Ink and Shadows(Secret, Book, & Scone Society #4)(39)

“Duly noted.” McCabe held up the postcard. “Thanks for this. And for giving Celeste a hand. This will probably be the longest, hardest week of her life.”

Nora wasn’t ready to let him go. “Did she talk to you yesterday? I’m not asking just to be nosy. Like it or not, I’m involved in this. I found Bren’s body. That book page was left under my doormat. I think I have a right to know if this a murder investigation.”

“I wish I could give you a straight answer. Celeste said that her daughter was keeping secrets, but she won’t go into detail about these secrets. The ME hasn’t been able to pinpoint the cause of death, either. He’s waiting on more test results.”

“Maybe the answers are elsewhere,” said Nora. “Like Pine Hollow.”

At that moment, one of the moms appeared in the front with her son in tow. After waving at Nora, the pair left the bookshop. Another mom and her three kids soon followed. A third mom carrying several books approached the checkout counter. The coffee hour was over.

McCabe left, and Nora rang up the woman’s books. She then returned to the readers’ circle to share her recommendations with Janice.

Taking a seat, Nora said, “My go-to source for books on challenging topics at the grade-school level is a children’s librarian who blogs about the best books for the classroom. She’s been posting for over a decade and hasn’t steered me wrong yet. For the younger kids, the two titles I picked are The Potato Chip Champ and Enemy Pie.”

Janice’s eyes lit up. “And they address bullying?”

“The potato chip book is about kindness and what it means to have a healthy friendship. It’s a great book for the beginning of the school year. Enemy Pie focuses on dealing with conflict. The librarian said that it’s especially helpful for kids who struggle socially.”

“Potato chips and pizza. Kids love both of those things,” Janice said, scribbling in her notebook. “And if we set up the buddy read program, the older kids can read the books and share in the rewards. Do you have recommendations for them too?”

“Not with food in the title. However, The Recess Queen and Just Kidding are perfect for that age group. One story features girls. The other one’s about boys.”

Janice’s pen raced across the page. “Two is good. If we make them read a dozen titles about the same subject, we’ll have the same results as last year. I’m going to order copies of these four books, pronto. As soon as they come in, I’ll meet with the teachers, and we’ll come up with creative ways to discuss the messages in each book. And by creative, I mean cheap.”

Later, after Nora placed the order, she thought of how Connie Knapp could learn something from the PTA president. Janice tackled a problem by asking for help and welcoming other people’s ideas and suggestions. Connie used fear tactics. She got people to follow her by tapping into their anxieties and vilifying her opponents. Both women claimed a desire to help the community, but the only woman who would truly change Miracle Springs for the better was Janice.

Sheldon had cleaned up after the moms, leaving Nora to tidy the children’s section.

A copy of Holly Black’s Tithe had somehow ended up with the board books, so Nora carried it to its proper home in the Young Adult corner.

The three teens were there, sitting on the floor. The blondes sat, shoulder to shoulder, thick hardcovers open on their laps. The brunette had her back to the shelves and was balancing her book on top of her bent knees. Nora loved seeing the girls lost in their books, and she flashed them a smile, put Tithe on its shelf, and returned to the front of the shop.

Twenty minutes later, the brunette approached the checkout counter, hugging a book to her chest.

“Hey,” she said in a library whisper.

“Hey,” Nora replied.

The girl eased the book away from her chest and glanced at the cover with longing. Nora knew that look. It was the look of a reader who didn’t want to part from her book.

“Is there, like, a limit, on how long we can read here?”

“What’s captured your interest?” Nora asked.

The girl showed her the novel’s cover. It was Cinder by Marissa Meyer.

“Ah, the first of the Lunar Chronicles.” Nora nodded in approval. “I had my doubts about that book before I read it, but I was won over by the blend of Cinderella-meets–Blade Runner. You’re probably too young to know that movie. Anyway, you can read until closing.”

“Really? But this isn’t a library.” The girl was genuinely baffled.

“That’s true,” Nora agreed. “But if you love Cinder, you might buy Scarlet. This is why booksellers let people browse for as long as they like. We count on them falling in love with a series and buying the next installment.”

The girl’s face turned bright red. “Not me. I can’t bring a book like this home.”

She was telling Nora that even though she was in high school, she wasn’t allowed to choose her own pleasure reads. Someone else did that. A controlling parent, most likely.

“That’s okay,” Nora was quick to assure her. “You can read here. Just spend a little money now and then on hot chocolate or a bookmark. Does that work for you?”

The girl’s smile was transformative. Joy spilled from her eyes. “Seriously? I could come, like, every day?”