“No, it’s just me.”
“Well, in that case, I suppose I’ll have to tell you.”
“Tell me what?”
Stanley sat up straight in his chair. “As of now, I am officially occupying Chalcot Library.”
June did a double take. “What?”
“FOCL have a whistleblower who has informed us that Marjorie and Brian are working with a private corporation to get the library closed. So I’ve decided to occupy the library until the council finally listens to what we have to say.”
“But I can’t let you stay here out of operating hours. Marjorie would kill me.”
“I’ll tell her I hid in the toilet when you locked up. That way you can go home now, and you won’t have anything to do with it.”
June didn’t know how to respond. Surely she’d be sacked for gross misconduct if she left Stanley in the library. But how was she supposed to get him out? He might have been eighty-two, but Stanley was much bigger than her; she could hardly manhandle him out of the building.
“Please, you can’t sleep here. Can you find another way to protest?”
He gave her a small, sad smile. “I’m sorry, but I can’t walk away and let the library be sold out from under our feet.”
June looked at him helplessly. “But I can’t just leave you here.”
“Don’t worry, I shall look after this place as if it were my own home.”
“But Marjorie will—”
“Never mind Marjorie,” Stanley interrupted. “Sometimes we have to break the rules if we care about something, June. And I care a great deal about Chalcot Library.”
June paused, paralyzed with indecision. Should she call Marjorie and warn her? But then Marjorie would demand that June get Stanley out, or blame her for this happening. Perhaps the easiest thing was just to leave Stanley here overnight and let Marjorie deal with him in the morning.
Reluctantly, June went to the office to get her bag. When shecame back out, he was still sitting in his chair, reading the newspaper.
“Do you really have to do this, Stanley?”
He looked up from the paper. “I’m afraid so, my dear. But I’ll make sure none of this reflects badly on you.”
June walked toward the front door and switched off the lights. She glanced back at Stanley, an elderly man in a tweed suit. A sudden image flashed into her mind of her mum standing at that very same table, helping a patron with something. Her mum looked up from what she was doing and stared straight at June, unsmiling.
What are you so afraid of, Junebug?
June faltered, her hand on the doorknob.
Imagine being twenty-eight and never having done anything.
She closed her eyes, hearing the blood pumping in her ears.
Your mum would be ashamed of you.
June opened her eyes and let go of the door handle.
What would Matilda do?
She swung round to face Stanley. “I’ll stay with you,” she blurted out before she could stop herself.
He looked up at June in surprise. “What?”
“I’ll join you, Stanley; I’ll stay here too.”