Chapter Thirty-Four
C HLOE COULDN ’ T EXPLAIN it, but now they had finally sent the last character back into their story, the books they carried with them now unremarkable and not glowing, she felt a shift in the air.
A sudden absence of something in Wellbridge.
It was not a melancholy loss, but more like a noticeable lack of . . . something. Magic, perhaps.
‘It’s done,’ she said to the others. Even if she hadn’t known it, she would be able to feel it. ‘Do you feel that, too? Like the magic is gone.’
‘Gone?’ Harry looked stricken.
‘Hopefully not gone from the library itself.’ Chloe thought it would be awful if the moving bookshelves, glowing books and personality of the library were gone for ever. ‘There’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?’
They fetched Mrs Cook from outside. She seemed surprised that they had sent back the last character already, and Joe gave them a cheerful wave.
They went back to the library. It was already evening, but Harry went to the Brew House, open late for dinner, and bought them all lattes and sandwiches.
They rested in the library lobby as they sipped and swapped funny stories about their adventure, how they’d narrowly missed being caught.
‘Do you think there are videos of you being carried through the air on social media?’ Chloe asked, anxious as she pulled out her phone.
‘I checked already. There’s nothing.’ Gwen sounded a little disappointed.
‘That’s a good thing,’ Chloe reminded her sister. ‘Though I suppose people would have just dismissed it as fake or AI generated.’
‘Maybe no one seeing it was part of the library’s magic. Or just a happy coincidence,’ Harry remarked, scratching his chin. It was the first time Chloe had heard him say the word ‘magic’ aloud, and it made her tingle all over.
Chloe took a bite of her egg salad sandwich, trying not to stare at him too much. Their kiss in the chapel still lingered, and now that their task of helping the library was complete, she allowed herself to think about it.
‘Chloe, you’ve got egg on your chin,’ said Gwen.
Scowling and wiping away the mess, Chloe glanced around.
‘I suppose we should close the library tomorrow so we can get this mess cleaned up.’ She sighed as she took in the fallen bookcases and scattered papers.
There were hundreds of books on the floor, but at least none of them were glowing any more.
It would take hours to get everything tidied up.
But the characters were at last all back in their stories, and that was the most important thing.
There were no more mischievous poltergeists or enchanted animals or talking lions.
‘Who was that guy with the tattoos?’ asked Gwen. ‘You know, the one who could—’ she cleared her throat, ‘uh, fly. He was here earlier. He had a huge wingspan, and his eyes were . . .’ She trailed off, looking dreamily in the distance.
‘Why? Are you going to ask him out?’ asked Chloe with a smirk.
Gwen shrugged. ‘Maybe he’ll want to come out of his book now and again.’ She looked confused. ‘That is such a weird sentence. Who was he, Chloe?’
‘Maybe you should read the book and find out,’ said Mrs Cook, her eyes twinkling. Eric snickered into his coffee.
‘Yeah.’ Gwen laughed. ‘Maybe I should.’
‘I still can’t understand how this all happened,’ said Mrs Cook. She glanced around the library, a look Chloe now knew meant she was thinking about the library herself, trying to understand it. ‘Did your magic . . . break?’
Something fluttered in the library’s lights, a rush of cold washing over them. ‘Hmm. That means no.’ Mrs Cook tapped her chin.
‘I think I know.’
Everyone looked at Harry, who set his coffee cup down on the reception table. He looked suddenly nervous, and Chloe couldn’t help wondering if there was something he had done. Something he could control here, too.
‘You said this library takes a liking to people, right?’ he said. ‘Well, ever since I met Chloe, I feel like I’ve been given a second chance. I didn’t think I deserved love again after my wife passed away, but . . .’ He took Chloe’s hand.
She felt Eric, Mrs Cook and Gwen watching them, but she only had eyes for Harry. His closeness was electrifying.
‘Maybe I’m reading this all wrong, but I don’t mind,’ Harry said softly. ‘I’m ready.’
He smiled around at the group. ‘Chloe and I are going out. She’s my girlfriend. And not a secret girlfriend, either,’ he added. ‘That is, if you’ll let me be your boyfriend.’
