Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook Page A

a couple amateur historians on the island. They’ve collected quite a bit of stuff. The local paper hasn’t yet caught up to the idea of having an online presence.” She motioned over to a shelf on the left. “You can’t check things from the archive out, but you might find what you’re looking for in there. There are old letters from people who used to live here and copies of the local paper.”
    â€œThanks.” I walked over to the shelf, where there were three file boxes. I hefted one onto the closest table and lifted the top off. The box was divided into sections and I grabbed a file at random. It was an old copy of the Nairne News . The headline read MISSING TEENS ASSUMED DEAD . I felt the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. The box was full of documents. All day long I had been looking forward to finding out more, but now that it was in front of me, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.
    â€œIt’s good to see people your age interested in history,” the librarian said. “You know what they say, don’t you? Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
    After she left, I pulled the other two boxes onto the table. I started pulling out files, trying to figure out if there was a particular order to everything. There were clippings from the newspaper on various island events: Fourth of July parades, school plays, the election of a new police chief. The olderclippings were yellow and brittle. Overall, Nairne Island wasn’t shaping up to look like a very happening place. Then I saw something that caught my eye. It was from 1924 and the black headline was in giant forty-plus-size font.
    The Island Loses One of Its Own in Tragic Accident
    Molly O’Shannon, 17, was found dead early yesterday morning at the Morrigan estate, her place of employment. Jonathon Mark, the butler, found her body at the bottom of the front hall stair. Cause of death is a broken neck following a fall.
    Miss O’Shannon had lived on the island for just over a year, working as a maid at the Morrigan estate. “Terrible loss. She was a lovely girl. We never had any problems with her,” said Mr. Wickham, expressing his sorrow on behalf of the entire family. Reports are that the Wickhams have offered to pay the costs of the funeral for the girl. A service will be held at the Presbyterian Church this coming Saturday at 2 p.m. All are welcome.
    I dug the first article I’d seen back out. A quick check of the date at the bottom showed that the paper was just over twenty years old.
    Missing Teens Assumed Dead
    The search for two missing sisters was called off today. Both girls, ages 18 and 16, have been missing since May 30.
    The girls were last seen at a party on Tara Cove Beach on the night of the thirtieth. Three witnesses recall them stating that they were planning to go “ghost hunting” at the Morrigan estate. Witnesses have also confirmed the girls had been drinking. Early search efforts focused on the grounds of Morrigan and the surrounding area, but no sign of the girls was found.
    â€œIt’s like they simply disappeared,” Holly Watson, a school friend of the girls, said at a candlelit prayer vigil held last week. The girls’ parents declined to comment for this story, although Mabel Brink, a family member, stated: “These were good girls. Whatever happened to them, they didn’t deserve it. All those people who said they ran off should be ashamed of themselves.”
    Constable Edmunds stated that it wasn’t viable to keep the search going after so much time with no identified leads. “Our hope is that the girls caught a ride with someone to the mainland. It’s possible that they’re fine, but they’re afraid to call home knowing they’ll be in trouble. Worst-case scenario is they went off swimming or boating late at night and had some sort ofaccident. We’ve filed missing-person reports and at this