Verity's pov

The heavy book slid back into its hiding place with a dull thud, dust particles drifting in the air again as if the shelves themselves were exhaling after holding their secrets too long. My hands lingered on the cracked leather for a moment longer. There was so much more—pages upon pages waiting for me—but my mind felt sluggish, weighed down by the enormity of what I had just read.

I told myself I would come back tomorrow. Maybe in the daylight, when the words didn’t feel ...