helping me sell my little building is definitely not his usual work, but he said he'd be more than happy to help.

I trust Collin and I'm very comfortable being around him. His wife and I have gone to lunch a few times over the years and I love hearing about their kids and the new milestones they've reached since I last saw them.

I shut off the engine and take a deep breath.
Let's just get this over with.

I push the door open and lock it behind me as I step onto the street. My hands shake a little as I walk past the faded blood stain on the sidewalk. Flashes of finding Phoebe run through my mind and a shiver crawls up my spine. I'll be so happy to never have to come here again.

I glance up at Mrs. Martinez's window and see all of the lights are off. She works around this time every day, but I was hoping she might be here. Her presence would make me feel a little better.

I take another deep breath and shake my head, trying to find the courage to walk up the stairs. I exhale heavily and force my feet up the steps to my door. I try the knob and it's unlocked, but that's not alarming since Collin is already inside.