Read Online The Lake and the Library by S. M. Beiko - Free Book Online Page A

and balcony rails as I skipped down the stairs. “We’ll talk more again, sometime . . . Well,
I’ll
talk more, right?”
    I looked up at the railing where Li had followed as far as the landing would allow, stopping at the edge restlessly. I genuinely thought he was going to try to swan dive after me, his confident trickster mask cracking free.
Will I see you again?
his apprehension whispered.
    I tried to offer a flimsy buffer of comfort, because I felt he deserved it. “I’ll come back soon. We seem to like the same haunts. I’m sure we’ll see each other again.”
    His eyes darted around the room, frustrated. He was searching for words without sound, so he plucked them from the air with his fingers. Point to me, point to him, panoramic hand view.
    â€œMe, you, here?” I translated. His nod was more than eager, body dangerously pressed to the railing in order to be close without jumping down. I laughed and rocked on my heels. “What makes you think I spend my summers meeting crazy thief boys in abandoned libraries?”
    Shrilling out a whistle, he twirled his finger at his temple and pointed at me.
    â€œ
I’m
the crazy one?”
    Curt nod.
    I couldn’t help it. He was master and commander of an entire circus all on his own, and I didn’t mind coming along for the tour. He was the colour and poetry that Treade owed me.
    â€œAll right!” I agreed. “When?”
    He held out his hand, beckoning me for an offer.
    â€œTomorrow?” I laughed. “How about tomorrow?”
    The corners of his lips twitched like nothing could make him happier. I had never felt so wanted with so few words to prove it, and it made my chest expand as I found my exit hole. Could there really be something
that
special about me? A candid thought reverberated sharply through me as I squeezed out into the open, trying to avoid clumps of mud and wall debris.
    Li was just one more
last
to add to this summer’s list.

    I rounded Tabitha’s downhill bay, trying to keep my knees in check on the slope so I wouldn’t find myself with a mouthful of sidewalk. My sheer, brilliant excitement alone propelled me like a meteor. Two days had been enough time for me to keep all this a secret. Tabs had to know, had just as much right as me to know, and soon there would be no dissension, no hurt, only lasting memories.
    And right after, we’d pass the story on to Paul, the words and inspiration slipping out of me like twinkling coins into his lap. Our reunion would electrify our tender souls back to life. The three of us would bask in this new adventure, this new sanctuary, relishing in the tale with each dive into it. After all the time we’d spent dreaming, the mystery would be ours. Our escape. Until time moved us on and tapped us out.
    I came to the bottom of the bay hill, bag slapping feverishly against my back. The kingdom would be ours, and I had just the thing to get Tabitha back in on it.
    My mind shunted so suddenly onto Li that it made me jerk to a stop just a house away from Tabitha’s. His desperate, pleading eyes jutted out like chalk lines on asphalt, gemstones in the depths:
    You, me, here?
    He’d been in the library before me. The kingdom couldn’t truly be mine, Tabitha’s, or Paul’s. Not really. Not with the brotherhood that Li’s feet seemed to share with the floors and the walls, making him able to navigate the darkest shadow to save my sorry self. I had him to thank for letting me live to see this adventure come true. What would I tell them about Li, when I knew so little? Where did he go after I left? And had I ever seen him in town before? A population of under 3,000 made it hard to miss a face, but . . . there he was. At first he was so aloof and closed in, until he transformed into a wild mischief-maker needing chase and attention. So many fragmented aspects. Schizophrenic, joyful stranger — what could I expect from