Dora was still a little queasy from her bout with food poisoning, but all the poking and prodding she’d endured for the role of Scarlett O’Hara on the parade float had made her hungry. While Evie walked Sunshine, Dora rummaged through Gertie’s pantry and fridge and came up with a can of soup and the fixings for a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner.
The spoon scraped against the bottom of the pan as she stirred the soup while she thought about how Evie had snapped at her earlier. She wondered if it was because Evie wasn’t used to her having the spotlight. She’d never craved attention the way Evie did, but Dora did understand what it felt like to be overlooked. She knew her friend had gotten over herself quickly, but she could certainly remain aware that Evie would have preferred to be the star so as not to cause her any more pain.
The door creaked open, and Dora glanced over to Evie and Sunshine.
“Wait until you see the pictures I got for Sun—Sushi’s Insta,” Evie said as she plopped down a stack of mail on the counter.
It hadn’t been that long since they had sent the package containing the flash drive from Florida, and they’d agreed the night before to check Gertie’s mail daily in case it hadn’t arrived yet. Dora didn’t want to wait for Evie to tell her story, and she asked, “Any Buddha packages?”
Evie let out a sigh, “No. But when I tell you about Sushi’s adventure you’ll cheer up. We saw a man playing the saxophone outside the building. He’s really good, and he had Sushi under his spell.” Evie walked over to show Dora the photos.
The little dog did indeed appear to be in a trance, and Dora said, “Adorable,” as Evie flipped through more. “Oh my gosh, how cute is that?” Dora exclaimed when she saw the photo of Sunshine giving the man a kiss on the cheek. He looked just as enamored with Sunshine as the little pup was with him. “That one definitely has to be posted.”
Evie wandered over to the couch to begin loading pictures on Sunshine’s Instagram account. She called out, “Whatever you’re eating smells so good, Dor. Got some for me?”
Dora smiled. She’d already tossed two sandwiches into the pan to cook, knowing Evie couldn’t resist gooey cheese, bread, and butter, but she couldn’t help teasing her friend. “I thought you were going to eat étouffée.”
“Can’t I have both?” Evie asked as she came up behind Dora to peer over her shoulder.
Dora laughed. “Way ahead of you.”
While Evie heated up her meal from Myrtle, Dora had to admit the étouffée filled the kitchen with a delicious aroma, and if she’d been feeling better, she might have tried it. Once dinner was ready, the two sat down at Gertie’s kitchen table to eat.
Evie grabbed her sandwich, took a big bite, and let out a sigh of contentment as she chewed. “Why does the grilled cheese that you make always taste the best?”
“Food always tastes better when someone else makes it. Especially if it’s your best friend who does it without being asked.”
Evie smiled at her. “This is why we’re such good friends. You love me, Dor.”
“I do.” Dora couldn’t help but think about Gertie and Myrtle. She imagined that Myrtle getting up early in the morning to walk with Gertie was about spending time together, while Gertie may have been working on her friend’s health to keep her around a little longer. Yet it was Myrtle who’d ended up left alone.
Dora’s throat thickened, and she had to gulp to get the food in her mouth down to her stomach. She’d always thought she and Evie would be two little old ladies living together in their golden years, and she imagined she’d be the one making Evie walk early in the morning. She envisioned Evie complaining, but talking and laughing with her the whole way just the same. And then she wondered how she’d ever go on if Evie died and left her first. She set her sandwich down as her eyes filled with tears.
“What’s up?” Evie asked, her face full of concern.
Dora shook her head. “I was thinking about how close Gertie and Myrtle were, and it made me imagine us.” She reached her hand across to grab Evie’s. “I hope you die first.”
“What?” Evie chuckled. “You can have your sandwich back,” she joked.
“No. I didn’t mean it like that. I meant that I can imagine how hard it will be for the one left behind when one of us dies, and I want to spare you that pain.”
“Awww, Dora.” Evie’s eyes were glassy now too. “That’s really sweet.” She sniffed and then smiled. “But I want you to die first.”
“You want to spare me the pain of missing you, too?”
“No,” Evie forked a mouthful of étouffée and lifted it up. “I know that when I’m gone you won’t know how to have any fun, and at that point you might as well be dead.”
Dora let out a snort. “Fine. We’ll die together.”
“Now you’re talking. Preferably Thelma and Louise style.” As Evie chewed, her brow furrowed, and after she swallowed her bite of the classic New Orleans dish, she said, “You may have ruined crawfish étouffée for me.”
