The first two chapters of the novel introduce two main characters, Nell Cropsey and her boyfriend, Jim Wilcox. This true story occurred in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, in November of 1901. Nell Cropsey has turned up missing, and the cops and Cropsey family are questioning Jim Wilcox because he was the last to see her. (pg. 8; Simpson) The whole town is talking about the mystery. Some say Jim Wilcox is responsible, some think it might have been a robber who kidnapped her, or she ran away, or maybe she was in trouble and drowned herself. It turns out Nell had quit talking to Jim, and he left her on her front porch crying the night she went missing.
Ollie Cropsey, twenty years of age, tells all she knows of what happened the night her younger sister disappeared. Ollie said that around eleven o’ clock the night of November 20th, Jim Wilcox was leaving their house and asked to talk to Nell. Ollie sat in the dining room with her caller, Roy Crawford, and let them have their privacy because Jim and Nell hadn’t been on speaking terms in a while. (pg. 11; Simpson) Around 11:35, Roy left and Ollie didn’t see Jim anymore or Nell, and fell asleep in her bed. In the middle of the night her father found Nell wasn’t there and Chief Dawson came to help look for Nell. They did not find her that night, and Jim was arrested and released twice after a hearing and only saying he left her crying on the porch. (pg. 18; Simpson)
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