"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science." – Albert Einstein, The World as I See It.

That morning I woke and pushed the feelings that had arisen aside. Raff was just being a gentleman that was all and if he knew how his gentle kiss had affected me, he probably would have been mortified and uncomfortable. The last thing I needed was to make things uncomfortable in my place of work. Still, the night before has been wonderful but for every question that had been answered, several more had taken their place.

I couldn't understand how a man like Raff was still unmarried, of course it wasn't my place to judge or gossip, but I did find it unusual. I didn't find it surprising that woman would be after his money rather than him, but I did find it surprising that he hadn't found a genuine woman to love yet. I suspected that the many visitors that came to the gardens, came in hopes of seeing Raff and having a shot at 'wooing' him. I could, in that regard, understand Maggie's attitude, though it didn't take away how uncalled for her comments to me had been.

Breakfast was superb as usual even if I was a bit out of it while eating. I couldn't shake the shivers from my body and though I was wrapped up warm, I couldn't stop feeling that someone was watching me. I returned to the storage rooms with an abundance of energy and set to work. Having started in the top back left corner, I'd now cleared all along the back wall, finishing up in the top right-hand corner and was now halfway through sorting the right wall. I wasn't even thinking of all I'd have to sort through on the free-standing middle shelves till I'd finished those against walls. I still had a long way to go.

I hummed quietly as I began working, thankful that someone had replaced the falling apart carboard boxes with new sturdy ones. I knew without a doubt that they would be half full when I was done today.

'Valera...Valera'

I stopped suddenly upon hearing my name.

'You're mine sweet girl.'

I looked all around the room but couldn't find the sound of the voice. I suddenly felt very full of fear and my hands started to shake uncontrollably. Somehow, I couldn't handle hearing a voice on top of everything else.

'Valera...' sang the voice.

"Valera are you in here?"

"Are you hiding again?"

I jumped, hitting my head on the shelf above. My heart was racing a mile a minute. It's just the twins I assured myself, I'm safe, nothing can harm me, but even as I thought that I knew that was far from true.

Freya and Georgina, it appeared, were in high spirits. It immediately put me on the edge as from the stories told to me by Ben, I knew the twins could be quite mischievous. Still, I was grateful for their presence as the storage rooms had become quite a lonely place since Maggie stopped visiting.

"I must say, you've kept us quite busy recently."

I frowned in confusion as Freya spoke, raising my eyebrow in question and trying not to let my sudden anxiety show.

"Honestly Freya, it's a wonder anyone understands you when you talk in half sentences. She means all the rubbish you've collected has kept us busy. On some days there has been so much to throw out that we've had to ask the boys from the village to help us get rid of it all!"

I blushed, never once had I thought of the extra work, I was creating for the Castle Staff. I was overcome with feelings of guilt.

"I'm sorry, I didn't even realise I'd caused extra work for you all! I've been completely selfish."

"Ahh, don't worry about it. I never miss a chance to see they boy's and they're growing up so handsomely."

I laughed at Freya's words, and was amused by how Georgina's expression was one full of embarrassment. Every time I though I had the twins, personalities worked out, they threw me a curveball and changed up their behaviour. It was amusing and frustrating how different the twins could be. I had thought Freya was the loud bubbly one while Georgina was the more reserved and knowledgeable one, but they had already proved to me that they could be both at the same time.

"You both live in the village?"

Freya nodded, "I know it doesn't look like much but it's really quite busy and energetic. Generations of our family have lived in the village and worked at the Castle. We're like one big family."

"Or oiled machine," said Georgina. "We all have our responsibilities and stick to them. I don't think there could be happier employees here than us."

"Isn't it odd that you work here but live in the village?"

"No, not to us. Most of the staff do live at the Castle but we are all given the choice of where we want to live when we first get employed."

I nodded in easy acceptance, at first, I'd thought they were joking but upon seeing their expressions I realised they were both serious. I used the awkward lull of conversation to brush an annoying piece of hair away from my eyes, and in doing so caused ear cringing shriek to come from the twins.

