Five shocked faces stared back at her.
“What?” Marjorie said.
“The Cuppa Coffee sale has fallen through and the council are looking for a new deal, so Alex has contacted them about arranging a lease. That’s what he just texted me about.”
“But what would you do with it?” Jackson said. “I mean, you don’t wanna live here, do you?”
“No,” June said. “I want to keep it as a library.”
“Have you gone completely bananas?” Marjorie was staring at her. “You seem to have forgotten that the council has shut us down. I mean, look at this place.” She gestured at the half-empty room.
“So, I’ve just been to see Sarah Thwaite and the leader of the council about the library,” June said.
“Are they going to save it?” Vera clasped June’s arm. “Please tell me they’ve changed their mind.”
“I’m afraid not. Their decision on the library is final—they won’t pay for it anymore.”
“Bastards,” Mrs.B said.
“But they have agreed to consider an application to reopen it as a community library. The village would have to raise all the funds to run the library ourselves. But if we prove that we can do that, the council will lease us the book stock and all the technology, so we’d stay part of the library service.”
“So, we’d still have a proper library here in Chalcot?” Chantal said. “That would be—”
“Hold on a minute.” Mrs.Bransworth held up her hands to stop them all. “A community library isn’t a proper library. There wouldn’t even be a librarian, just volunteers. And, more importantly, we shouldn’t have to run the library ourselves. This is what we pay our taxes for and the council should provide it.”
“I know, Mrs.B. I completely agree,” June said. “But the council aren’t going to provide it, are they? All they’ll give us is the mobile library once a fortnight. So, I know it wouldn’t be a proper library like we had before, but at least this way there could still be a space in the village where people can borrow books and have a safe place to go.”
“I’d be happy to help run it,” Marjorie said. “As of today, I’m officially retired. And I’ve thrown that sniveling husband of mine out, so now I’ve got plenty of time on my hands.”
“But I thought you wanted this place shut,” Mrs.B said. “You’ve never shown any interest in saving the library before.”
Marjorie looked at her feet. “I was a fool. I was too scared of the council to get involved, and I believed Brian when he told me he was working behind the scenes to save the library. So now is my chance to make up for that.”
“I’ll help too,” Vera said. “Maybe I could sell some cakes to raise money?”
“I could write some more poems for us,” Jackson said.
“And the council will let us do this, will they?” Marjorie asked June.
“You’d need to put forward a bid showing how the library would be run and funded,” June said. “But Sarah and the council leader said they’d give a six-month window, during which time they won’t accept any other offers on the building.”
“It’ll be a hell of a lot of work,” Marjorie said. “And I’m not having a subpar library in my village. If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it properly.”
“June, are you sure this is what you want to do with the money?” Chantal said. “Just think of all the things you could do with it.”
“It’s not really my money, is it?” June said. “I think if Stanley had known how much his land was worth, he’d have used it for this. What Stanley wanted more than anything else was to save the library, and now, in a way, he can.”
“I still think it’s bullshit,” Mrs.B said, frowning. “But you’re right: we owe it to Stanley to try to keep this place open.”
“And what will you do?” Marjorie said, turning to June. “Will you stay and help us run it?”
June didn’t immediately reply. She thought about her job offer at a large, well-resourced library. She thought about her house, full of her mum’s belongings in boxes. For a brief second Alex’s face flickered into her mind, and June pushed it out.
“Well?” Marjorie said. “Are you with us or not?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
SEVEN MONTHS LATER