Gwen whooped, looking delighted. ‘I knew it.’
Eric looked comically crestfallen, while Mrs Cook beamed at them both.
‘If this is my second chance, I’m taking it with both hands and a whole heart,’ said Harry. ‘What do you say, Chloe?’
Chloe couldn’t help feeling the same. This was her second chance, too, after living a life of fear after her ex, always wanting to escape somewhere new and start again. But right now, this was where she belonged. With this library, with her sister, in the town where she grew up.
With Harry.
‘Yes,’ she said with a giggle. ‘I’ll be your girlfriend.’
He hugged her close, and the library lit up with a warm glow.
Everyone gasped as the bookshelves righted themselves, rising from the floor to settle onto the carpet with gentle thuds.
Books swept from the floor and flew back to their places, covers flapping like wings, and settled on the shelves side by side.
Debris that had fallen swept up to the walls and the ceiling, dust collecting into a neat pile and depositing itself in the bin.
The whole building creaked as the library straightened up, broken things fixing themselves.
In moments, it was good as new. Even the carpet looked cleaner, the wooden walls shining like polished brass and the lanterns glowing happily in their squeaky-clean glass holders.
‘The window?’ Chloe asked, and they all went to the non-fiction section in time to see the shattered glass rising from the carpet, coming together like shards of a jigsaw puzzle and slotting into place. The cold air blowing from inside halted and the curtains fluttered as though pleased.
‘All along,’ said Mrs Cook in amusement, her hands on her hips, ‘you could keep yourself clean and tidy. Fancy that.’
‘The leak in the roof!’ Chloe exclaimed. ‘You didn’t need fixing, did you?’
The lanterns glimmered. A ripple of amusement.
‘The library knew I had borrowed that book about construction and knew I would come here to fix the roof,’ said Harry.
‘So we would meet again,’ said Chloe. Her heart felt light. All along, the library had wanted them to find each other.
Harry kissed her, and she laughed against his lips. ‘We fixed the magic.’
‘I don’t think it was broken to begin with,’ said Gwen, looking around in awe. ‘The library wanted to give you both a new chance at life. At love.’ Her eyes went glassy. ‘Chloe, I swear I’ll never say books or reading are boring again. I am so happy for you both.’
‘So am I.’ Eric looked between them. ‘All right, I know Chloe is super -hot, but I’m a bit young for you, I know that now.
Plus, you did tell me no.’ He held out a hand to Harry, his face solemn.
The women glanced at each other then looked away, trying not to laugh.
‘Take good care of her, Harry. Thank you for making her happy.’
Harry shook Eric’s hand, then gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. ‘And thank you for being her friend.’
Gwen hugged Chloe, and Chloe hugged her back, relishing her sister’s warm embrace. She realised she didn’t feel worried at all. Harry and Gwen knew each other and that was okay. She trusted them both.
‘Well, now that Chloe and Harry have found their happy endings, do you promise not to let any more characters out of their books?’ Mrs Cook asked the library. ‘Well, not dozens of them at once, anyway. We don’t mind if books glow sometimes .’
Clementine appeared, meowing as he curled around Eric’s leg.
‘Clem!’ Chloe exclaimed. The cat didn’t look any worse for wear, though he seemed relieved that it was quiet and peaceful in the library again.
Eric picked him up, cuddling the purring cat close to his chest. ‘Are you all right, little boy? Was it scary and noisy in here?’
The library felt warm and cosy again, and there was no sign of the mayhem that had erupted here today. Mrs Cook held her latte in her hands, her eyes crinkling as she looked between Chloe and Harry. ‘All this trouble for a new librarian. The library must love you.’
‘I love the library, too.’ Chloe hesitated. ‘And I’ve decided to stay. I can’t possibly imagine living or working anywhere else.’ She knew the words to be wholly true as she squeezed Harry’s hand. ‘Or . . . being with anyone else.’
‘So you’re staying? YES !’ Eric whooped. Clementine leaped out of his arms, regarding the young man with disdain. His bell jangled as Chloe knelt to pet him. ‘Don’t tell me the cat is magical, too?’ she asked Mrs Cook. ‘He always seems to understand everything I say.’
