The sunlight slanted through the arched western windows and faded in the bright interior light, which glared on the varnished floor and hid the deep scratches. Though the day was warm, the furnace poured out heat, strengthening the smells of dust and the Lemon Pledge that Janey Middleton had sprayed on the tables.
The Williamsboro Public Library was deserted except for Janey and Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Wright presided over the circulation desk, grey-haired and dressed in grey, impassive, a granite statue. Janey dusted the shelves. Her shoulders were sore, her hands greasy.
Janey had worked at the library since '76, six years, and expected to match or exceed Mrs. Wright's forty-year career. Janey was lucky to have this job; her classmates who'd stayed in Williamsboro worked at the Shop'nSave, Seven-11, the Eastern Maine Pulp and Paper mill. Librarian was a good career. Janey didn't have to touch anyone.
In an alley of tall bookcases, Janey heard the front doors open. Who would come willingly to the library on a 70-degree Saturday in November?
"I want the Cat in the Hat, daddy!" An unknown child's voice.
"Don't worry, Carrie, we'll find him."
Janey stiffened. She knew the second voice, though she hadn't heard it in years. She turned her back to the center aisle.
"I want Clifford the Big Red Dog!"
"Shh, Carrie," said Lewis McDaniels. "You mustn't talk loud in the library."
Janey overheard a lot of gossip at the library; she knew Lew and his wife were getting divorced. She wasn't surprised. She knew exactly what Lew was like. She had seen him inside.
His daughter had been born after he'd dropped out of high school. Carrie must be five now; just learning to read. Lew had been quite a reader in school. He'd bring his daughter to the library all the time. Janey scrubbed the shelf with hard swipes.
)
Janey Middleton likes her job at the Williamsboro Public Library. She doesn't have to touch anyone. If she touches someone, she feels what's in their minds--bad thoughts and emotions. Lust. Pity. Disgust. Then her ex-boyfriend, Lewis McDaniels, comes into the library. And right behind him comes a scary girl in a Mohawk and those ugly punk-rock fashions Janey's seen in Time Magazine. This freak is nothing like Janey or anyone she's ever seen--but when the freak grabs her, she discovers they have one terrible thing in common.