"Oh my gosh! What happened to your hand? It looks terrible."

They'd spoken in sync again and the action caused me to take a step back. It was creepy when they spoke together, like a horror film that was just getting started. It always gave me the shivers and made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

"Well, I just punched something that was annoying me but apparently I used too much force. Raff bandaged it up for me and told me not to use it too much. I think it's almost healed now, it doesn't hurt as much, and I have more movement with it."

"The Master wrapped your hand?"

I nodded. The twins looked at me in awe and I prepared myself for an attack like Maggie's. I knew that the staff referred to Raff as the Marquis or Master of the House, but I hoped the use of his given name wouldn't make them jump to conclusions.

"So, you finally met the Marquis then, what do you think of him?"

"I think him a very respectable gentleman."

"Oh! That's why Maggie's been so moody!" said Georgina, like a light bulb had just turned on in her head. "We did wonder, she's been so grumpy recently and has been avoiding you and everyone else like the plague."

"She is silly. I mean, thinking you were a gold digger is simply preposterous. I swear that woman is so stuck in her ways and blinded by the sins of the past that she has no respect for people nowadays."

"I guess with the amount of gold diggers that probably try and enter the Castle, Maggie has a right to be cautious. I had just assumed our friendship had been one of trust, but it obviously wasn't," I replied.

The twins looked at me with sympathy etched into their smiles, but I brushed away their concern from my shoulders. It didn't bother me as much anymore, Maggie had her reasons for acting the way she did, and I had my reasons for wanting to be friendly with Raff. I couldn't fault the woman for being over protective of her Master, even if what she said had hurt me.

"Don't say you hate us now! It feels like you've been at the Castle forever and we don't want Maggie to chase you away."

"We really missed you when you were away. You wouldn't leave us for good, would you?" added Freya.

"It certainly does feel like I've been here forever, doesn't it? It's lovely here, the Castle is in its own little time bubble, bringing me to a new world but being all consuming at the same time. It is funny the atmosphere of the Castle brings but I am enjoying my time here."

"Have you found anything of interest in your sorting?" asked Georgina.

I nodded, "I found some love letters yesterday that were between a previous Marquis and a lady called Valarie. Raff confirmed them to be genuine."

"So, he told you about the lovers then? I'm surprised as no one outside of the family knows of it."

"You must be quite special," added Freya.

"He said I should know because I like puzzles and might be able to solve what happened to the two lovers. I don't see how though as it's obviously been a family mystery for decades now. So, how would I be able to solve it when countless others have failed?"

"He has faith in you. The mystery is the families oldest secret and it took them a long time to recover from it. I suspect he thought you could solve it because of your profession and the fact that you are always so determined to get to the bottom of things."

I wasn't surprised by the fact that the family took a while to recover from the incident. A scandal like a love affair gone wrong would have rocked high society back in 1820. It would have taken a lot of power and money to turn society's eye away while the family recovered. I wouldn't have been surprised if the family had been shunned at social gathering for a while. I was glad to have been born in a time where a scandal one day could be forgotten the next.

"Goodness, we've chatted so much that lunchtime has passed us by. What have you been doing for lunch since Maggie stopped coming by?"

I had the grace to look embarrassed while my face became warm, and I mumbled that I'd been skipping lunch recently to the twins who looked like they were going to put me in the naughty corner. My words were not taken in good form by the twins who took one arm each and frogmarched me all the way to the kitchens. Of all the places I'd visited in the Castle, I had not made it as far to the kitchens. I felt incredibly guilty that I had never visited the kitchens before or thanked the staff there for the wonderful food they cooked, but I guessed I could make amends now.

The twins forced me to sit down at a three-person table located in one corner of the room. While Georgina stayed next to me – I presumed to make sure I didn't run – Freya waltzed elegantly into the room without a care in the world.

"Mrs Plum, where are you?"

Mrs Plum? Is she for real? I thought, ironic name for a cook. Freya seemed to dance as she walked into the room. I almost wished I could walk that gracefully across a room but knew that with my luck, I'd probably trip and break something.

