'It's been two whole days and we're still no closer to finding the necklace.' Richard looked pale and irritable. 'I thought Lady Jane was supposed to be helping us. All she's done is drive Mrs Stiles crazy by throwing stuff all over the floor.'

'She keeps leading us back to her portrait in the hallway.' Even Alessia was becoming frustrated. 'I just can't sense what she's trying to tell us. We've searched the whole hallway loads of times. There is no sign of the necklace.'

'I even got Stiles to check up the chimney before the fire was lit this morning,' added Richard. 'Nothing but soot and an old birds nest up there.'

Liam shrugged. 'I still like my secret passageway theory.'

'Well if there is one by the fireplace, then you and I have failed to find it.' Conor flicked through his notepad searching for clues.

'Maybe it's not a secret passageway, it might just be a concealed hidey hole. Or even a safe.'

Richard set his book down on the side table. 'What about behind the painting, has anyone checked there?'

'Three times,' replied Liam. 'Mrs Stiles said she'd rip our arms off if either of us ever try to take that portrait off the wall again.'

'Well.' Conor glanced at him. 'You did almost drop it a few times.'

Everyone stopped talking and looked towards the closed library door.

'What was that noise?' whispered Becky.

'It sounded like something just fell over in the corridor.' Conor seated himself in front of his laptop. 'That's strange, the camera just outside this room is still transmitting, but there's no picture.

There was another crashing noise, further along the corridor.

'Now I've lost camera 2. Oh, no, no, no.' He ran to the door. 'She's pushing my camera stands over.'

Everyone hurried to join him. Becky stooped beside the first fallen stand and examined the camera.

'Is it broken?' Conor sounded furious.

'I don't think so. They're pretty robust. I think she's just trying to grab our attention again.'

'But she just keeps leading us back to the same place,' complained Liam, re-erecting the stand further along the corridor.

'Then who are we to argue?' Alessia set off towards the hallway, passing another fallen camera along the way.

'What are we missing?' she breathed, staring up at the portrait again. 'Come on Lady Jane, give us a clue.'

'Look,' cried Liam, 'there's an orb, floating over your head, Becks.'

Alessia watched as Becky's eyes followed the bubble-like object's every move. Then she had a lightbulb moment. She looked across the hallway and back up at the portrait again. 'Why didn't I notice before?'

'Notice what?' asked Conor.

'Her eyes. Lady Jane isn't staring off into the distance at all. She's looking at something specific.'

'Liam followed the direction of the lady's painted eyes.' She's looking back down the corridor towards the library? We've just come from there.'

'She's sending you on a wild goose chase, if you ask me.' The housekeeper stomped across the hallway towards the west wing. 'Probably doesn't want you in the house, stirring things up that ought never be stirred.'

'That's very helpful, Mrs Stiles,' replied Liam sarcastically, as the woman disappeared from sight. 'She's a real joy to have around, isn't she?'

'You should try living with her,' agreed Richard.

'Wait a minute.' Becky walked over to the staircase and placed her hand on the carved pineapple finial. Then she checked the portrait and positioned herself exactly like Lady Jane. 'She was standing here when the portrait was painted, right?'

Liam looked bemused. 'What difference does it make?'

'It's on the opposite side of the room to the fireplace,' declared Alessia. 'It means that she was facing in the other direction.'

Becky mirrored the facial expression of the portrait. 'She was looking over there.'

Conor approached the grandfather clock and scanned it with his EMF meter. 'She was looking at this?'

Richard arrived at his side. 'But why?'

'Maybe she was sick of it always chiming at the wrong times?' offered Liam.

'No. The clock was working properly back then.'

'You can't know that for sure, Becks.'

'But I do. There was a photo of it in the "The history of Beaufort Hall" and the text below it said that Lady Jane had it serviced regularly by a local horologist. Why would she do that if it was faulty. It must have been working at the time.'

'It stopped working on the day she died,' confirmed Alessia. 'I didn't read that by the way. I'm sensing it, from her.'

'Can't she just tell you what's going on?' muttered Liam.

