Star Born

By Ben Barry

You have powers. In fact, everyone does, but only a few have powers that are strong enough to even notice, let alone be able to do something with them.

This is what Leo discovers when he encounters the Book of Star Born. One day, he is just a typ

• Language: English
• Publisher: Drabar Publishing
• Release date: Feb 5, 2024
• ISBN: 9798989782000

Ben Barry

Ben Barry is dean and associate professor of equity and inclusion in the School of Fashion at Parsons School of Design. Using qualitative and creative methods, his scholarship primarily explores the relationship between masculinities, fat and disabled bodies, and fashion. Contact: Parsons School of Design, The New School, 66 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011, USA.

Book preview

title

Edited by Amy Draemel

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the author.

Copyright © 2023 by Ben Barry

All rights reserved

eBook ISBN - 979-8-9897820-0-0

Paperback ISBN - 979-8-9897820-1-7

Case Laminate ISBN - 979-8-9897820-2-4

To my children, Leo and Caroline, thank you for always asking me to tell you stories.

Contents

1: The Calamity

2: The Bookshop

3: Decisions

4: Pain

5: Induction

6: Back to Basics

7: Boot Camp

8: Training Gets Real

9: Gabriel

10: Seeing a Ghost

11: Making Contact

12: A Warning

13: Secrets Revealed

14: Hands Off

15: Reunited

16: Racing to the Past

17: David vs. Goliath

18: A Gathering and a Departure

Acknowledgements

About the Author

1

The Calamity

Torrell couldn’t believe his eyes and his mouth hung open as astonishment fully set in. Ten of them? There are more fools than I realized, he muttered to himself. His second thought was, How did they become so powerful? This one, however, was left unsaid as it weighed heavily on him. He already knew the answer and his resolve strengthened as his anger grew. Torrell turned back to his friends and they saw the serious look on his face.

So, do you think they’ll still let us into the party if we don’t have any invitations? Michael asked playfully, trying to insert some gallows humor to lighten things up.

Torrell shook his head slowly and replied, The party is bigger than I expected, but still rather exclusive. After pausing for a moment, he returned to his worries and finally let the question that was itching at the back of his mind out, The amount of power they are channeling… I didn’t even know that was possible!

Well now I’ve gotta see this, Ciara chimed in. Besides we didn’t come all this way to just hang out in the hall. We might as well get in there and start mixing it up. This made Leila chuckle and suddenly the cold that had been emanating off of her turned into intense heat.

That heat washing over him triggered Torrell to make the decision he had been debating quietly to himself. OK, we’re going to play this just like we discussed yesterday. Go for the priests first. There are ten of them instead of six like I expected. He has brought more Star Borns over to his side than I realized and it is clear they have stolen cores to make themselves even stronger. he said as the power and commitment in his voice increased.

Ciara calls the shifts as usual. I will go after Warwick as soon as I see an opportunity, he finished. Then, without another word, Torrell ran into the cavern and the rest of his team followed his lead as they quickly fanned out around the large room.

Almost immediately, they were under attack from hidden guards, but not from the priests who were completely absorbed by the ritual. Huge columns of fire raced toward them and they began moving in unpredictable patterns, just like they had practiced in training for the past several months. The tactic worked and the attacks consistently missed, giving them time to find the guards’ hiding spots. The fatigue that had built up from just getting to this moment melted away, replaced by an intense focus.

Ciara spotted a fire thrower and called out in the short hand language they all learned to speak, Heat! Forward! Low, right!

Phoebe and her target saw each other at the same time and his hands were enveloped in flames as he charged up a large fireball to throw at her. She immediately sent a huge blast of wind at him that pushed the ball back onto him, engulfing him in his own flames. With a satisfied grin, Phoebe joined the shifting pattern again.

Leila then seized an opening to attack one of the priests and launched herself headlong at her target, an icy fog emanating from her hands. Ciara noticed what she was doing and that she had not seen the concealed guard at the base of the pillar the priest was standing on. She yelled, NO! Unfortunately, Leila didn’t hear her and the guard sent a large rock directly at her that caught her on her right jaw. Ciara continued to watch as her friend crashed into a wall hard and tumbled down to the ground, finally laying motionless.

Then, out of the corner of her eye, Ciara saw Torrell appear right next to the guard, placing his hands on either side of his head. She looked away, knowing what would happen next as he drained all the energy from the guard. When she turned back a few moments later, she only saw the gray husk of what used to be a young man and Torrell was nowhere to be seen.