There was a scuffling sound which started as a whisper and became louder and louder as it moved closer. Words started to fall from the jumble of noises and soon a large fearsome looking monster appeared. Brushing themselves off, removing all the dust and cobwebs, the monster turned into a woman and I suddenly felt very foolish and embarrassed in my mistaken assumption. I assumed this was Mrs Plum.

"You must be the one whose been praising my cooking recently. I must say, your words are very flattering. My ego could end up growing very big!"

Mrs Plum seemed, as first impressions go, a good kind of lady. Her plump body indicated her love of food, while her eyes showed off her compassion and care for those around her. She seemed like the quintessential Mother and I wondered if she was one.

"Now, you two," she said as she turned towards the twins. "Why are you here? Not about to cause some mischief, are you? I've got my eyes on you, I know what you're like. Come on, spit it out. Why are you here?"

Freya looked positively crestfallen by Mrs Plum's words while Georgina seemed to be looking elsewhere and pretending that nothing was happening.

"I'm afraid it's my fault."

Mrs Plum turned her eyes to me, and I had to fight the desire to take a step back. I certainly wouldn't want to get on the bad side of this lady because she looked like a fierce Mother Hen getting ready to defend her lambs.

"Since Maggie stopped turning up for our lunches, I've sort of been skipping them...not intentionally, it's just that I get stuck into my work. When the twins realised, I hadn't eaten, they dragged me here to feed me."

I had to chuckle as I spoke, by laughter breaking the tension that had lingered.

"Well we best get some food into you then, and please, call me Maria."

I felt relieved as I wasn't sure what I would have done had Mrs Plum, no, Maria, not taken my words to heart. It wasn't long before a hearty bacon and cheese sandwich was placed before me, if you could call the gigantic thing before me a mere sandwich! I wasn't even sure if I could fit this sandwich in my mouth.

I felt my attention slip as I began to eat. My mind was a cavern of possible thoughts and when it reared its head, my imagination saw it as a sign to take flight. Sometimes, I struggled to remain on one topic as my mind presented me with several different ones at a time. On the other hand, sometimes I got stuck on one topic that would haunt me for days on end. When I returned to my senses, I immediately noticed two things. Firstly, that I'd managed to eat everything on my plate and secondly, the twins had both disappeared. If I was looking to sneak out of the kitchen, I wouldn't be able to as Maria chose that moment to appear as if from nowhere.

"Well, you certainly were hungry! I do like people with a healthy appetite who enjoy their food."

"It was lovely, thanks."

It seemed that Maria was analysing me. I tried to make my face appear neutral and calm but I'm not sure it was as successful as I wanted.

"No need to be so sad dear, I'm sure everything will work out."

"I'm not sad Maria."

"Your eyes are."

There was a silence, made awkward by the confusion emotions I was feeling, what did Maria mean?

"There is a sickness in this Castle Valera. That scandal of the lovers parted was the beginning of the end for all here. No Marquis has been lucky in love since. I suppose you've heard it all before, but Maggie means well, she really does. Oh, don't look so surprised, everyone shares gossip here. Maggie has been the housekeeper here for so long that she feels she has a claim on the Marquis as his protector and guardian. You wouldn't be the first she's tried to dismiss."

"There have been others?"

"Don't look so surprised my dear, of course there have been others. Not for a while though and our Marquis seems to have closed himself off from love. Doesn't stop the general public of females from trying to throw themselves at him. They all want their own romantic fairy-tale to come true, plus access to his family fortune. I've seen a difference to him though, especially in the last week or so. The Marquis seems to be coming out of his shell again and is lighter in his steps. Ben told me, and I don't think it's a coincidence, that it started when you met him."

I blushed scarlet, not knowing how I should react to her words.

"Now, don't think I'm accusing you of anything. I'm not Maggie but it is good to see a positive change in the Marquis after all this time."

"You said there was a sickness in the Castle, what does that mean?"

Maria's expression seemed to darken, creating a stark contract to the brightness of the kitchen but making the room appear small and claustrophobic.

