No sound of his guide replied. Tentatively he continued walking, eyes adjusting to the dim light. But there was no sign of Sabina.

“Sabina,” he said. “What are you trying to do, scare me?”

Still she did not reply.

Matthew found himself in a long, gradually curved passageway, narrow and lined on top and bottom and both walls with rough stones. Had he not known he was in the top floor of the house, he would have thought it an underground tunnel. It was especially here on the second floor where the house often seemed bigger from within than it appeared on the outside. When walking through its labyrinthine passageways for the first time, it was more than a house of intrigue, but in a sense, a whole world of mystery.

“Sabina,” he called again, continuing slowly on. “Not fair… you have an advantage. Sa-bi-na…”

“Buh!” exclaimed Sabina suddenly, jumping out from a corridor opening off to the left just as Matthew reached her.

Even though he had expected exactly what she had done, he still could not help jumping.

“If I learn my way around this place, I’ll get even with you for that!” he laughed. Sabina joined him.

“Come on,” she said, “follow me.”

“Only if you promise to stay with me.”

“I promise. No more frights… none from me, at least. I can’t make promises on behalf of the ghosts.”

“Ghosts!”

“Of course!” laughed Sabina. “All ancient houses like this have ghosts—didn’t you know? Or don’t you have ghosts in America?”

“What kind of ghosts?” Matthew asked, not answering her question.

“I don’t know—people who used to live here, old ancestors. I’ve never seen one. But old Eppie tells tales going back centuries. And not just about ghosts. She tells of hidden passages and murders, and all kinds of spooky things!”

As they had been talking, they had slowly wound their way around through such narrow and curving passageways, with numerous branches opening off in both directions, that Matthew had become utterly lost.

“I have no idea where we are,” he said. “If you run ahead of me now, I could never hope to find my way out of this maze. It’s more like a dungeon, with these stone walls and low ceilings, than the top floor. If I didn’t know better, I’d think we were underground. And I’m still waiting for you to show me that secret door I found.”

Sabina laughed. “All in good time.”

They continued on.

“The wonderful thing about this part of the house,” Sabina said after a minute, “is that it’s so unlike all the rest. It is a giant puzzle. And the rooms behind these walls of stone are just as unusual as the rest of the floor—odd shapes, curved walls—it’s wonderful.”

“Is any of this used?” asked Matthew as they walked.