“Not funny! Now I definitely won’t stay with you. You can ask him everything you want to know yourself, and then tell me,” she retorted cheerfully.
“What a coward! I'm joking, of course, there are no spirits here and there never have been. Otherwise, we would have met them long ago. Let's move on, otherwise, while you're looking around here, I'll miss dinner. And that I definitely won't forgive!” the young man smiled.
They went to one of the castle towers and found themselves in a large library. Megan was surrounded by tall shelves filled with a rich collection of books.
“What beauty! I love books so much! I could spend days here without leaving,” she said dreamily. The girl ran her hand over the spines, enjoying the opportunity to touch history. The library housed editions dating back to the 18th century and later. Her gaze quickly scanned the long row of unusual bindings and settled on the legends and tales of Scotland. I mustn't lose sight of these, she thought. I'd like to look at these first.
“What's there?” she pointed to a small door built into one of the bookshelves. It was clear that it led somewhere.
“Something like a storeroom. Paintings, portraits, personal belongings of the Drummonds. No one has cleaned it for about a hundred years. Once, as a child, I wanted to hide there but I got caught in a web, and a spider fell on my face. I ran out of there screaming and never again felt the urge to enter that dreadful place.”
“A spider isn't as scary as a ghost."
“To each their own! I've never encountered ghosts. But spiders are absolutely real and very unpleasant creatures," Duncan said with slight disgust.
In a good mood, with playful comments, Duncan showed Megan several more rooms, and then they went into the dining hall where they were expected.
During dinner, they discussed many different topics, and the girl’s relatives took a keen interest in her London life. Everyone there seemed to have decided not to bring up the unpleasant conversation from the day of the meeting. They all acted as if nothing had happened, although Megan was sure that such things are hard to forget.
“Megan, allow me to ask you a provocative question!” exclaimed Alaric, smiling warmly, “Have you started to miss London yet?”
“Indeed, a provocative question!” Megan smiled in response. “In the last few days, I've been discovering a new world. Breathtaking castles! Incredible heather fields! The mystique and history of my family – all of it truly fascinates and attracts me. I don't remember London making such an impression on me. But I'll admit, I do miss its noise and the fast pace of life.”
“I see,” the elderly man said thoughtfully, cutting a piece of venison.
Dinner went smoothly and comfortably, and afterward, everyone gathered in the hall by the fireplace.
“Having a glass of good whiskey after dinner is one of our family traditions,” Alaric said with a satisfied smile.
“Warren introduced me to this tradition at Castle Mal yesterday,” Megan responded. “He and Glenn told me a lot of interesting things. Though, I'm very impressionable, and it led me to have nightmares all night.”
“I warned you, since you take everything to heart, you'd be scared at night! But your curiosity overcame your fear,” Warren joined in.
“Yes, that's true. I dreamt about Margaret and Mary, the crypt, my grandfather…”
