As promised to Marjorie, I went back to the library after my visit and returned the manuscript. On a Saturday evening, the place was quiet and dark, a stark contrast to the friendly premises I was used to. I shut Conny's drawer and was about to leave when the hero of her story appeared beside me in a blue glow. I jumped and pressed a hand to my chest.
"Luca, I told you I'll suffer a heart attack if you keep doing it."
"Sorry, I didn't mean to, but it's kind of hard when you can't hear my steps. Cat told me you found my story?"
I took a deep breath and looked into his amazing blue eyes, now filled with apprehension. "Yes, I did, and just as he suspected, it is an unfinished story."
His shoulders slumped as he stared at the floor. "So, this means I'm caught forever in this stage of in-between?"
"I'm not an expert, but Cat seemed to believe that you're bound to this place by the manuscript, yes."
"What if you destroy it, then? Would you do this for me?"
I gazed at him in shock. "No, I can't. It isn't mine in the first place, and I already feel bad for taking it. Besides, how can you be sure you wouldn't disappear together with your story?"
A deep frown formed on his forehead.
"You're right, a destruction might be dangerous. But then, I might get killed in the story, anyway."
"I doubt this. From what I've read, yours is more of a happy tale." Too late, I realised I shouldn't have mentioned that.
Luca's eyes lit up, and Cat appeared on the front desk. "Ha, I knew you wouldn't be able to resist. So, spoil the beans and tell us what it is about."
A sigh escaped my lips. "It's a story about finding an adequate place in the hectic world of adults. I find it quite funny and like it, but it stops somewhere in the middle without a hint on how it will end."
Luca scuffed the floor with one of his trainers. They were the same light blue as his favourite pair in the story. "So, you're sure there is not just one chapter missing, but half of the story?"
I shrugged, unsure if this mattered at all.
Cat ran a paw over his face. "It doesn't change a thing if you can't get Conny to write the rest of the story."
Luca turned towards him and then me. "Your sad colleague is the author?"
"I guess, and Marjorie confirmed Conny was writing on a story before her husband got his blood cancer diagnosis. We suspect that she never found the time or motivation afterwards to finish her work."
Cat paced up and down on the desk, his tail erect and twitching. "There is only one solution—you must motivate her to write again."
Another sigh. "I can try, but I doubt she'll appreciate my intervention."
The sad look in Luca's eyes pierced my heart, but I didn't have a solution. "Listen, we can't solve this tonight, and I should get some dinner and sleep after a long week. I promise I'll talk to Conny next Monday and see if I can do something about this, right?"
Luca nodded, a reluctant gesture, and he avoided my glance. I felt bad for him, but I didn't want to buildup false hopes. "Please, I try to help, but I'm not a magician."
"It's alright, Lynn." He reached out a hand but stopped centimetres before he touched my arm. "Your support and honesty means a lot—at least you helped me understand what my problem is."
"Right," Cat chimed in, "and to recognise the problem is the first step on the road to its solution. Enjoy your weekend, Lynn, and see you on Monday."
"Thanks, boys. Watch out for the library in the meantime, not that some pesky ghosts sneak in."
Cat grinned, and I even thought I saw the hint of a dimple on Luca's face when I left the place.
The thought of Luca's situation never stopped bothering me during Sunday, and when I returned to the library Monday afternoon, my heart was heavy and my nerves were on edge. I had to confront Conny.
She was in a good mood, despite the fading bruise on her temple and a bandaid hiding the cut.
"Hey Lynn, how are you?"
"All good, thanks, but what about you? Shouldn't you take it easy with that bruise?"
She touched the dressing with a fingertip. "I hope to be rid of this tomorrow. The doctor said I was lucky the injury was only superficial and got off without a concussion. Thanks for the help, by the way. Paco and you were an outstanding support in this awful mess."
"Don't worry, that's what friends are for. Besides, these youngsters set the trap for Paco or me, and I still doubt they meant to hurt someone. By the way..." I hesitated, aware she wouldn't like what I had to tell her next. "While I searched for the first aid kit last week, I found your manuscript."
"Oh." I couldn't read the emotions flickering over her face. Sadness? Grief? Embarrassment? "I've forgotten I stowed the foolish thing there. Why I didn't bin it ages ago remains a mystery. I just hope it didn't bother you too much."
That wasn't the reaction I had counted on. "Why should it bother me? I like your writing style and the story is entertaining."
She shrugged and leaned back in her chair. "I can't really remember, and I don't want to, either. It brings up too many sad memories."