The remaining four members of the unit spent several minutes moving around the cavern, trying to find any remaining guards, but the room seemed to be lightly defended. Clearly, Warwick was so arrogant, he thought there was no chance anyone would make it this far. Ciara decided to take a risk and called the group back together at the far end of the cavern. When they were all together, she spoke in a low tone even though she knew the priests wouldn’t be able to hear her in their focused state.

Torrell, you need to guide us here since you’re the only Star Born with us. While those priests seem to be completely vulnerable at the moment, as soon as we break their trance I am pretty sure they are going to be way more dangerous than the two Elementals they had guarding them, she said.

We are going to have to take as many of them out in one concerted attack as we can. I recognize a few of those Star Born priests and know their capabilities. They have been training with Warwick since the beginning and will be very hard to beat, Torrell replied.

The ones I know are all on the right side, he pointed, identifying each one. They need to be taken out at all costs. Michael, I know you swore you would never do it again, but I need you to empty them.

Michael’s face changed from calm determination to fear and panic immediately. Tears welled up in his eyes and he shook his head vigorously. With a shaky voice that was difficult to understand, they all heard him say, No, no, no, no, no… I promised Greyson I would never… You can’t ask me to do that again… It was a d-d-d-different time in my life… I learned to be better!

Torrell placed his hand on Michael’s chest. Ciara and Phoebe followed suit and placed their hands on his back and head. Then Torrell said in a gentle voice, Greyson made the ultimate sacrifice to get us to this point. You were both here to make sure Saul grows up in a world that allows him the freedom to choose his path. I know this is a big ask, but it must be done.

With that, the group waited quietly while Michael struggled with his thoughts. Finally, he nodded and then stepped back to collect himself so he could prepare for what would happen next.

Torrell then turned to Phoebe and asked, How many do you think you can take out with an air whip?

Phoebe took a moment to think about it and then replied, Probably two or three, depending on what kind of angle I can get.

OK, that’s helpful. I think we can work with that, Torrell confirmed.

Then Torrell turned to Ciara, but before he said anything she held up her hand and said, Don’t worry about me, I’ve already been working on something and I think it’s ready. You have Warwick, right?

Torrell raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to say something, then thought again and just nodded. With that, Phoebe rose into the air, Michael ran toward his assigned priests, and Ciara headed into a tunnel off to the left the rest of them hadn’t noticed.

Once he saw that Michael and Phoebe were in position, Torrell walked steadily toward the altar. When he was several paces away from the ring of pillars, he closed his eyes and began the internal preparation he needed to fight Warwick. He confronted all of the feelings roiling inside him - the anxiety related to his friends placing so much trust in him, the guilt that he didn’t do more to avoid this day, and the deep sadness from seeing friends fall while fighting alongside him. These all began to melt away and he felt the connection to his powers grow dramatically.

He opened his eyes and looked for a signal that Ciara had started the attack and he didn’t have to wait long. He heard sounds coming from the small tunnels and passageways connected to the large cavern that were too small for humans, but just the right size for other creatures. At first it sounded like the soft rustling of leaves, but it grew much louder in a matter of seconds and he saw a black cloud of bats shoot out of several openings that immediately enveloped a priest. He fell off his pedestal and his connection immediately severed.

The rest of them knew this was it and Michael placed his hands on the ankles of two priests. They looked down at him suddenly, but it was too late for them as he pulled every ounce of moisture out of their bodies. Their skin pulled tight around their bones and their joints as water rippled around Michael’s arms and torso. Their connections both disappeared as they too fell off their respective pedestals.

Phoebe spun incredibly fast, and upon reaching full acceleration, she reached out an arm holding her hand like a knife blade and suddenly stopped her rotation. The air along her hand and arm condensed and traveled incredibly fast toward the priests. When the shock wave hit three of them, they each cried out in agony as they were launched off their pedestals and crashed on the ground in a twisted heap.

Meanwhile, Torrell concentrated his attack entirely on Warwick, racking him with bright blue bolts of energy. He saw this was having the desired effect as the beam that Warwick was sending through the round oculus in the cavern’s ceiling started to flicker.

