“The grand staircase, as we call it, and the other stairways are the only points of reference from one floor to the next. As you have probably already noticed, there is no correspondence of rooms or corridors. Each floor seems to have been designed not only independently, but with altogether different architectural motifs in mind. The corridors on the ground floor are wide and spacious, as are the rooms, designed, it would seem, in this west wing to accommodate guests, for entertaining and dining and the like. But on the first floor, where we are now, the hallways are narrower and the rooms smaller, strictly utilitarian, bedrooms and various sitting rooms mostly. Even in the east wing, which has traditionally been the servants’ and workers’ quarters, there is this same distinction.”

“The stairway continues up, though I haven’t ventured a look beyond here. So there is obviously one more floor above us, is there not?” asked McCallum.

“Yes, and the second floor is different from either of the others.”

“Much different!” chimed in Sabina.

“How?” asked Matthew.

“It’s a maze of twisting hallways and small rooms. The hidden passageways I told you about—they’re all on the second floor. Most of it is a puzzle to me yet. It was either designed by someone with a very unusual sense of humor—or a drunk, as my father used to comment about it. Most of it is vacant now, though, as I have told you, we do keep several of the guest rooms near the grand staircase made up and they see a fair amount of use.

“Your rooms, of course, are just to our right here, looking out the front of the house to the west. Let me take you now around the perimeter of this west wing.”

He led away from the landing of the stairway toward the southernmost side of the wing, then left, paralleling the southern wall, and left again, and into a long, straight corridor extending all the way the length of the house toward the north face. Along the way they passed, on both sides, numerous doors.

“On our left here is the music conservatory, and to the right these are all bedrooms and sitting rooms,” said the baron as they walked. “Our family quarters are here.”

With his right hand he indicated the rooms they were passing on their right.

“Marion and I occupy the corner room, from which we are able to see down into the courtyard and across into the garden. And then,” he continued as they made their way down the hall, “we come to Sabina’s room here. She looks straight down onto the courtyard, but is only able to see a portion of the garden. The room just above us, on the corner of the second floor, is vacant, but she insists she would rather remain where she is—she doesn’t want to be too far from us, is that it, Sabina?” he said good-naturedly.