She scooped up the cat, his furry warmth enveloping her. Harry put his arm around her shoulders and said, ‘Chloe, I’m so glad you’re staying, too.’
‘Me too,’ said Gwen, nodding.
Mrs Cook simply raised her cup in a toast, her eyes twinkling as the library creaked its satisfaction.
The library was back to normal, and it didn’t seem like any more characters would be jumping out of their books anytime soon. One quiet afternoon, when winter rain drummed on the roof, Mrs Cook locked the doors and took Chloe aside.
‘There’s one more thing you should know about this place,’ she said to her. ‘Or, more appropriately, about its occupant.’
They both glanced at Clementine, who was stretching, his mouth open in a big yawn. He looked at them both as if to ask what they were staring at, then gave a soft meow.
‘About the cat?’ asked Chloe.
‘It’ll be easier to show you.’
Mrs Cook led Chloe to the staff room. Chloe hardly used the room except to deposit her bag as the kitchen area was more comfortable. The cramped room was little more than a sink, some lockers they never used, and a few boxes.
Chloe helped Mrs Cook move aside some of the boxes until they came to a safe in the wall. ‘I didn’t know this was here,’ said Chloe in surprise.
‘I don’t use it much,’ Mrs Cook said. ‘But there’s something important in here I want you to see.’
Mrs Cook opened the safe. It was an old-fashioned one with a combination lock. The door swung open, and Chloe, curious, peered inside.
There was only one item inside the safe. A book, old and frayed, with only a hundred or so pages. Mrs Cook reached in and carefully pulled it out. In the faint light of the staff room, Chloe could see the book was glowing.
‘Is this what I think it is?’ Chloe took the proffered book. On the old, worn cover was a cartoonish picture of a cat. A ginger cat with amber eyes and a haughty look.
‘Shortly after I started working here, I saw that this book was glowing,’ said Mrs Cook, a fond look on her face.
‘I suppose your first experience with the library’s magic was the same.
I read out a line, and suddenly there was a cat before me.
Well, I fell in love with him, and . . .
’ She looked at Chloe. ‘I didn’t want to put him back. ’
Chloe studied the book’s title and author. She had never heard of them, and she was entirely sure she had not seen this book in the children’s section, either.
‘It’s an unusual story,’ said the librarian.
‘But Clementine doesn’t have a good time in it.
It’s a sad story about abuse and abandonment, and .
. .’ Mrs Cook pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed her eyes.
‘Oh, how silly of me, getting in such a state. I read the whole story, and there’s a happy ending, but I just couldn’t send him back.
I’ve kept that book in the safe for nearly ten years. ’
‘Ten years?’ Chloe echoed in awe. ‘Clementine’s been here for that long?’
‘And you know what? In all that time, he’s never gotten sick. Never aged. He eats and he sleeps, but that’s it.’ Mrs Cook sniffled. ‘Do you think I’m a silly old woman, Chloe? Should we send him back to his world, like we sent back the others?’
They were back in the lobby now, Chloe holding Clementine’s book carefully in her hands. Clementine, maybe sensing they were talking about him, came up to them, the bell jingling on his neck.
‘I think,’ said Chloe carefully, ‘that the library just wouldn’t be the same without Clem.’
Clementine meowed softly as she picked him up. He felt every bit as real and wonderful as any real cat. He was real. That was part of the library’s magic. ‘How about it, Clemmy? Would you want to go home?’
Clementine saw the picture on the book cover, purring as Chloe petted between his ears. Then he turned away from it, his tail swishing.
‘I think that Clementine belongs here,’ said Chloe. ‘And that the book belongs in the safe.’
‘I think I just needed to hear it from someone else.’ Mrs Cook picked up the book, handling it gently. ‘I’ll lock this back away and Clementine can stay here. Would you like that, little boy?’
They both cuddled Clementine, feeling his warm fur and his whiskers against their cheeks. It didn’t matter that he was from a book’s world. This was Clem’s home.
Like it was Chloe’s.