“I asked myself the same question over thirty years ago, so I did some investigation and discovered that when the Egertons bought the land, they chose this particular spot for their house because of the hill. It overlooks the rear of the property, and they wanted to be able to look out over their land and their gardens.”

“All right, you’re making sense so far.”

“The story goes that when they commissioned the architect to design their home, they gave him quite a challenge. They demanded nothing blocked the view of their land, meaning no barns or carriage houses on the property, at least not where they could see them.”

Joanna sighed. “I’m sorry, Evelyn. I’m not following.”

“That’s okay, dear. I’ll show you,” Evelyn said as she pulled a small flashlight from her pocket. Flicking it on, she motioned for Joanna to follow. Halfway down the tunnel, Evelyn stopped. Directing the light at the wall, she slowly moved it across the stone until a section of brick came into view. “Notice anything?”

“Sorry, Evelyn, but I still don’t understand. So they ran out of rock. It’s not like anyone could ever see it down here.”

“No, unfortunately, the idiot responsible for putting slate on the patio did this about eighty years ago, but before that, there were doors here…leading to the carriage house.”

“What! It was under the house?”

“Yes, quite ingenious when you think about it. I mean, lots of homes have basements, but very few are large enough to hold horses and carriages, along with sleeping quarters for the stable master, the grooms, and the footmen, I might add.”

“And that bloody idiot walled it in! My God, what was he thinking?”

“He apparently wanted to use the space for something else. Let’s go back inside, and I’ll show you.”

***

A short time later, Joanna followed Evelyn into a section of the house she had not yet visited. Situated off the kitchen, Evelyn explained that it was originally used as servants’ quarters, but since Addison refused to have any of the staff living under her roof, changes were made. The first of the three bedrooms had been turned into an office for Evelyn, and the second remained as a bedroom, but it was only used by Evelyn on the rare occasion when she had to spend the night. The third and largest room had been converted to hold not only the laundry facilities, but also a small lounge for the staff.

After giving Joanna a short tour of the area, Evelyn led her back the way they came, and after closing the door leading to the kitchen, Evelyn opened yet another one hidden behind the first. Turning on the light, she motioned toward the stairway leading down. “After you.”