'Sometimes the spirits can communicate clearly and sometimes they can't. She's doing her best, I'm sure.' Alessia looked around the hallway. 'OK, Lady Jane, so all this has something to do with that grandfather clock, right?'

The candles around the room spontaneously lit up again.

'Surely just telling us would be easier than lighting all those candles,' sulked Liam.

Conor looked at Richard. 'How do we get the door of the clock open?'

'I don't know, we don't have a key. I don't think my father would forgive me if we damaged it either.' Richard looked frustrated. 'But we've got to get it open somehow. If Chinara and I get married, she will become the rightful owner of that cursed necklace, whether she has it or not. Who knows what could happen to her then. No, I won't allow it. We have to solve this thing, once and for all.'

'Where are you going?' asked Alessia, as he headed for the door.

'To the woodshed. To get an axe.'

'We can't let him bust up an antique clock.' Becky looked over at her cousins. 'Can't you do something?'

Conor scratched his head. 'Like what?'

Liam clicked his fingers. 'I saw someone on telly pick a lock with a hairpin once.'

Becky nodded. 'Do you think you could do that to the clock?'

'No, but it looked kind of cool.'

Alessia pulled a hair grip out of her jet black locks and handed it to him. 'Here, give it a go.'

'But I don't know what to do.'

Conor stepped forward. 'I'll try.'

He fiddled with the lock for a while, but it refused to open.

'What's going on?' demanded Richard, brandishing the axe.

'You can't damage the clock, Richard.' Becky blocked his path 'It could be priceless.'

'Chinara is priceless to me. I don't care about the clock.' He raised the axe.

'No, but your father does.' Becky stood firm. 'And I think Lady Jane did too. She certainly took great care of it when she was alive. There has to be another way.'

'The key has to be here somewhere,' agreed Alessia. 'Maybe Lady Jane hid it. Somewhere known only to herself.'

Becky gasped. 'I think I know where it is.'

Richard looked surprised. 'Where?'

Becky pointed at the painting of Lady Jane. 'Do you still have that tiara?'

'Of course, it was my mother's. It's in Father's safe. Why?'

'Can I see it please?'

'I suppose so. I'll go and fetch it.'

'What's the tiara got to do with the key, Becks?' asked Liam, whilst they awaited his return.

'Maybe nothing. It's just a hunch.'

'Here it is.' Richard bounded towards them. 'Be careful though, it's very old and fragile.'

'It feels exactly the same as it did last night,' breathed Becky, running her finger over the three emeralds. She turned the tiara over and felt for the knobbly catch inside.

Everyone was amazed when the small circular door sprang open.

'I think this is what you're looking for.' Becky plucked the small brass key from its hiding place.

'My family has searched for that key for generations.' Richard looked bewildered. 'How did you know where it was?'

'Lady Jane showed me.'

'That's amazing.' Richard took the key and the boys surrounded the grandfather clock while he started fiddling with its lock.

Becky gazed at Alessia in admiration. She'd had a glimpse of what it must be like to be her. Being contacted by a spirit felt confusing, frightening and gratifying all at the same time and it was something Alessia constantly had to live with. She called it her gift. Becky had longed to experience what it was like, but now she had, she was happy to return that gift it to its rightful owner.

Her friend squeezed her arm and her black lips gave her a knowing smile. It was as though she knew exactly what Becky was thinking.

'It's all about interpreting the messages,' said Alessia. 'You did good, Becky.'

'Thank you.'

'It's opening,' cried Liam.

The girls joined the others and everyone stared inside the dusty wooden pendulum cabinet.

At first it looked as though there was nothing to see.

Liam switched on the torch app on his mobile phone and shone the light inside. 'What's that?'

Richard reached inside and his fingers touched the bundle of grey rags. 'It's just a bit of old cloth.'

As he picked it up, something tumbled from the bundle and dropped beneath the stationary pendulum with a clatter.

'What was that?' asked Conor.

Liam shone his phone light downwards. 'It's a small metal box.'

Richard reached in again and withdrew the object.

