Chapter 95

“Why not?”

They had no answer for that, and all four agreed readily to our request. I’d been covertly watching John and Joe for much of the evening, because I sensed something amiss about their demeanor and body language, so I decided to plunge right in and find out what was wrong.

“John,” I said, “unless I’m mistaken, you and Joe seem to have a great deal on your minds this evening. Is there anything your friends can do to help?”

John said, “You know us too well, and yes, there is a problem. We’ve lived in our apartment for nearly four years. The owners, an older couple, have always kept the rent low, but they sold the building recently and moved to Florida. The new owners are increasing the rent on every apartment as the leases come up for renewal, some by as much as 50 percent. Our lease is up at the end of December, and we’ve got to find a place to live.”