Beach House Mystery

Chapter 4

Morgan unpacked the books, finding a few significant discoveries at the bottom of the box. She quickly sent a message to the owner, giving him news of her discovery. The man didn"t hesitate and told her to go ahead and do whatever was needed to save the books. And when she finished that batch, he had more boxes to send.

In the past, Morgan would have gone to the job and worked on the book repairs on the owner’s site, but since returning to Pearl island, she had set up shop in one of the large rooms on the ground floor that overlooked the courtyard. She had earned an excellent reputation over the years in her work of repairing old books, and her clients didn"t mind sending the books to her at this stage. She still planned to go out and do consultations at job sites, but for the most part, she was going to do the repair work from the island. This was new to Morgan. She"d never had roots before, but it felt right. The island had called her home, and the large Seaver beach house had welcomed her back to where she had spent her childhood.

"Well, Misty, it looks like we"ve got some work ahead of us," Morgan spoke to the cat sitting on her desk as she hung up the phone. Ever since Misty had appeared from the mist the first night Morgan arrived at the island, she had gotten in the habit of talking to the kitten. Morgan was used to being alone and liked her own company, but there was something about Misty"s presence that made her speak her thoughts out loud.

"It doesn"t look like we will have time for another bike ride. I better get that bike in the storage shed." Morgan was speaking more to herself this time. Tucking her phone in her back pocket, she hurried from the room to put the bike in the shed where it would be out of the weather. The weatherman had promised rain tonight, but then again, he had been promising rain for the last couple of nights, so it was anybody"s guess.

Finishing that task, Morgan came back in the house, put some food down for the kitten, and made herself a quick sandwich. Grabbing a bottle of water and her food, she headed up to the library, where she planned to read the next family Journal.

Morgan was strict about the order she read the journals, starting from the very first one, and working her way up to the present, reading each of the journals her aunt had left behind.

***

"I"M GLAD TO SEE YOU"re reading the family"s history," a soft voice said behind Morgan.

Morgan had finished working in the library and, after a quick shower, grabbed the book to take to her room and sit outside on the widow"s walk to read. Her room was on the third floor, opening to the widow"s walk connected to the opposite side of the walk. From here, Morgan could see the shoreline and would often spend time just sitting and watching the boats coming into the harbor. She had always loved the widow"s walk, even as a child. She could remember sitting up here with her aunt and her mother, reading books on the benches that had been placed to give the best view and protection from the wind.

The voice didn"t take her by surprise; she"d secretly been expecting it. It had been a couple of days since she"d heard the soft musical tone, and she turned with a smile to see the shimmering figure of her Aunt Meredith.

"Hello, Aunt Meredith. These books are fascinating; how could you not read them? There"s so much recorded here about the history of the island."

"There"s more than facts in those books, Morgan. You"ll find answers to the Seaver legend in there, as well. Be sure you read them carefully; the information may help you someday."

Morgan looked back out to the sea, as if it contained the answers she wanted to ask before she looked back at Meredith. "It"s not over, is it? Cora will return as she promised."

Meredith nodded. She moved closer to sit next to her niece on the bench. "I"m afraid so. But the more information you have, the better prepared you will be. Don"t let your guard down. That"s when Cora will take advantage."

The two were silent for a moment, watching the waves crash against the shore.

"You know, you should be writing a journal, as well. It"s your turn to write down the family"s history. You need to record what is happening to you, just as your mother and I did."

Morgan was silent for a moment and then turned to her aunt to answer her, but she had disappeared.

She laughed into the empty night air. "You know, that"s just rude."

But Morgan had gotten used to her aunt"s sudden appearances and disappearances. It had happened since the very first moment Morgan returned to Pearl Island. Although her aunt couldn"t stay for long periods, she did what she could to guide her niece through her adjustment back to her home. And it did help her, except that not everything was black and white like it is in books. And there were things, especially on Pearl Island, that were beyond explanation. She had to learn to trust the legends and accept new abilities as they appeared.