Lifting a brow as dark as the black hair on his head, Blake asked, “Would you be interested in a different location?”
In an attempt to make their ploy look legitimate, Henry glanced at Betty. She smiled at him and shook her head.
“As you can see, we aren’t,” Henry said to Blake while reaching over and taking ahold of Betty’s hand. “Why do you ask?”
Blake ran a hand over the thin mustache covering his upper lip. “Because I can’t build a house in Hollywoodland.”
“Can’t?” Henry asked.
“Well, I’m perfectly capable of building a house anywhere, but I won’t build another one in Hollywoodland. I refuse to.”
Henry knew the man was capable of building anything, anywhere. He was the most sought-after builder in the city and Henry had only been able to acquire this meeting because he’d said he’d been referred by Lane. “Why?”
Blake leaned back in his seat. “Have you checked into the specifications of building a home in Hollywoodland?”
“We meet the financial qualifications,” Henry replied.
Blake shook his head as a flash of disgust crossed his face. “Dryer puts those right in his advertisements. William Dryer. He owns hundreds of acres that extend up into the mountains. What he doesn’t put in those ads is how he doesn’t care about building codes or safety regulations. Dryer has the builder he has working with him right now convinced those codes don’t apply to them.”
“Who is that?” Henry asked.
“James Bauer.”
Betty didn’t make a sound, but he felt her hand tremble beneath his.
Henry tightened his hold on her hand. “Is his work not up to par?”
“I’m going to be perfectly honest with you, Mr. Knight.” Blake leaned forward and set his elbows on his desk. “I agreed to meet with you because Lane Cox asked me to. I’ve known Lane for years, and out of respect of our friendship, I didn’t attend his wedding because I knew William Dryer would make a point of asking me to leave.”
Henry threaded his fingers through Betty’s as her hand trembled harder.
Keeping up with the premise of being out-of-towners, Henry asked, “Oh? Dryer was at Lane’s wedding?”
Blake let out a huff. “Lane married one of Dryer’s daughters. That Dryer had grown-up daughters shocked the entire community because those of us who knew Dryer had children didn’t realize they were adults. The way Dryer talked about them led everyone to believe they were still young children.”
“How?” Henry wanted to know.
“Just different things he’d say. When I worked there, he claimed he couldn’t put any money toward roads or utilities because it took all he had to keep his children fed and clothed. He was always complaining about money, as if he’ll never have enough. Other than comments now and again, he never really said anything specific about his family.”
“When did you build houses for Dryer?”
“Three years ago.” Blake shrugged. “I did build a house out there last year, for Jack McCarney, but I built it for Jack directly. He bought the land from Dryer first.”
“Can you do that for us?”
“No, Dryer didn’t like that, and put an end to it,” Blake answered. “He won’t sell just the land. It has to be a package deal. People pick out the lot they want and the house they want. Bauer builds the house and it’s sold as one, house and land. If you ask me, Dryer is tying his own noose.” He shrugged then. “Not that too many people care.” He leaned back in his seat. “They both will when the lawsuits start hitting him.”
Betty gasped at that.
Henry gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before asking, “What lawsuits?”
“The city council has adopted many specific ordinances over the past decade, from who can keep a cow on their property to where cemeteries can be built, and everything in between. They’ve also laid down specific building requirements, of which a builder can be fined for and made to replace or repair. Bauer is building those houses with two-by-four frames. They aren’t strong enough to support houses of that size, but with over twenty thousand homes being built each year, the city can’t keep up with inspecting every build, so he’s getting away with it. The first rumble of any sizable earthquake and those houses Bauer is building are going to rattle apart, and mark my words, the people buying those houses will expect that the work is all warranted.”
The phone on Blake’s desk rang. “Sorry,” he said and picked up the phone. “Give me five minutes,” he said into the speaker. “My apologies, again,” he said to them as he hooked the phone back on its stand. “I have another appointment, but I’d highly recommend you folks look elsewhere to build a house. There is plenty of property just as nice as Hollywoodland and a different builder will build you one that will last a lifetime.” He slid a piece of paper across his desk. “These are some of the houses I’ve built, and some lots that are for sale at reasonable prices. If you care to take a look at them, we can talk again.”
Henry picked up the paper. “Thanks. This will be helpful.”
Blake stood up as Henry rose and then assisted Betty out of her chair.
“I hope I didn’t dissuade you from moving here,” Blake said. “It’s a good place to live, and, well, I just believe people should get what they pay for.”
Henry held out his hand and shook Blake’s. “We appreciate your honesty, and we’ll take a look at these properties.”
Blake held his hand out to Betty. “It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Knight.”
She took ahold of his hand, shook it. “You, too, Mr. Owens. Good day.”
“Good day,” Blake repeated to her, and then added, “Just give me a call when you’re ready to talk again.”
“We will,” Henry replied, guiding Betty to the door with a hand on her back. He’d be calling Blake Owens soon. Very soon. He had more questions about Bauer and held no doubt that
