The Book Company Novels & Stories

In the dimly lit, musty old library, the scent of aged paper, mingled with dust and the faint aroma of darkness, envelopes Gwen as she roams the weathered shelves. She finds herself in her grandpa's old library, after searching for a handwritten book by her grandpa about his business journey. She wants to know about the company from the root.

Just sneakers and a light jacket. The city was unusually quiet. I ended up at a small antique bookstore tucked between a florist and a tailor. It had no flashy signage, just a brass bell on the door and a handwritten welcome note in cursive. Inside, the scent of old paper and cedar wrapped around me like a story waiting to be told. I let myself drift between the aisles until a book caught my eye—Letters Never Sent. It was a collection of real, unsent letters from women over the last century. To lost loves, estranged mothers, unborn children.

The soft groan of wood rang out in the quiet bookstore as Lena turned over the last sign on the door: **CLOSED**. Outside, the city drew a breath, illuminated by amber streetlights and the quiet rumble of passing cars. Within, the world held its breath. Warm. Intimate. Holy.

All the info or lies he just stated were slowly being absorbed into her thoughts. "Friends, you say? I forgot, what was the company name again?" She asked, anger lights up inside her. "You know, Johannesburg & Walter Publishing." He grinned and added a wink to his words. Alice's forks and spoon drop to her plate. That was the same publishing company that Alice did her paid internship and training before deciding to resign and move back to the US.

She let out a breath, shaking her head as she left the chair before pointing at me. “Let me break it down for you to understand. The bookshop you lockpicked— don't even fucking argue against that. I know for a FACT thai I locked it— and intruded on is MINE and it's on the other side of this room which I ALSO own because I own the entire BUILDING.” She huffed indignantly.

“I’m saying Blackwood Capital owns pieces of everything. Just check before you walk into that building and get blindsided.” After the call ended, Elena stood with the phone in her hand, telling herself Mia was only being protective. Maybe paranoid. London was full of companies. It was ridiculous to think one small publishing job, one tiny chance at starting again, would lead back to Adrian. Still, she opened her laptop. The Wi-Fi took too long to connect. The company website loaded first: clean, friendly, full of book covers and smiling author photos. Safe. Normal. Elena let herself breathe for half a second before finding the corporate information page.

I walked into the inner part of the book shop and excused myself after I belched. “This one is Six Thousand Naira”. “If you interrupt mw again, you won’t like what I’ll do to you…” The shopkeeper saw my countenance and left me alone, before going to fetch cellophane bag. He picked up the 2009 Guinness Book of World Records and bagged it, and waited patiently for me to pick another book. I soon picked The Family by Mario Puzo and Carol Gino. I was handing the novel to the shopkeeper, who was already with a calculator, when I saw it. It was a dark hardcover book, with pink and dark designs. I smiled broadly and extracted it from the shelf with both hands.

Holding this book made her feel like she was getting back a part of herself that she had lost. Julian stood next to her with his hand on her back. I looked at the cover of the book. "It looks like a book, " he said, his voice full of emotion. "Not like a draft that can be changed by a computer program. It looks like it is going to last." "It is going to last, " Elena said, opening the book to look at the page that said who owned the rights to the book. Everything was okay. Elena's company was the only one that owned the book.

It was to fulfill her promise to Dave. But, to be honest, she was a little hesitant to go to the bookstore with the only hope of finding something. There were many books, of course, and it confused her. Which one to buy it? The introduction seemed boring—she spent a more extended time skimming some chapters—and some too business was very confusing. She could only blink blankly, not understanding at all. Moreover, there were many. She should have asked for his recommendation. She picked up a fairly thick book, around four centimeters. It had ‘Profit’ in the title. And as the title suggested, it talked about how to make a profit in any business.

As she turned off the engine, she glanced at the window where the store name was written in white: THE READING TEMPLE “That’s a cute name.” She commented as she hopped out of the truck, taking in the building. The brick structure stood tall before her with wide windows on either side of the door. Past those windows she could see book shelf after book shelf with countless titles on them. There were small platforms just before the windows, presenting the newest novels that were just published. She peered up to the windows above her. Her new home. She took a breath, steadying herself before pushing open the door.