'It's a locked metal box.' He looked back at Becky. 'I don't suppose you know where the key is?'

She shook her head.

'Then am I allowed to use the axe this time?'

Alessia handed it to him. 'Go ahead. Fill your boots.'

He placed the box on the tiled floor and everyone stood back.

The box popped open on his first blow.

They all crowded around as Richard carefully lifted out a necklace. It was set with a large green gemstone. 'So this is the Viridus Diamond.'

'Becks? Are you alright?' Liam steadied her.

'My shoulder, it really hurts.'

A gust of icy wind blew out all the candles in the hallway.

'It's the duke.' Alessia looked around the hallway. 'He's here.'

'Here?' Richard looked confused. 'Why is he here? He never lived at Beaufort Hall.'

'No, but the love of his life did. He's angry and vengeful. He still wants to possess her.' Alessia snatched the necklace from Richard's hand. 'It's not just the curse that's attached to this necklace, his spirit is too.'

There were heavy footsteps descending the stairs towards them and a dark ominous shadow had started to form into the shape of a man.

Alessia turned to face it. 'It was you who chased Becky last night, wasn't it? It was you who harmed her. You have no place here. You need to cross over.'

The vase on the side table flew across the room and smashed against the wall.

Conor could see his breath in front of him. The hall was suddenly icy cold. He looked over at the camera by the fireplace. It was still recording.

The shadow was darker now and it was still descending the stairs, but Alessia stood her ground. 'You need to leave this place.'

Becky grabbed her hand and chimed in, 'Leave now.'

The girls' hair was blowing around like they were caught in a tornado, but despite their brave words, the entity was still moving closer.

'What do we do?' hissed Liam.

Conor didn't know what to say. He looked around for some sort of weapon, but what sort of weapon could be used on a puff of black smoke?

'Do you see what I see?' Richard was staring at the girls.

There were now three of them, standing side by side, holding hands.

'Who's the third one?' asked Conor.

'They're facing away from us, so it's hard to tell.' Liam looked at the strange attire of the new arrival. 'I don't think its Mrs Stiles though.'

'You must leave us now, Charles.' The voice was unfamiliar. It didn't belong to Becky or Alessia. 'I am not your property. I never was. My heart was always Edmund's.'

'It's Lady Jane!' exclaimed Conor.

On hearing her voice, the shadow wavered.

Becky, who was in the middle of the three, spoke again. 'It's time to leave here.'

'It's time to cross over,' urged Alessia.

'Leave now, Charles,' commanded Lady Jane. She had started glowing brightly. 'I will never be yours.'

Then both she and the shadow figure were gone.

The boys looked at each other.

'We weren't much help there,' admitted Conor.

'About as much use as Anne Frank's drum kit,' agreed Liam.

'That was one hell of a display of girl power.' Richard smiled at Becky and Alessia as they turned towards the boys. 'You were superb!'

'I'm not sure we could have managed without Lady Jane.' Becky tried to smooth down her unruly locks. 'I think she was the one who forced the duke to move on.'

Liam chuckled. If his cousin's windswept hair appeared comical, Alessia's looked downright hilarious. Her wavy black locks were standing on end, as though they'd been back-combed to within an inch of their life. She reminded him of the guards he'd seen at Buckingham Palace, the ones wearing the bearskin hats.

'I see Marge Simpson's dyed her hair black,' he whispered to his brother.

Conor snorted with laughter.

Becky frowned at them, but Alessia didn't seem to have noticed. She was so full of static that her fingertips were sparking, making Richard squeal as she handed the necklace back to him.

'Now we just have the curse to worry about,' she said.

'That was Richard.' Becky pushed her mobile phone into her pocket. 'He called to say that he and Chinara were married in a secret ceremony yesterday and he wanted to thank us for all our help. He said he's got lots of friends with big haunted mansions and he's going to recommend us to all of them.'

'What about the curse?' enquired Liam. 'Isn't he worried about Chinara anymore?'

'He doesn't need to be. They've already sold the necklace, so she's no longer its rightful owner.'

'Can they do that? I thought there was some sort of legal inheritance clause in their family preventing them selling off the family jewels.'

