Page 39 of Last Girls Alive

“They’re ghosts,” said Katie. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist. It most likely means that they were bogus names. But why?”

“Keeping identities hidden usually means that they have something to hide…”

“Something criminal,” she said. “Well, thank you, Shane, it’s been interesting as usual. I’m not sure how this fits into the two homicides yet—if at all.”

“Detective, I told you I had two things.”

“Oh yes, what else do you have?” Her thoughts were already a couple steps ahead, wanting to hear what Dr. Dean had to say about the Rodriguez body.

Shane got up from the desk and pulled out two sets of architectural drawings. Katie joined him, peering over his shoulder as he unrolled the plans.

“Here are the original plans for the mansion,” he said, showing Katie the dates and the different pages depicting the plumbing, electrical, and the different stories of the house. “Now, here are the plans that were submitted for permits.”

Katie looked at both and they seemed the same—the dimensions, floors, and general layout. She didn’t immediately see any difference. But her eye caught the staircase, somethingwasdifferent. “The staircase,” she said.

“Good eye, Detective. You’re correct. The staircase area was actually made smaller.”

“Why?” she asked.

“I don’t know. To make more storage space, perhaps, or to make the stairs more aesthetically pleasing? I don’t know, but I thought it was worth bringing to your attention.”

Katie scrutinized the drawings for a moment.

“Have you been inside the mansion?” he asked.

“I took a brief walk around the mansion and property, and looked at the basement.”

“You might want to check out the staircase next time you are there. You know, sometimes in houses of this age they would build extra storage, a narrow staircase for servants, or a small servant’s quarters. The Slovnicks seemed to have enough money to pay for a servant or nanny.”

She nodded, taking it all in as he pulled out a large legal-sized envelope filled with a stack of paperwork. “Here you go, Detective. I made copies of everything I had and what we’ve talked about.”

“Thank you so much, Shane, for your hard work. As I’ve said before, I wish everyone who helped with criminal investigations were as thorough and professional as you.”

He smiled and couldn’t quite keep Katie’s gaze. “Thank you, Detective.”

“Oh, I have a question for you but… you have to keep itconfidential.”

“Of course,” he said, perked up, his eyes wide with wonder.

“I don’t know if this means anything. I wouldn’t normally leak this confidential information so early in the investigations, but since the Elm Hill Mansion has such a colorful past I just thought…”

“It’s okay, Detective—really. I swear, I won’t tell anyone.”

Katie smiled and said, “Do the words ‘raccoglitore di cacciatori’ mean anything to you?”

Without hesitation, he said, “It means hunter-gatherer.”

“You know Italian?” she asked.

“Yes, and Spanish and German.”

“Does hunter-gatherer mean anything to you—besides the obvious?”

“There’s an old book series that was written in the late 1940s based on one young man’s experiences of finding his way in life—where he fits in and what his life means. He travelled the cities, rural areas, and many countries to try and find himself. It’s quite interesting and a bit unsettling. It’s calledTheHunter-Gatherer: One Man’s Journey.”

Katie was temporarily at a loss for words. “You say this is a book series from the 1940s?”

“Yeah, I like old stuff, what can I say? It’s actually well written by… the author’s name escapes me. Sorry.”