The remaining four priests broke their trance and Torrell noticed one of them turn toward Michael. Making a split second judgment call, he directed half of his attack at the priest, temporarily incapacitating him. Without missing a beat, Michael turned the water rippling around him into a concentrated blast at the priest, lifting him off his pedestal and slamming him into a nearby wall. However, Michael didn’t have a chance to see what happened as a large glowing sphere hit him from the side. He didn’t utter a sound as he slumped onto the floor and ceased moving. Torrell saw his side was charred black and knew he was beyond saving. Trying to remain in his calm, connected state, he again directed the full force of his attack on Warwick.

Phoebe was busy dodging attacks from the remaining three priests. They were coming fast and furious and she could barely get out of the way before another was headed her way. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ciara emerge from a tunnel with a thick carpet of rats and mice following at her heels. With a flick of her index fingers, the mass of rodents split into two columns and surged toward the closest of the three priests, who began to scream as she was immediately enveloped and suffocated by the small animals.

This attracted the attention of the last two priests and they combined forces, sending two energy orbs at Ciara that were impossible to dodge given her position. Without thinking, Phoebe dove through the air so quickly that Ciara could barely track her movement and she intercepted the energy orbs. She dropped to the floor and looked up at Ciara as the light slowly faded from her eyes. Her hair drifted down to the floor and pooled limply around her head like a broken halo.

Ciara, safe for the moment, looked down at Phoebe and let out a primal scream of anger while summoning all of the animals nearby to attack the remaining priests. Bats, rats, mice, and even salamanders amassed around the two priests. They bit and tore at the priests who managed to fend them off for a while, killing swathes of them with blasts of energy and charging their bodies. However, there were just too many of them and Ciara had whipped them up into a frenzy so violent the priests eventually succumbed.

With the final two priests’ connection severed and Torrell’s continued attacks, Warwick finally broke his trance and ceased the ritual. He looked around and saw the damage Torell and the others had done.

It’s over. Call off your army and let’s begin the process of healing our people. Torell said.

Warwick’s eyes darted back and forth, surveying the battle he missed and assessing how he had miscalculated his enemies. Torrell noticed a twitch near Warwick’s mouth and how his hands were trembling. He felt the waves of anger emanating from Warwick and sensed something was building up inside him. Anticipating an attack, he created armor covering his forearms and shins, intending to send back whatever attack that came.

The attack came, but not in the way he anticipated, as Warwick sent powerful bolts of energy at Ciara. Her eyes opened wide and she collapsed on the ground as her core rose out of her body and started flying quickly towards Warwick. Witnessing such a brazen and forbidden attack on the young woman he had long thought of as his daughter, the last of Torrell’s restraint vanished. He unleashed every last available bit of energy in his body at Warwick, concentrating a blast on the center of his chest. Ciara’s core evaporated in the air as Warwick dropped to one knee, breathing hard and clutching the amulet hanging around his neck.

Torrell ran across the space between them and jumped up onto the altar, standing over Warwick. Then he asked with deep sadness in his voice, Why?! You knew her since she was a young girl!

Warwick laughed maniacally and his hands began to disintegrate. Torrell frantically reached into his jacket before Warwick could travel away. He pulled out a large vial with intricate inscriptions all over it, removed the stopper, and aimed it at Warwick. The particles started flowing into the vial and Warwick screamed, powerless to stop what Torrell was doing. He made guttural noises as if he was struggling to find any way possible to escape. However, after about a minute, there was nothing left of Warwick.

Torrell replaced the stopper and set the vial on the altar, bowed his head and breathed deeply. Then he saw an ornate book next to where Warwick had been standing. Moving slowly and carefully like a man much older than his years, he bent down and picked up the book. He ran his fingers across the familiar symbol on the cover and felt the lock disengage. He was about to open this book that he hadn’t seen for decades, when he started to feel vibrations under his feet.

The vibrations grew stronger and he heard a low rumble around him. He noticed the rats and mice began to scurry out of the cavern and then he knew he should be doing the same. He ran back the way he came in as the rumbling and shaking grew. He reached the passageway, running as fast as he could, but the air felt like it was thick and viscous, making his movements feel slow and clumsy. The book was glowing and it lit his way enough to avoid tripping over rock outcroppings and other obstacles, but the shaking was so severe that pieces of the ceiling started falling and some hit him painfully on his shoulders and back.

