"All done! Lead the way Zee," Lacey said as she clicked the dishwasher door shut. Pushing the start button, she gestured for her twin to head up the stairs.

Terry grabbed her hand as they climbed up, side by side.

She glanced down, the contrast of her tanned hands against the dark brown of his made her think of how opposites attract. Even though Terry loved a lot of the things she did, like tumbling and the cheer squad, he was patient and his humor was sly. She loved to play tricks on people. She always knew he'd be there, ready to help her.

"We're going up through this door. It was locked when we moved in. But Dad and Papa Juan unlocked all the attic stairs. If we don't find what we're looking for in this one, we'll go up over the ballroom next. Mama Rosa said we can go up in the east wing where they live too." Zee explained as she opened the door at the end of the hallway.

The hair on Lacey's arms stood up as they climbed. A single low wattage light bulb lit the landing halfway up, and another door blocked their way at the top. Percy pushed it open when Zee discovered it was stuck. The squeal from the hinges was a high pitched protest as they squeezed through the narrow opening.

"It's been stubborn for a while." Terry pointed to the floor where there was a clear arched mark worn into the wooden boards.

"This room is where we found the open window. It's right over my Dad's sitting room." Zee said.

"Where did this bed come from? Was it stored up here?" Lacey asked.

"I think so. Here's where we found the brush and comb set." Zee walked over to a small vanity sitting in the corner. Obviously an antique, the mirror had a slightly wavy quality which spoke of age.

"I can see the tree branches outside," Lacey peered through the slits between the boards nailed across the window frame. "I checked when we were walking in from the greenhouse, it's easy to get to the bottom branches and climb right up."

"Where did you see the ghost?" Terry asked.

"It was in one of the rooms down the passage from here." Lacey said, and led the way toward the round window in the gable. Weak sunlight trickled through the murky dust on the glass. "We should bring a cleaning brigade up here. Mama Rosa said nothing's been touched since Uncle Theodore went to prison."

The door into the last room on the right, swung freely. Eerily silent. She stopped. The room was pristine.

"Are you sure there hasn't been anyone up here before this week?" Terry said as he peered over her shoulder.

"Dad said they only took care of the broken window. So, definitely not." Zee insisted.

Lacey felt cold air blast past her, as she stepped into a spacious room with two wide garret windows. A desk sat in one nook, and a single child's bed in the other. There was an old fashioned armoire beside the door and a candle sat in a round brass holder on a white-washed table beside the bed.

"How has this stayed so clean? Everything else up here is dusty. You can see our footprints on the floor in the hall." Zee said.

Terry sat on the bed, running one hand over the lacy bedspread. "This is ice cold, but I can feel the heat from the sun shining in through the window."

"This place is creepy," Zee said. "I think we really do have a ghost."

"Look," Percy croaked.

The door swung closed with an ominous click. Lacey jumped like she'd been shot and scrambled over to test the doorknob. Locked. They were trapped.

"Shit," Zee squeaked. "Try it again."

Lacey tried the knob twice. Shaking her head. "It's not doing anything. We can't get out."

"Let me look at this," Percy requested. He ran his fingers down the hinges. "I think I can take the hinges apart if we have to, but there has to be a reason this doorknob isn't working."

"The hinge pins are on this side, the door swings in." Terry said. "We can get out. The question is more like, why does someone want us trapped in here."

"Not going to help as long as the door is locked. It isn't going to give us any leeway to get the door out of the frame," Percy disagreed.

"Look what I found." Zee was standing beside the desk. She pulled a drawer in the desk open and waved them over. Lacey looked over her shoulder and saw a slim leather bound book with a fountain pen half hidden under it.

"Well? Are you going to see what's in it?" Percy asked as he peered down into the open drawer.

"I want to know, but I don't either. Lace, you do it." Zee said.

"Maybe it will tell us why we have a ghost." Lacey touched a finger to the light brown cover. Smooth and butter soft, it was as beautifully preserved as everything else in the room. She sat down on the stool covered with a red velvet cushion and carefully lifted it out.

Lacey started to read with Terry peering over her shoulder. The script was elegant and clear. It seemed like it might be a woman who wrote it. She flipped to the last page with spidery writing on it. Not as clear the words were shaky and spidery.

He took my baby from me. My sweet little girl. He told me unless I give him a boy, he will place his daughters with others. Those who are loyal.

He's insane. He courted me so beautifully. Flowers, wine, jewelry. Promises of a big house.

I have the house, at least a small room of it, here under the eaves. He visits me nightly, except when I bleed. But I will have the last laugh. I tricked him. The pills he gives me to keep me under control, well tonight I'll take them all. I'll escape. I'll be free, and so will the child I carry.

May God forgive me. I cannot give the devil a son.

"Who was she?"

"Where is the baby?"

"Who kept her here?"

"When did this happen?"

Everyone spoke at once, and the air chilled until Lacey could see her breath and the cloudy steam from the others glowed pearly white in the sun streaming through the windows. She turned back to the first page and began skimming through the story written in the book.

"She wasn't always a prisoner up here. She never says her name from what I can see at first glance. But here, look when she was first pregnant." Terry reached over her shoulder to point to the passage he spotted.

Teddy is so happy. I've finally done something right. I'm pregnant, and I couldn't be happier. Finally, someone I can love, who will love me. Teddy is bringing the cradle, crib. and rocking chair down from the attic. He's obsessed with our coming child. The baby is due in January it will bring the New Year in, in grand style. May 2005 be a better year.

"That's the year before I was born," Lacey said. Her stomach dropped.

"What's your birthday?" Percy asked.

"March 3rd, 06," Zee answered.

"Me too. At least they didn't try and change our birthday. We saw the original birth certificates." Lacey said.

"Teddy is a nickname for Theodore in some places."

Terry's statement had her closing the diary. She put it back in the drawer, as the door slowly swung open, and the air inside the room began to warm.

"So, we have a cousin. A girl. We have no idea where she is or what happened to her." Zee stated as the last of the cold dissipated.

"Agreed, and we have to assume her mother committed suicide." Lacey added. "We need to show this to your Dad and my parents. We need to find out if there are missing persons reports from around here that are still open."

"And we need to find out if Theodore Pettigrew is still in prison." Zee's determined face matched her feelings exactly.

"What?" Percy's eyebrow shot right up.

"We're still trying to locate him. My Dad is trying to figure it out," Lacey said.

"This isn't good." Terry's expressive voice held a faint tremor.