Three-twenty North Court Drive, once the driver found the place, was a comfortable little home on the outskirts of Los Angeles. It was getting late, but the lights in the house we still on. Della went up and knocked on the door.
A timid, elderly lady peeked through the curtains, then cautiously opened the door.
"Yes?" she asked.
Della gave her her most friendly smile, "My name is Della Mason"
I as the author, pause and smile because this is the first time I have made Della introduce herself using her married last name.*
"And I am looking for Yvonne Direz. Do you know her?"
"Maybe," the woman's eyes widened.
"Yvonne may be in some trouble. I am trying to help her," Della explained.
"That man is after her, isn't he?"
"What man?"
"The blonde one. He was here and asked me all kind of questions about Yvonne and was very mean. He left something for me to give to Yvonne," the lady twisted her skirt in her hand nervously.
"Has Yvonne been here?"
"She was here an hour ago. I gave her the note he left. She was awful worried. She ran out of here."
"Do you know where she went?"
"To her friend Eloise's, I think."
"I need to find Yvonne. Do you know where her friend lives?"
The woman, who said she was Yvonne's nanny when she was young, gave her the address.
"Thank you so much!"
Della went back out to the waiting taxi and have him the address. She had to find Yvonne!
The taxi pulled up in front of a tiny house. Even though the lights were on and there was a car in the drive, no one answered Della's knock. She knocked several times, but there was still no answer.
Della did not know what to do. She was about to give up and walk away when the door opened a crack. She saw the chain was in the lock.
"What do you want?" a young woman asked.
"My name is Della Mason. I'm trying to find Yvonne Direz. Is she here?"
"Why do you want to know?" the woman went on the defensive.
"She may be in danger."
The woman closed the door suddenly, then she opened it, unlocking the chain.
"They were here earlier. He burst in here and he had a gun! He threatened Yvonne. He said that if she said anything, he would kill me! And if we called the policeā¦.!"
"Listen to me, I am going to find Yvonne. Can you help me? Is she here now?" Della asked.
"No, she went to her beach house. I'm scared! When she left, I tried to call the police, but the line is dead! And Yvonne didn't seem right when she left!" Yvonne's friend rang her hands nervously.
"Where is her beach house?"
The woman gave the address. With a nod, Della hurried back out to the taxi, again, hoping this time she could find Yvonne.
The taxi driver took her to the beach house, which wasn't as far away as Della thought it would be. On the way, the driver asked:
"Is everything alright, lady?"
"No, I don't think so," Della shook her head.
"Are you alright?"
"It isn't me. Thank you for being so patient and waiting for me."
"It's my job," he shrugged.
The beach house was dark when they got there, but there was a white convertible in the driveway. Della knocked on the door anyway. It swung open.
"Yvonne?" she called, reaching for a light switch, "Are you in here?"
There was a note propped up on the end table by the telephone. Della thought it was another threat, but when she read it, she gave a startled cry and hastily called the police.
"To whom it may concern," the note read, "I killed my father. You needn't search for a killer, and you will have nothing to worry about because I am killing myself. The guilt is more than I can bear. -Yvonne L. Direz"
Della read and reread the note to the policeman who answered the phone. He said that Lt. Tragg was already on his way out to the beach house, looking for Yvonne. Della hung up the phone and desperately began to search the house for Yvonne.
There was no one in the house. Della ran down to the beach, hoping the girl had not tried to drown herself.
But then she saw two people down on the beach, struggling. One of them was Yvonne Direz, and the other one was a man with a knife, trying to stab Yvonne.
Lt. Tragg jumped out of the car as fast as he could and hurried around the house to the beach, where he could hear a loud commotion. A scream tore through the night air.
But the scream was not Yvonne Direz's. It was Della's.
I feel like all I do is apologize for not posting! Please leave a review letting me know what you guys think of the story so far!
I am feeling much better, thank you for all the well wishes on that!
I also graduated school May 19!!!
I will be on vacation, but I will try to post more. I have the fanfic app on my phone now, so I should be on more.