"I don't take you for a stupid girl Valera, you must have noticed the strange things happening here, even if you don't understand them. Things here don't make sense. Time is wrong. I'm sure you've noticed something...?"

Honestly, I was feeling a little freaked out and wondered if Maria had secretly been drinking from the bottle while doing her job. Nevertheless, I felt compelled to answer.

"Well...you do all seem to talk like you're from another time and the Castle certainly stands out as one that hasn't been advanced by technology, but you make it sound as though there is a great mystery dancing under my nose and waiting to be found."

I wasn't going to admit it, but Maria's words had alarmed me. Everyone in this Castle seemed intent on leading me on a merry dance but I couldn't work out whether their words were genuine or not. Was there something larger going on here? Or was it merely a running joke between those that worked here? Were the inhabitants of the Castle purposefully acting straight out of the 1800s or was it their general behaviour? Was there actually something to be solved here or was I clutching at straws trying to match the Castle to my blackouts? I wanted to believe that the Valarie in the love letters was the same as the Valarie I saw in my blackouts because it would be so easy, but I had to be realistic. There were millions of possibilities and I might just be believing the imagination of my mind and not following the path I was shown.

I hadn't been looking at Maria when she spoke and when I turned to face her again, she'd gone. Which frankly, was just rude, and suspicious...

Either there was something more going on here.

...Or I was going mad.

 It had taken a long time buy finally I could look around the storage room and not scowl at the amount of crap I saw. It had been a very long job clearing out all the rubbish from the room and it had taken me a darn sight longer to do it than I'd originally expected. I had been at the Castle for five months now and despite all the confusion I felt and the fear my blackouts left me with, I felt rather happy all things considered.

Without the rubbish of the room cluttering things up, I could now focus on the bit that I enjoyed, sorting through all the historical artifacts and finding places for them to live. My hand was now fully healed and out of its bandage for which I was eternally grateful. Raff had only had to re-wrap my hand once and I'd decided that I was never going to punch someone again.

I'd had three further dinners with Raff, and they had become the highlight of my weeks. Maggie was becoming unbearable, but I still saw her during my working hours, even if she was trying to ignore me. I had come to crave the time I spent with Raff and enjoyed getting to know him and the stories he had to tell.

The dinners had, much to my disappointment, halted as Raff was called away on business. I was afraid to admit just how much I missed Raff and his company and used the spare time I had to think of other things, or rather, to try and focus my brain away from Raff. I knew I was heading into dangerous territory because I was starting to get butterflies when I saw Raff. Logically I knew I needed to keep things professional but illogically, my heart had started to beat faster every time I lay eyes on him.

Without Raff, I had fallen back on the frustration I felt with my blackouts as I had made no progress with working out why I was having them or what purpose they served. I so desperately wanted to come across another link between myself and Valarie that was part of the love story, but I couldn't find anything. I felt like a police officer on an empty evidence murder case. I was so frustrated that at times I though I could cry one moment and angrily scream the next. I was sure that there was more to the love story scandal than I'd been told because life was rarely that straight-forward.

I suppose the most surprising element of the last couple of weeks had been Maggie. Whether by her own admission or the admission of others, Maggie had sought me out one cloudy afternoon and apologised for her behaviour. Frankly, after ignoring me for so long, I was skeptical of her apology but took it in good graces anyway. I had one condition though, and insisted Ben join us for our weekly lunches, as there was no way I was giving Maggie an opening to rudely humiliate me again.

Ben had become a close confident and friend to me in the time Maggie had ignored me and I wasn't going to give that up just because Maggie had apologised.

It was, it turned out, a good thing that I had insisted on Ben joining us as Maggie was still behaving rather unpleasantly towards me. It was like Maggie had apologised for face value only because she clearly wasn't going to change her behaviour. I didn't think that Maggie would be happy until I was found at the bottom of a lake or sent far away from the Castle and Raff. Her feelings towards me were obvious but I couldn't help but think she was behaving like a grumpy toddler.

Still, I suppose, life could be worse.