He came around a corner and saw the light from the cave entrance, which was enough for him to decide to make one final push. As he emerged, he didn’t stop running, heading down the slope while the shaking turned into a very strong earthquake. He didn’t dare turn around because he knew those precious seconds might be the difference between life and death.

When the tremors were so strong that he could no longer make any real progress moving away from the slope, he finally turned around to see a large crack form in the middle of the mountain that spread rapidly. As he stared wide eyed and mouth agape, part of the mountain slid off, leaving a shear wall in its place. Then, just as fast as it started, the tremors abated and finally went away.

Exhausted, Torrell continued down the slope and when he reached a clearing, he could see his allies chasing Warwick’s scattered forces. Without his power feeding them, they were not able to continue the war. Feeling his legs give out from under him, he collapsed on the ground and sobbed, mourning the friends he loved so much who gave their lives for this moment.

2

The Bookshop

Sunlight peeked through the shades, the sounds of his parents moving around in the kitchen, and the smell of cooking bacon roused Leo from his sleep on Saturday morning. He had just been in the middle of a vivid dream, but it was fading so fast that he couldn’t remember any of the details. He slowly turned onto his back and reached his hands above his head as far as he could and pointed his toes the opposite direction to get the maximum stretch he could manage across his body. Slowly relaxing back into his cozy bed, he debated in his head whether he wanted to wake up or keep dozing for a while. It was his birthday after all and he had the whole day free to do whatever he wanted with his friends.

Just as he made up his mind to doze a bit longer, he heard his dad call up, LEO! Bacon is ready!

Leo immediately opened his eyes, jumped out of bed, grabbed a book off his bedside table and ran down the stairs as fast as he could, skipping the last three and landing with a loud thump in the kitchen entryway. Leo’s dad was standing there holding a plate piled with scrambled eggs infused with sriracha and soy sauce, sourdough toast, and three extremely crispy strips of bacon. It was Leo’s favorite breakfast and he took the plate while sauntering in a silly walk over to the counter to dig in.

I don’t know why you like bacon like that… his dad remarked.

You mean cooked?! Leo retorted.

Ben, he has a point. Leo’s mom chimed in. Chewy bacon is just uncooked and gross.

His father sighed deeply and threw a few more strips in the skillet as Leo began to chuckle at the sick burn from his mom. He opened his book to where he left off the night before and began to read, but then his dad dropped a bright red envelope on top of the page he was reading.

Bubbe and Papa dropped this off earlier while you were sleeping in. They thought you might want to have it before you start your day, his dad explained.

Leo tore it open and there was the usual sweet and sappy card from his grandparents. The cover had an old famous painting of flowers and when he opened it a gift card dropped out onto his lap. He scanned the message they wrote, something about how big he was getting and whatnot and grabbed the card to see what it was. His parents jumped a bit when he let out a very loud yelp of glee. He now had $50 to spend at his favorite bookshop and it just so happened there was a book he had to get that day.

He looked up at the clock on the microwave and saw it was just past ten in the morning. How did he sleep this late? He never slept past eight… Shrugging that off, he was even happier because the shop was already open so he could go there straight after breakfast. He ran to the game closet to grab his phone and sent a message to his closest friends, HEROES ASSEMBLE!

He walked back to his plate and started taking bites again as the replies immediately started coming in.

Leo, we never agreed to that being our secret message to meet up, was the first message from Meimei.

Yeah, Leo, I thought we decided it was going to be something in another language, Ania added.

I don’t even like superhero movies, Stella chimed in.

Take that back! Those movies are epic! Aran interjected indignantly.

It’s your birthday, you can use whatever secret message you want, Caroline said definitively.

Leo grinned, he knew he could always count on Caroline. Exactly! It’s my birthday, so let’s say that’s the message for today!! he wrote. Then he added, Twenty minutes! Be there! I’m gunna make it rain!

Leo’s phone was inundated with gifs from his friends making fun of him and he engaged with the banter for a few more minutes while he finished his food. Then he ran up to his room, threw on his favorite pair of sweatpants with the big holes in the knees and a tie dye t-shirt from last year’s camping trip, and tied a sweatshirt around his waist even though he knew he probably wouldn’t wear it.

He ran back downstairs and called to his parents, Heading to the bookshop!

TEETH! his dad replied.

Leo groaned, took his shoes back off, and headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth as fast as he could. Then he bolted back to the front door, shoved his feet into his shoes, and called to his parents Bye! Love you! Yes, I have my phone!