"So you don't plan to finish it? I'd volunteer as your beta reader."
Conny shook her head, her eyes blinking several times. "No, please try to understand—I can't. Marcel helped me so much with this story. It was really his to tell. And when he got his diagnosis, I couldn't continue working on it. It broke my heart each time I looked at the pages. I don't even know why I kept a printout and should have destroyed it long ago."
At the sight of her unshed tears, I lowered my gaze, aware I couldn't and didn't want to change her mind on this. To stir up sad memories was the last thing I had in mind. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have read it. I knew I shouldn't, and still gave in to temptation."
"That's fine. I fear I'd done the same at your place. Still, I can't return to the mindset I was in when I wrote it. It's too hurtful—here." She bowed to pull out the drawer, picked up the manuscript and it held out to me. "I don't want it anymore, so please put it into the shredder for me."
"I can't. It's your work, and it is good. It would feel like killing something that's not fully alive yet."
Conny shook her head. "Lynn, you're worse than me. I was tempted so many times to destroy it, but I never succeeded. If you liked it, please take it as a gift then, from a friend."
Torn by reluctance and need, I reached out and took the pages. They felt heavy in my grip, as if I held Luca's life and future in my hands. "Are you sure? I'll keep it for you, so, whenever you'd like it back, please tell me."
She nodded, her face brightening. "I won't. It feels already like a load has been lifted from my shoulders, and I'm not eager to put it back there."
That night, I took the manuscript home with me to read it again. The story followed me into my sleep and I dreamed of a snarky tabby cat and a young man trying to find his footing in a weird world.
The next morning, Cat waited for me atop my desk, barely able to hide his curiosity. I suppressed a grin and shook my head.
"Just to make things clear, I didn't come up with a solution for Luca's problem in my sleep."
He twitched his whiskers and scratched his ear, the picture of a cat lost for words. "But now you have the story—can't you figure out something?"
"I'm no magician or witch or whatever. How should I be able to help a character in a story? Besides, Luca in the story doesn't need help, or not the type of help an assistant librarian could offer." My own words made me wonder, though. If I'd met Luca in real life, would I have found him as interesting as I did his fictional version? Would his dimples be as cute as those of his ghostly counterpart?
Cat twitched his whiskers, his emerald eyes fixing me as if he could read my thoughts.
"Stop staring like this, Cat. I'm not your dinner."
"We already established that. However, I think you are the only one capable of helping Luca, and I beg you to try, at least."
This wasn't the snarky Cat I knew. "Okay, I'll think about it, but I can't promise you anything."
His Cheshire grin was back as he faded away. Had I been tricked into something?
My fears dissolved when Luca turned up later in the day to have a chat while I sorted the returns. He was every inch his courteous self, and I found out he knew far more books in the library than I. When I pushed a dark fantasy novel back into its slot on the shelf, he lifted a hand. "On Stranger Tides? That's a good one. Have you read it?"
I turned the book over to read the blurb, raising a brow. "Pirates and Zombies?"
He grinned, showing two rows of perfect teeth. "Yes, but it's not a mindless horror story or super gory, believe me."
"Okay, I'll give it a go." I placed the book on my trolley to take it back home. Perhaps a pirate tale would help me fall asleep tonight.
To my surprise, it did, and I liked Luca's recommendation. When I arrived in the library the next day, I was eager to meet him. He turned up while Conny worked on commanding new reading materials and I made the round to check every book stood in the right place.
"And did you like the story?"
"I do, and thanks for the recommendation. But I hate the author for killing off Phil Davies. How can he? He was my favourite character."
"Ah, that's because you haven't finished reading. Just wait and see what happens."
I gave him my best glare. "You can't really tell me this and then stop. That's so unfair."
"Is it? If you prefer, I can spoiler the end of the tale, but I'm sure you'd hate me afterwards."
He was right, and I couldn't wait for lunch break when be I'd be able to devour the next chapter in the coffee shop down the road.
The rest of the week passed without special events, no accidents, no unexpected appearances except the visits of Luca, who accompanied me on my rounds more often than not. We discussed books we both knew and swapped recommendations. By the end of the week, I couldn't imagine a library without his presence, and I told Cat when he lounged on my desk Saturday morning.
"That's selfish of you, Lynn. As much as you enjoy chatting with him, he's still a prisoner of the unfinished story and can't escape. One day, you will find another job and move on, leaving him behind in this same state."
I still pondered Cat's words when I fell asleep that night.