Okay, so my story was beginning to take shape—but it was missing one important thing: a love interest for my 1920s bootlegger ghost.

That’s when I began digging deeper into the legend of Minnie Quay.

I stared at the old house on Lakeshore Drive (also known as M-25, a narrow highway that runs along the shores of Lake Huron), and wondered about its history. It was a hot summer day and we were camping just north of Port Sanilac in a town called Forester, Michigan. I decided to ride my bike north to Lexington to meet John and Ellie at our favorite pizza place.