Home by five! his mom yelled back, The family is coming over for dinner!

They heard Leo yell back, Got it! as the door slammed shut behind him.

It was a warm day and the scents of the neighborhood around him created a comforting sensation inside him. He headed right and started walking down the sidewalk, wondering what the next book in the series he was reading would be like. He had been checking almost weekly and it still hadn’t arrived. He turned a corner on autopilot since he knew this route so well and was jolted out of his thoughts by someone calling his name. Caroline came running up from behind him as he was turning around to see who it was.

I was waiting for you and you walked right past me! she admonished.

My bad… I was totally zoning out, he replied sheepishly.

It’s all good, what were you thinking about? she said with genuine interest.

I was wondering what will happen in the next book. They better have it today, he said with barely contained excitement.

You’re obsessed! she chided him, but he knew she wanted to read it just as badly as he did.

Well the last book was so good! I mean it was dark, right? But so good! I started rereading it last night and I am totally sucked in again, Leo bubbled.

Caroline nodded in agreement and was about to reply when she saw Aran walking on the other side of the street. He was easy to spot because he was decked out in his usual uniform - shorts, classic rock band t-shirt, and a wide brimmed hat that looked like it was out of an old western and had enough dirt and dust on it to add authenticity. She called out to him and he turned, waved, and cut across the street to join them.

How much do you want to bet Leo immediately checks for the next book? he said to Caroline.

Am I that predictable?! Leo exclaimed.

YES! they answered in unison. Then, JINX! 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10!

Really, guys? Leo said with annoyance.

Caroline and Aran looked back at him with their best who me? expressions. Then Aran said, Wait a second, you jinxed me at school on Wednesday! Now that you’re 12, you think you’ve outgrown it?!

They all started to laugh and Leo replied, Well, I am older and clearly more mature than you.

Oh, no you didn’t! Aran exclaimed and then the conversation devolved into the three friends sarcastically arguing why they each thought they were more mature than the other two. They were still on the topic when they arrived at the bookshop and saw Meimei, Ania, and Stella waiting out front.

Meimei had a very serious expression when she handed Leo a wrapped present and said, Happy birthday, in a monotone. Leo took it and, based on the weight and size of it, he instantly knew it was a book. Of course it was, his friends knew that was the best kind of present for him. Then a little tickle at the back of his brain made him suspicious. Meimei’s seriousness, everyone was staring at him, something felt off.

Wait a sec, is it?! Leo’s voice squeaked as he asked, but not one of them replied. He felt the nervous energy coming off his friends and immediately tore the wrapping paper off the gift. With bits of paper now lying at his feet, he stared at the cover of the book he had been waiting a year to read. He raised it above his head and started doing a happy dance and sang an excited song as his friends all lost their composure and laughed hysterically.

Do you know how hard it was to keep that book from you? Meimei asked.

Huh? Leo responded as he stopped his dancing and singing.

It’s been out for over three weeks! We asked Mr. Novickas to hide all the copies he got so we could get you one for your birthday, Meimei explained. We had to promise him we would each buy copies.

You didn’t… Leo said with a mixture of confusion and awe for their thoughtful and frustrating trick.

Of course we did! Ania retorted as she walked into the bookshop. I checked and all of our copies are at the front counter. Who’s ready for a bookfest? she continued.

All the friends went in, bought their copies, and then settled into the corner by the cooking and travel sections since they knew there was less traffic for them to block. They were all in their happy place reading quietly, surrounded by the musty smell of used books and hearing the soft conversations in the shop, when Stella suddenly gasped. The rest of the friends were startled out of their reverie and Caroline asked, What?

Have you guys reached page sixty-eight yet? Stella answered.

The rest of them shook their heads since Stella was a very fast reader. Leo was a close second and he said, Give me a second, I’m just a few pages away. He plowed through the next pages as quickly as he could and then looked back at Stella with a wide eyed, startled expression.

No way… I thought she was dead, right? I mean, she died two books ago! Leo said.

Maybe not? Stella asked, suddenly unsure of her memory.

No, I am positive she died. Leo said firmly as he got up. I’m sure they have a copy of that one here, let me go check.