Conor shot a look at his girlfriend. 'Have you been reading my notes, Lucy?'

'I might have just taken a little peek.'

'Oh come on, Luce, you know you're not supposed to do that. The service we provide is supposed to be fully confidential.'

Lucy scowled. 'I won't tell anyone.'

'I don't think it'll matter this time. Richard said he's going to write a book about it, so everyone will get to know the gritty details sooner or later.' Becky fixed her gaze on Lucy. 'As for the Viridis Diamond, it wasn't officially one of the family heirlooms. It was a personal gift to Lady Jane, which meant she could do with it as she pleased. As could anyone else who subsequently came to own it.'

'Haven't they just passed the curse on to someone else though?' Lucy feigned concern.

'No, you see Richard chose his buyer well. Not only was the man rich enough to afford the necklace, but he's also a descendant of the duke who originally gave it to Lady Jane. We managed to trace him once we had the duke's name, you see. It was easy actually, as there was only one person named Charles who held that title locally during Lady Jane's time. He died just a week before she did and under very suspicious circumstances. How his spirit became bound to the necklace is still a complete mystery, but he's probably been haunting Richard's family ever since. Anyway, once the buyer was made aware of the necklace's history and its link to his horrible ancestor, he wanted to put things right in exchange for keeping the good name of his family out of the story. He willingly signed a legal document to guarantee that he would gift the necklace to the Victoria and Albert Museum. As the museum is now the official owner, the necklace doesn't belong to any one person, so the curse is null and void. It's no longer anything more than a spooky tourist attraction.'

'That's great.' Lucy sniffed. 'And how much did Richard get for it?'

'All he said was it sold for a ridiculous amount of money.' Becky grinned. 'Enough to completely restore Beaufort Hall to its former glory and also start up a little café on site. They are going to open the place up to the public next year, so Richard is certain that the house will be paying for its own upkeep from then on.'

'One more question. How come the necklace was hidden in the clock?'

Liam sniggered. 'Your girl-fiend has obviously read more of your notes than she's admitted to, bro.'

'Oh, shut up you little weed,' snarled Lucy. 'And the word is girlfriend, not girl-fiend, you numbskull.'

'Oh, I think Liam knows exactly what he's saying.' Becky winked at her cousin. 'But, as you're obviously interested, let me explain. Before she died, Lady Jane had suffered a number of accidents. They were minor at first, but were growing in severity, so when she heard about the curse, she started to believe in it. She tried to return the necklace shortly before her death, but apparently the duke refused to take it back. She intended to find out some other way of getting rid of it, but didn't want to just pass the curse onto someone else. '

'That must have been what I felt in the dream,' said Becky. 'I sensed that there was something important that needed to be done. Lady Jane must have hidden the necklace away in the clock soon after the ball, in case anything happened to her before she could decide what to do for the best.'

Alessia nodded. 'She hoped that if the worst happened then the curse would end with her and nobody else would suffer.'

'Well, obviously that didn't work.' Liam took a swig of cola.

'She's been trying to communicate its location to her relatives for generations, but nobody understood.' Becky patted her friend on the arm. 'Until Alessia arrived.'

'It was a team effort, to be fair.'

'And what a team we make.' Conor smiled at Alessia. 'We're so glad you've joined us.'

Lucy tightened her grip on his arm and eyed Alessia venomously. 'Well, it was very clever of Lord Grey, coming up with the museum thing, I suppose.'

'Oh, he didn't.' Alessia tossed back her jet black hair. 'That was all Lady Jane's idea. She spoke to him in a dream, just like she did to Becky, only she didn't share her memories this time. It was far more gentle than that, just whispers really. Richard hasn't got a clue that she influenced him about that.'

Lucy let out a snort of disbelief. 'Well if he doesn't know that she gave him the idea, how did he tell you?'

'Oh, he didn't tell me.' Alessia stared directly into Lucy's narrowed eyes. 'Lady Jane did, just a few seconds ago.'

Lucy turned pale when Alessia added. 'She standing right beside you.'