Page 1 of Touch My Shelves

CHAPTER 1

POPPY MORALES

“Over here, Poppy.”

I wave to Kimberly and Shyanne as I make my way down the aisle excusing myself to those that are already seated, climbing over them to get to the spot my friends have saved me.

I sink into the metal chair beside Shyanne with minimal toe smashing. “Thanks for saving me a seat. It’s a full house tonight.”

Standing room only by the looks of things. In the months I’ve been attending these town hall meetings, I’ve never seen one this well attended.

Kimberly leans over Shy and whispers, “It’s because the treasure hunter is going to be here. Everyone wants to know what she’s found.”

Shy adds, “It’s so exciting. Who knew there was a shipwreck off our coast? It could be a pirate ship that was sunk by the English Navy and filled with jewels and gold.”

“It could be, since the island was established by pirates.” I’ve done my research on the island since moving here. What can I say? Research is my jam. I discovered pirates living on the mainland of North Carolina used the island as an early detection system for marauding pirates or the English Navy. If ships were spotted, the watch on Faire Island would light a tall bonfire to alert those on the mainland, giving them plenty of time to move whatever needed to be hidden away or to escape further inland.

We all three startle when the mayor taps the microphone, resulting in a screeching noise which grabs everyone’s attention and the conversations quiet. “Welcome one and all to the September town hall meeting. We have a lot to cover tonight, so let’s get started. Hannah, you come on up here and tell folks about the planning for this year’s Buccaneer Days.”

I’ve heard about Buccaneer Days, but I’ve never experienced it myself. I’m anxious to not only attend, but to also be one of the merchants participating in the weeklong fall festival.

Hannah takes the stage. I know Hannah Murphy. She and her husband, Blake, own and run the marina and I have a standing invitation to their Thursday night dinners. I love the family and community support system I’ve found on Faire Island. Coming from a big family, I understand them, to a point, but these folks take it to a whole new level. I honestly don’t know how to take them sometimes.

Shortly after I moved here, Blake Murphy found me on the side of the road, stranded with a flat tire and a dead cellphone. He not only drove me back into town, he also had his son tow my vintage VW Beetle—better known as JuneBug—into his garage where he repaired her flat, changed her oil,andfixed her air conditioning. He did all that and didn’t charge me anything. Who does that? Nobody I have ever known.

My attention turns to Hannah as she begins to speak. “As most of you probably know, our committee starts planning for the next Buccaneer Days the day after the previous one comes to a close. Thanks to the resurgence in population, this year’s events promise to be the best we’ve had in decades. Festivities will start on Monday and will run through Saturday, October 31st, with the culmination of the arrival of the pirate ship, trick or treating for the littles, and the Buccaneer Ball that evening. We’ll be posting the full schedule online as soon as it’s finalized.

“Blake is looking for a few woodworkers to check out the ship and make sure she’s seaworthy for the trip. See Blake after the meeting if you have that skill and can help out. By the way, if you don’t come willingly, he knows who you are and where you live.

“Also, if you’d like to participate in the ship’s landing activity, practice will begin in two weeks. We want each raiding pirate to be able to stick his landing and snatch his damsel without too much distress as he spirits her away back to the pirate ship.”

A smattering of laughter results from her semi-teasing before she continues. “Merchants, if you will be handing out candy or sponsoring a game, see Olivia and sign up with your intentions if you haven’t already. We want 100% participation. I don’t need to tell you how incredibly special it is to have youth back in our community to enjoy this event.”

Shyanne has already helped me come up with a fishing game for the bookstore. I’m already working on making the “fish,” so I’m ahead of schedule.

More than once since my move, I’ve thanked my lucky stars for leading me here. I stumbled onto a promotion on social media that sounded too good to be true, but this time actually was. Bonuses and tax incentives were the defining factors in choosing Faire Island as the site for opening my own bookstore.

Faire Island has made miraculous strides in repopulating by bringing families back together and businesses to town. Through the incredible opportunities offered by the town, they’ve enticed several businesses to make Faire Island their home. Now it’s mine too.

Hannah answers a few questions before Mayor Young thanks her and takes the microphone back. “Now I’d like to introduce Kailani Malou, one of the people in charge of the investigation that’s been going on off our shores.”

A tall woman stands from the front row and shakes Mayor Young’s hand. “Good evening and mahalo. As Mayor Young said, my name is Dr. Kailani Malou and I’m here to announce publicly that, forty miles off the coastline, the remains of the steamboatPolanskihave been officially identified.”

A low rumbling runs through the assembled residents. Shyanne looks at me and we shrug. There goes the pirate theory.

Dr. Malou continues, “The steamboat carried 40 crew members and over 150 passengers. It set off on its inaugural trip from Savannah, Georgia with Baltimore being their destination. At the time, thePolanskiwas a state-of-the-art vessel carrying some of the wealthiest families back home after the vacation season. On the night of August 15, 1838, there was an explosion killing over half onboard.”

Dr. Malou speaks a while longer, giving general information about the wreck and then opens the floor for questions. A man sitting with Hannah and Blake Murphy stands. I’ve not met him before, but it’s obvious he’s related to them. All the Murphy men are handsome.

“Hello, my name is Adan Murphy. I’d like to know how you determined this is thePolanski?”

“We were able to identify the steamboat from a piece of silverware found. It was a spoon engraved with “SB Polanski.” This is enough evidence to certify the find. We also found a gold locket engraved with the name of one of the confirmed passengers.”

A woman jumps up and asks, “Why did it take so long to find out? I mean, it’s been over a year since we were told about a shipwreck being discovered.”

Dr. Malou smiles. “I can understand your frustration. Television makes it look so easy and quick. A treasure is found and brought to the surface in under an hour. Unfortunately, that’s not an accurate depiction of the process. With the location of the wreckage and the condition of the remains, along with following protocol and legal laws, we’ve moved as quickly as possible. I can assure you, we’re as excited as you are.”

More questions are asked and finally Mayor Young has to step in so the rest of the agenda can be finished before everyone leaves due to the late hour.

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