midday
Then she went softly down an old stone staircase to the lower floor . Here was the same long passage with rooms on either side , but in even worse condition . At the far end was a glow of light and a hum of voices , coming from the corner of the building occupied by the _ contadino _ , and their own kitchen . But between the heavy front door , that Lucy was about to open , and the distant light , was an earthen floor full of holes and gaps , and on either side -- caverns of desolation -- the old wine and oil stores , the kitchens and wood cellars of the convent , now black dens avoided by the cautious , and dark even at midday because of the rough boarding-up of the windows . There was a stable smell in the passage , and Lucy already knew that one of the further dens held the _ contadino 's _ donkey and mule . ' _ Can _ we stay here ? ' she said to herself , half laughing , half doubtful .