Castle

Chapter 5

FIVE

I did some research on the Montgomery family and was honestly surprised how little information the family had online. It’s like someone had done a good job of keeping their family history wiped from the databases.

I found a family picture with the parents that had supposedly died in the boating accident. It was taken when the kids were still very young. I could spot Castle easily in the picture. The sable hair and the golden-brown eyes were unmistakably alluring. He stood behind his parents, who sat on a couch with Devin and Dayana on either side of them. He looked no older than seventeen. Theodore was in his mother’s lap, while Chandler wasn’t even born.

To an onlooker, they seemed like a happy family that had everything that anyone would ever want: wealth, power, status, a lovely wife and four beautiful children, and yet, things had gone so horribly wrong in the end. It just made me sad looking at the picture, and realizing that nothing lasted for a long time.

You could lose good things in life in an instant.

“Miss. Millie, it’s time for Castle to go outside in the garden for a walk.” The voice made me jump.

I quickly shut the laptop and turned to look at the petite figure standing by the door.

It was Sally, the quiet maid who liked to keep to herself. She’d rather sweep the non-existent dust off the floor for hours than engage in the maid’s gossip. With so many staff spread throughout the mansion, I was sure I hadn't even met some of them.

“I’ll be right there,” I said, climbing to my feet and walking out of the door.

Castle was already waiting for me in the sitting area, wearing a maroon t-shirt over denim. His usually neatly combed hair was unruly, and for a moment, his gaze briefly met mine before he looked away. He kept his eyes downcast and kept clenching something in his hand.

“Good Evening, Castle. Do you want to go outside?”

When he didn’t respond, I took that as a yes and started walking ahead of him. I knew he was following me. I wore a long-sleeved summer dress and had tied my hair up in a long ponytail. According to the rule book, it mentioned that I was supposed to dress appropriately at all times. They had a few caretakers that tried to entice Devin in exchange for a few favors, but Devin had made it pretty clear that he didn’t need such people in his house and, more importantly, under his employment.

We walked through the mansion gardens; the way paved ahead was surrounded by well-manicured lush green shrubs. Castle trudged behind me slowly, kicking pebbles, and suddenly he raced ahead and blocked my way.

I stopped short and kept my distance from him. At five-seven, I was taller than most women, but he was still huge and stood close to me, so close that I could smell the faint scent of soap and something like a hint of wood spice.

Stop thinking about his scent! He’s not even capable of reciprocating any type of those feelings. And shouldn’t I be feeling guilty to have my heart racing for someone like Castle?

“What is it?” I asked, feeling more nervous now than ever.

What if he hurt all those caregivers before me and forced them to flee?

There was no one close here to witness if anything wrong were to happen to me. Castle could wring my neck for “fun” and hang me to dry outside the mansion without breaking a sweat, and his family would probably be like ‘here we go again, well, let’s just post another ad for an unsuspecting lady.’

Who am I kidding? The family had tons of money, and good political connections as well. Hiding a murder wouldn’t be that difficult.

Castle watched me intently. His brown eyes looked light golden in the sunset. I looked down at what he was holding out in his palm for me.

“It’s for you.” He whispered.

It was an origami flower.

“For me?” I asked stupidly, even though I knew it was. “That’s really sweet of you, thank you.”

“Beautiful.” He whispered, not taking his eyes off me.

It shocked me to hear the words coming from him. “You think I’m beautiful?”

He gave me a nod.

“You’re not trying to flatter me to get your way, are you?” I asked.

When he didn’t respond, I assumed I’d said too much, and he had difficulty comprehending a long sentence.

“No,” he said.

“Why, thank you, again. You’re not bad yourself.”

He reached out for my hand and held it, walking beside me. It felt like grade school when Tony gave me a craft plane he made in class and that automatically made him my boyfriend. Well, at least until lunch break was over. By the end of school, he’d given another plane to Lily.

It was a small gesture by Castle, and yet my heart skipped around like a schoolgirl.

The silence between us was comfortable, but I needed him to trust me completely.

“Do you remember anything at all?”

He shook his head.

“Alright,” I decided not to push him. “I’ll help you remember everything.”

“How?” he asked, uncertainty was obvious on his face.

“I can try. I’ll speak to your therapist and we’ll see what he has to say.”

“No!” He yelled coming to a halt and his breathing intensified. “No!”

His sudden outburst shocked me.

“Okay, calm down. No therapist.” I promised, “Take deep breaths.”

He calmed down a few minutes later.

From a distance, I saw Chandler rushing towards us. He threw the ball towards Castle, who caught it in mid-air. Trixie ran forward at full-speed, with her tongue lolling out.

“We’re going to play ball. Millie, you’re going to join us, right?” Chandler was still wearing his royal blue school uniform from some fancy private school he went to.

“Sure,” I said.

We stood at three different corners, and Trixie kept running around the lawn wildly.

“Silly dog,” Chandler called after her. He’d loosened his tie and tossed his jacket on the ground. A maid was walking around collecting things that Chandler had discarded.

“I’m going to toss it towards Cas first and then Cas, You’re going to throw it in Millie’s direction. The first person who drops the ball loses.”

For the first time in years, I was enjoying myself. Laughing and joking with this family.

It felt like I belonged here. I caught glimpses of Castle’s rare smile.

Trixie began barking incessantly as she stared at the barn, clawing at the door and looking at us with those big brown curious eyes.

Dogs could sense the paranormal. It’s not like I believed in all that, but just because I hadn’t seen a ghost yet didn’t mean I was a skeptic either. The Montgomery’s property, even though it was lavish, it dated back to the 1800s. Their ancestors might have done something here, or someone died from their family and their ghost still roamed around the place. On the far end of the property, by the woods, I could see headstones. A family graveyard.

“Trixie! Come back here!” Chandler commanded her.

But the dog wouldn’t listen and continued to bark. She ran up towards me and caught the end of my dress in her teeth and pulled me towards the other direction.

“What is it, girl?” I asked as I followed her. “Chandler, wait here with Castle, okay? I’m going to check what’s in there.”

“I want to come too!” He complained. “I don’t want to babysit Castle.”

“No, you’re staying here! I’m going to check first.”

Chandler threw the ball onto the grass in exaggeration. “I hate everyone in this house!”

The barn was locked tight, and I had to use all my strength to open the door. It was pitch black inside, so I pulled my phone out and switched on the flashlight.

There was no one inside, just haystacks everywhere.

The barking stopped at once and turned into whimpering. She took a few steps back, leaving me standing alone inside the barn.

“What is it, Trixie?”

She continued to whimper.

“Anyone in here?” I called out and hoped to god I didn’t get an answer. “Hello.”

I shrieked loudly when I saw a white figure swinging towards me until I realized it wasn’t a ghost.

The body swung in different directions.

My entire body was shaking, and I screamed when I saw the face.

Barbara was hanging from a noose in the center of the barn’s ceiling.