|
|
|
|
|
|
to earthquake standards after the shaking in 1971." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"That was before I got here," Mike said. "I used to fix a lot of crumbling patio walls and shorted light fixtures, but I don't remember hearing about the sealing off of any rooms." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"It's accessible," Grace said. "Just hard to get to." She paused, then looked at Abby, her usual scowl mellowed into an expression of apology. "I'm sorry I didn't think of that room before, but it's a mess, just junk inside. I can't imagine Myra leaving anything of importance there." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"We were robbed back in seventy-nine," Jess said. "Someone broke in and took all the jewelry we had about. Thank heavens for Mr. Peebles; all our good pieces were in that bank box." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mike nodded. "Poor Myra," he said, his head shaking nostalgically. "That was the year before I arrived, and she still felt violated. I'm not surprised if she hid things of value. And what better place than somewhere no one would think to look?" |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"But she told me she wanted you to have the tea set," Jess said, shaking her head. "That Myra. I never will understand why she set such store in old things." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
When Abby looked at the empty metal shelves in the small cellar, she had not imagined they concealed the half-height door into the old coal cellar. The framework was on wheels that had corroded over time, so Mike had to lift it away. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Carrying a cylindrical portable light he called |
|
|
|
|
|