Find the Forgotten: The Mystery of Morrigan Halloway

Awkward Encounter

I pressed open the heavy doors to the school library, wondering if Morrigan had followed me. Could she even do that?

"Hey, Mrs. Willows." I waved.

She smiled from behind her desk. "How can I help you, Miss Emily? I'm sorry I couldn't get that club set up for you." She pouted.

What Mom said to Uncle Cliff about her not caring ran through my head. I frowned and shook my head as if it were no big deal. "It's okay. I actually came to ask if you know about someone."

"Who might that be?" She asked as she tapped away at her keyboard while still looking at me. It was like magic.

I glanced between her colorful glasses and her crawling fingers. "Um, do you happen to know anything about a girl named Morrigan? She used to live around here, but she passed away. We're doing this project thing, and I just need to know more about her." I bit my lip.

She took a deep breath and spaced out, looking straight through the bookshelves. After a moment, she finally nodded. "Yes, I can't remember exactly, but I believe she died on Friday the 13th. I'm sorry, but that's all I can remember. Unlucky day and all." She scrunched up her nose.

I thought for a moment, hoping for her to suddenly have more info, but she didn't. "Do you know where I could find out more?"

She took a deep breath and raised her eyebrows. "Well, we don't have one here, but if you check the local library, they have a microfilm reader. It will show you the previous newspapers and maybe you could find her obituary or something. I'm sorry, I don't have anything else."

I'd seen those before. They looked so fun to use, but I'd never had a reason to use one. My heart raced. "That's great! Thank you!"

"But dear," she called out, "If you don't know which year she passed, I'm afraid you might be looking for a long time."

I was tired of reading for now anyway, and solving a mystery to help a ghost sounded pretty dang cool. "I've got plenty of time, thanks!"

She scrunched her nose in a smile and went back to typing.

I pressed the door open, right as the girl from before came in. I gasped. "Sorry! Did I hit you?"

She let out a raspy laugh. "No, I'm fine." She had one big bun on her head today and a necklace with a bunch of charms on it.

I smiled, but something was off. Was it a coincidence that we were here at the same time, or did Morrigan have something to do with it?

"D-do you like mysteries?" I asked, letting the library door close behind me.

Her eyebrow twitched.

"I saw you reading The Westing Game before."

"Um." She glanced at me for a second. "Yeah, it's fun. I love the puzzles."

A rush ran through me. "Ever read Detective Penny? She solves a lot of mysteries." I pulled out the book from my bag.

She shook her head, then stiffened and turned. "I gotta go." My jaw dropped as she speed-walked through the hallway, her footsteps echoing.

What the heck?

My eyes drifted to the floor. I knew I shouldn't have talked to her. Now she was probably going to tell everyone how nerdy I was for reading Penny books or something.

I wouldn't let it get to me. A rush ran through me again. Today I'd get to use a microfilm reader.

***

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