He walked across the back of the shop to the fantasy section and looked along the shelf, quickly finding what he was looking for. As he flipped through the book, he was distracted by a strange glow coming from the slightly open door of Mr. Novickas’s office at the end of the aisle. Leo looked up from the book to get a better view and, as he stared, curiosity overcame him. He started walking toward the office and, with every step, the glow got a little brighter.

When he reached just a few paces from the door, it suddenly opened wide and Mr. Novickas was standing there looking around frantically. When his eyes landed on Leo, he said, What the… as if he was coming out of a deep sleep and his brain was just starting to turn on.

What are you doing here? he asked Leo.

I was looking for this book and then I saw that light in your office… Leo replied as his voice trailed off.

Mr. Novickas seemed lost in thought as he muttered softly to himself and the seconds ticked by. Leo began to feel a bit uncomfortable and started to turn and walk back to his friends.

Sorry, Mr. Novickas suddenly said as he shook his head slowly, I just didn’t expect this right now. I mean, at least not here… Listen to me… I am not making any sense…

Leo continued to turn and took a step away when Mr. Novickas began to speak again.

Leo, do you by chance have a moment? I want to show you something, he asked.

Leo hesitated for a moment. While he was extremely curious about what was in the office and he trusted Mr. Novickas, something about this moment made it feel very important and he didn’t want to say the wrong thing. He turned back and slowly nodded and Mr. Novickas stepped aside so Leo could enter the office. He peered in and saw a relatively small room that sat between the shop and the storage area in the back. There were bookshelves here too and they were covered with volumes that looked very old. There were ornate leather bindings and embossed lettering for titles and names that Leo was familiar with, but hadn’t read yet. Here and there, leaning against the rows of books on different shelves, were unframed pictures of people.

He barely registered most of this because on Mr. Novickas’ desk was a large book that covered it almost entirely and was glowing brightly. Leo felt drawn to it and stepped all the way into the office.

Could it be? he heard Mr. Novickas mutter as he took a few steps to position himself alongside the desk. Then he asked Leo, Would you mind placing your hand on this book?

Leo felt the hairs on his arms standing on end and a slight shiver ran up his spine, but, oddly, he wasn’t worried at all. He took two small steps forward and slowly placed his hand on the center of the book. When he did this, the latches on the cover suddenly open with a loud click and the cover began to open. Leo removed his hand to allow it to continue and a moment later he was staring at the first page of the book. It was covered in symbols he couldn’t read, but they looked intricate and hand drawn.

You’re a Star Born… he heard Mr. Novickas whisper with awe.

Did you say Star Born? Leo heard and he turned quickly to see Aran standing in the doorway.

Mr. Novickas looked just as flustered and confused by the additional voice in the conversation as Leo and replied, Uh… Listen… I was in the middle of something and this is all quite unexpected…

Leo’s mind was then flooded with questions and, as he opened his mouth to start asking them, Mr. Novickas held up a hand.

I know you’re probably confused and want to know what this is all about. he said to Leo, his voice was now commanding and clear. That’s perfectly reasonable and I can explain everything, but I’d like your parents to be with you when I do that.

Leo cocked his head to the side, completely dissatisfied with what Mr. Novickas said.

I know… This is not what you want to hear, but please trust me that it’s for the best, Mr. Novickas said in a soothing tone.

C’mon Leo, he heard Aran say as he tugged on Leo’s arm. I was coming to get you, we all want to go get some lunch.

Leo slowly turned to leave the office and he heard Mr. Novickas say, Come back around 8 o’clock after I have closed the shop. I’ll leave the door open for you all.

Leo walked back to where his friends were all sitting and it was all he could do to put one foot in front of the other. He knew Aran was saying things to him, but he couldn’t process anything. He kept thinking about the feeling in his body when he touched the book. It was like all of his senses were turned up to the maximum. He could feel every inch of his skin and how his shirt touched some parts of his back and not others. He could hear the slight scuffling of Mr. Novickas’ shoes on the floor as he watched Leo. He could smell that Daphne, the woman working at the front counter, had packed a turkey sandwich with mustard for lunch that day and it was sitting in a paper bag on a shelf in the storage room. Even more than all of that, it felt really good. It was like he was connected to the book and he wanted to go back to the shop right then, grab the book, and run all the way home with it.

Leo began to emerge from his fog and found himself sitting at Zachary’s pizza several blocks away from the bookshop with a huge slice of pepperoni in front of him. His stomach did a flip and he realized