Windhall by Ava Barry

Author:Ava Barry
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pegasus Books
Published: 2021-03-02T00:00:00+00:00

TWELVE

When Fritz saw me walking down the driveway, he offered to give me a ride home, but I declined. It had occurred to me that the Beverly Hills Public Library might have a copy of the Windhall blueprints from back when it was a tuberculosis facility, and even if they didn’t, they might have a copy of the blueprints from when Theo had made his renovations. It might give me some insight into where Theo had killed Eleanor, if there were any dark, secret rooms.

I left Windhall and walked down the street until I hit Benedict Canyon, then called a cab, which dropped me off at the library. I had visited it on a few occasions and enjoyed the art deco architecture but hadn’t spent much time there, because it felt more like a museum than a public space. Still, there was a chance that they might have something that could help me.

“Hi,” I said, approaching the librarian at the archives desk.

“Help you?”

“I was wondering if you have the blueprints for an old house in Beverly Hills,” I said. “It’s called Windhall. I can give you the address.”

“I know Windhall,” she said. She looked suspicious. “We don’t have the blueprints.”

“Have you ever had them?” I said.

The woman adjusted her glasses and gave me a hard look. “Are you hunting for treasure?” she asked.

“I just want to see the blueprints.”

“I know about the reward offered for leading to Theo’s arrest. People come in here, no respect for the fact that this is a library, and they take things.”

“I’m a writer,” I said apologetically.

“And which restaurant do you work at?”

“Sorry, I’m a paid writer.” I sighed and tried not to seem impatient. I decided to stretch the truth a bit. “Look, I’ll be very respectful. Someone is campaigning to have Windhall torn down, and since it’s a historic building, I’d like to try to save it.”

“Someone is what?”

“You’ve heard about the two girls who got killed recently? The father of the first victim is very upset. Can you blame him? I don’t think Theo had anything to do with the murders, but since it was a tribute to Eleanor Hayes, he’s trying to get Windhall torn down.”

She still didn’t look like she trusted me, so I took out my press pass.

“I’m a journalist,” I said. “I’ve just been to Windhall to speak with Theo, and I need to check something.”

“Come on.” She gave me a dubious smile. “Nobody’s seen Theo in fifty, sixty years.”

I took out my phone and scrolled through to find the picture of the foyer. I passed it over the desk to show her, and she studied it for a moment.

“Is that…?”

“Look at the date. I took the picture from the inside of Theo’s house just a little while ago.” I scrolled through the other pictures that I had quickly taken that afternoon.

“How on earth did you get inside?”

“I have my ways.”

She sighed and took off her glasses. “I’m really not supposed to let you see the blueprints,” she said.

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