“With my famous grilled cheese?”
“No, its…” Evie took another bite and held it in her mouth as she frowned. She swallowed with a grimace. “Either Raúl isn’t a very good cook, or I’m too susceptible to the power of suggestion.”
Dora raised her eyebrows because the latter statement was definitely true. “There was that time in high school I had to stop you from shaving your head and donning a robe to hand out poppies.”
“True, but those little flowers were awfully cute.”
“The hairstyle would not have been,” Dora said.
Evie ignored Dora’s comment as she sucked her tongue a few times as if trying to rid her mouth of an unpleasant flavor. “I swear I taste mud now.” The bowl scraped on the table as she pushed it away. “Weird.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin that dish for you.”
“No worries.” Evie reached over to swipe half of Dora’s sandwich. “I’ll just eat more of what you’ve got.” She pumped her eyebrows and took a big bite.
After dinner, the two women sat on the couch to watch TV with Sunshine. Dora noticed Gertie’s laptop sitting on a small, antique secretary, and she walked over to pick it up from the dropdown leaf of the desk. “I wonder if we could find out from Gertie’s laptop if she even received the Buddha.”
“Not a bad idea. She probably kept good records of her business transactions.”
Dora plopped down on the sofa next to Evie, who had just started a romcom, and she opened the computer. As she’d suspected, though, it was password protected. Something she’d need to explore with a plan. One she wasn’t ready to formulate tonight. She hadn’t gotten much sleep being sick last night, and they’d had a busy day. It had worn her out. “I’m going to have to work on this tomorrow. Want to take a crack at it?”
Evie shook her head and placed her hand on her stomach. “No. I’m feeling a little funky. I think it can wait until tomorrow.”
“Oh, no. Maybe what I had last night was a virus and not from what I ate.”
“Do you think so?” Evie asked with a grimace.
“No. Not really. My stomach turned itself inside out in a way that happens with food poisoning.” Dora stood up. “I know the heartburn medication is expired, but do you want some bicarbonate to settle your stomach?”
“Say what?”
“Baking soda. Mix it with a little water, and it works the same as over-the-counter chewables.”
“You’re a handy person to have around, Dor. Sure, I’ll try it.”
Neither woman made it through the movie Evie had picked before retiring early. And it was a good thing, because Dora needed every minute of precious sleep she could get before she witnessed Evie reenacting last night’s food-poisoning scenario.
Sometime just before dawn, Dora awoke to the sound of retching and made her way into the bathroom. The tile floor was hard under her knees as she kneeled down to pull Evie’s bright pink locks into a ponytail. “Hey, Evie.”
Evie groaned as she turned her head to look at Dora.
“Whoa,” Dora said when she noticed how flushed her friend was. She put her hand on Evie’s forehead. “I’m worried about you.”
“I’m a little worried too.” Evie said as she got up from the floor and placed a hand on her chest. “My heart is beating so fast. Like I just sprinted or something.” Water rushed into the sink when she turned on the faucet, and she bent down to drink out of it.
“Evie!”
“I know, I know,” she said as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “Use a glass.”
“No. I mean yes, but that’s not what I’m worried about.” Dora grabbed Evie’s wrist to take her pulse.
Evie pulled her hand back. “I’m fine.” She walked out into the kitchen, and Dora followed her, concerned that her friend was not at all fine. Evie said, “It’s better now. It was probably the spice in the étouffée that got my pulse racing.”
Dora opened the fridge and pulled out the plastic container of the seafood concoction. She lifted the cover to sniff it. “This doesn’t smell spicy.” She scanned Evie with her gaze, looking for anything that might be off. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I think so, but Dor…” Evie scowled. “What if that was poisoned? What if both the meals we ate were from Raúl and—” Evie let out a sigh. “I’m being dramatic, aren’t I?”
“Maybe. But maybe not.” Dora took the étouffée and dumped it into the sink. The smart thing to do would be to have the food tested for poison, but considering they were on the run with zero connections, it wasn’t as if they could just walk into the police station with the food and ask someone to do them a favor. It was better to just get rid of it so no one else, including Sunshine, consumed the possibly tainted food. With a spoon she shoved it down the garbage disposal as the blades whirled to grind it up. She glanced over at Evie. “I’d feel a whole lot better if we checked on Myrtle to be sure.”
“I agree.”