The tour came to a room in the castle cellar with a #cistern sunk in the floor in the far corner.
"In the olden days the lord would punish people by sticking them in the cistern for days," the guide said. "Some would fall sick and die. They say their bones line the bottom of the cistern."
Mickle lingered after the tour moved on, transfixed by the cistern. The hairs on his neck rose as a voice in his ear said, "Personally, I found the cistern relaxing. Private. Quiet."