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Cilla’s voice vanished as the doors closed.

A couple of families turned to look at him to see his reaction. Embarrassed? Disgusted? Afraid? All of the above?

Josh stood silent. With everyone’s eyes on him, he felt like a freak. Worse than high school.

Elise glowered at Cilla. “Jeez. What a piece of work.” She turned and saw his face. “Oh. Oh, honey.”

He shook his head, cheeks burning, and exhaled. “Exciting enough?”

“I forgot.” Elise touched his arm gently. “I didn’t even think. I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s okay,” Josh said. “You didn’t mean any harm.”

Elise smiled. “You’re safe. We got musketeers and brownies. What can go wrong?”

They’d reached the entrance, where Meredith was checking folks in. Around them, kids and parents milled about, swapping snacks, cradling pillows and blankets for later.

Elise touched Josh’s arm. “Really, I’m sorry,” she said softly. “Your life is yours. I’d never say anything, do anything. I hope you know that. Josh?”

He nodded, exhaling slowly, wishing he did know that. Not trusting anyone really taxed the heck out of his goodwill. “I know. Let’s just focus on the books tonight.” He ducked inside the library.

Josh allowed himself to be steered back toward the front entrance, where Carver, ever the politician, was greeting parents. Overall the library looked great. The atmosphere was cozy and communal, cushioned nooks clustered with chatting friends and families. This was what Tyler had meant: interactivity. Remind people the library is alive.

If only Tyler were with him too. But Josh’s boyfriend was far away tonight, making this separation sting even more.

Shoving down his longing, Josh focused on the kids’ anticipation. He would make this a wonderful night for them no matter his own mess. Saving the library meant something real. The tale of the musketeers, loyal friends fighting for honor, was just what he needed right now.

The room felt buzzy and ready to rock. All the drama of a curtain time and a live audience, without any rehearsal. Parents and local do-gooders stood like friendly sentinels around the perimeter, scanning the crowd and helping folks get situated. After the Cilla Miller scrum, Principal Carver seemed to have taken it upon himself to guard the entrance like a Doberman.

Stan and Meredith stood and gave Josh a thumbs-up. That meant most of the names on the list were checked off. Meredith would man the door for the duration.

Stan started to move toward the microphone to kick things off.

“Josh… thanks for organizing this whole deal,” Meredith said. “We’ll never be able to thank you properly. Or Tyler. You guys have been like guardian angels for this place.”

“This library means a lot to me,” Josh replied. As Stan made his way through them, families hunkered down and lowered their voices, sharing bags of popcorn and sipping from cups of soda.

Meredith fussed over the potential mess. “Cleanup is going to be something.”

“You don’t worry ’bout that none,” drawled Otis from his post by the shelves. “I got three kids with detention who will be happy to work it off straightening things up in here.”

Josh nodded in approval before turning his attention to the main event. Nadia had snuck in at some point and was chatting with her old drama teacher.

For the next twenty-odd hours, students and faculty would be reading The Three Musketeers aloud, each participant taking a chapter. They’d start at ten and would probably finish around sunup Sunday morning. Meredith and Stan had set a comfortable schedule, with a couple of breaks and backup readers in case anyone bailed or balked. It wasn’t every day that a whole community came together to share a story.

Kids got practice speaking in public, the library seemed full and fun, and this particular story by Dumas was a humdinger.

As Tyler had pointed out, that was another benefit. Sitting down and reading a “classic” scared some people, but sharing a book like this took the sting away. If a kid got confused, someone could explain. If parents had never bothered, they had a chance to brush up on a great work in a safe space. Everybody won.

The excitement in the room was palpable. Teachers in casual clothes gossiped and compared notes. Students whispered excitedly about which chapter they’d been assigned and how they planned to make it fun for the audience.

At the doors, Carver and Meredith were letting the last few stragglers in, pointing them toward possible seats.

“All right, folks!” Stan called out, rallying the crowd. “We’re going to kick off! Remember, we have sixty-eight chapters, no duds in the bunch. Snacks for sale along the wall and simple meal options courtesy of the cafeteria. Bathrooms down on the left.” He pointed toward them. “I just want to thank everyone who helped put this together, but especially Josh Ayres and Tyler Fantana, who proposed this whole deal, spread the word, found us sponsors, and so much more.” He nodded at Josh, who stepped over and claimed the microphone from him.

“Thanks, everyone. Put your hands together for the librarians, who keep this library alive and healthy for our whole community.”

They did.