Soultaker by Bryan Smith Page B

real literature.”
    Kelsey seethed with rage. This wasn’t school. This was the
public
library. He didn’t need to be lectured by this snooty old bitch. His reading material was none of her damn business.
    “Tell you what. I’ll borrow my sister’s Jane Austen books. That’s real literature, right?”
    The librarian’s wary smile poorly masked a deep-rooted suspicion. This was a woman who clearly did not like young people. At all. “Well…yes. But—”
    Kelsey grinned. “Good. I’ll enrich my ass with brilliant prose. And by that I mean I’ll wipe my shit-encrusted bumhole with the pages. And I’ll be thinking of you the whole time, Mrs. Cheever.”
    The librarian shoved the stack of books across the counter. “These are due back in two weeks. Enjoy your drivel, you worthless delinquent.”
    “Right. Have an excellent day.”
    Kelsey scooped up the books and got the hell out of there.
    Mrs. Cheever summoned young Bethany Haines to the front desk and retreated to her office for a break. She settled into the plush leather chair behind her desk, put the phone to her ear, and made a call.
    The beloved voice of a certain delightful young woman answered on the second ring: “Who the fuck is this?”
    Mrs. Cheever shivered with pleasure at the sound of the voice. “This is your humble servant, Ellen Cheever of the Rockville Public Library. I believe I have information of interest to you.”
    Kelsey parked his Olds in the driveway, behind his sister’s tan Volvo. It was four o’clock. His parents, still at work, wouldn’tbe home until after five. He entered the house through the front door, moved rapidly through the foyer, and rushed up the stairs to the second floor. The memory of the unpleasant exchange with Mrs. Cheever was still fresh in his mind, and he didn’t want his sister subjecting him to a similar interrogation about his choice of reading material.
    And she would, given the opportunity.
    If anything, she was even more of a literature snob than Mrs. Cheever.
    Upstairs, he walked softly past the closed door to her room. Low moans and a squeak of bedsprings emanated from the other side of the door. Kelsey frowned and edged closer to the door. The muffled sounds of passion continued. He first thought she might be watching Internet porn, but then he heard a hoarse voice call out her name.
    The voice then beseeched God.
    Then called out her name again.
    And so on.
    Definitely not the Internet.
    The voice was so faint he wasn’t able to figure out which of Melissa’s many male acquaintances was putting it to her in there. What he did know absolutely for certain was she would kick his ass if she caught him playing aural voyeur. His sister was nearly six feet tall and was a former member of the Rockville High girls’ basketball team. And anyway, listening to his sister fuck some guy made him feel kind of like a sleaze, so he continued down the hallway and closed himself up in his room.
    He dropped the stack of books on his bed, kicked his shoes off, and settled down in front of his television, folding his legs beneath him Indian style. He switched on his X-Box and put in the latest version of
Halo
. Ten minutes into the game his cell phone rang. He pushed the pause button and flipped open the phone. “Yeah?”
    “Dude!”
    It was Will.
    “Hey, man. I got some real interesting books from the library. Maybe you could—”
    “You are not going to believe what I just heard.” There was a frantic edge to Will’s voice, an almost jittery tone utterly unlike him. “It’s just fucking insane.”
    “Okay. What’s happening?”
    “Trey’s mom was arrested. My brother’s girlfriend just called him. Trisha. She lives just down the street from Trey. She saw all the cops show up and everything.”
    Kelsey was flabbergasted. “Holy shit.” He felt like he’d been whacked over the head with something heavy. “Why’d they nab that crazy slut?”
    Will laughed. The manic undertone was still there.