Building Blocks of Murder Read Online Free PDF

March, was waiting for them, even though they were a few minutes early.
    “I like to show up early and begin my inspection of the outside,” he explained when Lacy apologized for arriving after him. She wondered if he would comment about the building, but he didn’t. She felt oddly insulted by his lack of comment on her new building. How exciting must his job be if the sight of the Stakely building did nothing to impress him? On the other hand, maybe he was one of those businessmen who was strictly business while the time clock was ticking.
    The trio stood back to survey the outside of the building. It looked good to Lacy, but what did she know? Nothing, which was why her grandfather and Mr. March were there. She ran her hand lovingly over the bricks, remembering with a smile some of the many stories she had created about the old building. A budding sense of happiness began to well in her chest. Maybe her hasty decision wasn’t all bad. After all, she had a true affection for the place. This could be the start of something good.
    “Shall we?” Mr. March asked. Some of Lacy’s enthusiasm dimmed when he handed a construction helmet to her before passing one to her grandfather.
    “Is the building unsafe?” she asked, taking a timid glance at the structure.
    “You never know, but it’s over a hundred years old. Better safe than sorry until we know what we’re working with,” he replied as she donned the ugly hat.
    The electricity wasn’t on inside the building, but it had several large windows and it was a sunny day. Along with Mr. March’s industrial-strength flashlight, there wouldn’t be much they couldn’t see, unless there was a basement. If there was a basement, Lacy wasn’t sure she wanted to find out. What had looked promising outside now looked menacing inside. Everything looked worn, as if it truly were in danger of collapsing on their heads. And spider webs were everywhere, the kind that Hollywood set designers created for haunted houses in the movies. Moving closer to Mr. Middleton, she finally gave up trying to be brave and hooked her arm through his elbow. He gave her arm a light squeeze, and she felt reassured by his presence.
    They followed slowly behind Mr. March as he stopped at various points, got down on his knees, and made notes on his pad. Lacy never had any idea what he was looking at. After a few minutes, she gave up trying to figure out if his grunts meant good news, bad news, or arthritis in his joints. Instead she amused herself by looking around the space. As soon as she was able to get over the initial dumpy appearance, she began to see the potential.
    The first two floors were joined together and open to make one huge space, ideal for the marketplace her grandparents had talked about. The second floor only had a walkway, leaving the middle open, almost like some modern malls she had seen. From above, anyone could see down below, and vice versa, but there were still two floors of store space. If she closed her eyes, she could almost hear the bustle of activity. The architectural details didn’t stop on the outside—they were everywhere. Crown molding, stone gargoyles, buttresses, and arches abounded the interior. Perhaps the style was eclectic, but it suited Lacy whose own decorating style was somewhat schizophrenic.
    After the grandeur of the first two floors, the third floor was boring in comparison. There was a long corridor with five offices lining each side of the hallway for a total of ten offices. Inside, each office was spacious and equipped with its own bathroom. If she had to guess, she would say at some point someone had tried to remodel this floor to make it useable. Some of the décor in the bathrooms smacked of the 1970’s.
    The fourth floor was just one huge space. There were support beams scattered throughout, but there were no interior walls. The windows were floor to ceiling, and light streamed in, revealing hardwood floors. Lacy’s imagination ran away with her