The shelves that whisper

Rebecca folded the book closed and placed it back on the shelf. Her fingers brushed the spine as she dropped her arm back down to her side. She was only sixteen but she had been coming to this same library longer then she could remember. It gave her a sense of joy, a spark of hope that the world wasn't as bad as they told her. The shelves were lined with old books, The air was stained with the scent of old pages, and the lights had always been dim enough to make the whole room feel cozy. She scanned the shelves, not looking for anything in particular. Her mind snapped out of a daydream by a voice.

"Shh!" The voice was ridged. Rebecca looked around, her perfect blond curls hitting the sides of her shoulders as she turned. The voice whispered something. Over in the next row, two people where having a conversation. Rebecca stepped closer to the shelf and listened.

"Keep your voice down." The second voice whispered angerly. The second voice was softer and had an honesty to it. She placed her hand on the books that lined the shelf and leaned in closer. "You know what would happen if they caught us?" The second voice asked, softer then before. There was a scoff, and without a moments hesitation the first voice answered the question.

"Yeah, I know. We go to jail." There was a pause and then they continued. "Where did the boss say it was?" Rebecca looked down at the ground in confusion. Her glasses slid to the tip of her nose as they usually did and she raised a hand to push them gently back in place. She listened as the two figures walked down the row. Rebecca stood up straight and thought quickly.

Follow them! But what if they see me? Rebecca looked around the shelf.

"I'll put them back, I promise." She muttered to herself. Grabbing a handful of books, she stacked them on her arms and followed the footsteps. Her jeans nearly dragged on the ground as she walk but so far nobody had known she was there. The footsteps walked around to the far side of the library then stopped. Rebecca followed from a safe distance but from what she could see there was a red velvet rope that was draped from one shelf to the next. Two girls stood before the rope and continued speaking.

"But," She cut herself off with a nervous glance around the room. The first girl's face was slimmer and she seemed on edge. Her clothes were tattered and her hair was longer but seemed dirty. "This section is off limits, we can't go in there." She said, looking back at her friend. Rebecca shifted on her feat uneasily. The books were rather uncomfortable to carry and she had been standing at a shelf pretending to be distracted.

"We still have to, we have no choice. It's in there and we have to get it." The second girl had about the same dirty tattered look to her clothes but her hair was shorter and black. Rebecca was curious enough to go up and ask but she knew that wasn't a smart move. Instead she stood there, intrigued. Her hand was going numb holding the stack of books and she was tempted to put them down.

"Emily, Listen to me." The first girl started. Her voice was soft this time, she was being honest and comforting, or at least trying to be. "We don't have to do this. It's too risky and once we get it what are we going to do?" She cleared her throat and added, "They're just going to kill us anyway." Emily Glared at her friend.

"Don't say that. You know they won't." The last comment had left a stain of fear in her expression. "Even if they do," She paused. "Never mind, let's just go." They looked forward and ducked under the rope. Rebecca panicked, was it a good idea to keep following them? Probably not, but she couldn't help her curiosity. Taking a deep breath, she followed. The lights were out and Rebecca couldn't see five feet in front of her face but she let herself walk down a row. The shelves where old and dusty, the celling looked as if they would fall down on her at any moment. She nearly screamed when a rat dashed across the floor in front of her.

"Here it is." Said the girl's voice. It had been coming from the row beside Rebecca. She dashed cautiously to the far wall and peered over. Hidden by the darkness, She could see the two girls standing around something. A box maybe? She couldn't see it very well.

"Can we at least open it?" Emily's friend asked. She looked over at Emily with a reasoning expression. "I mean we're risking a lot for this... thing. Shouldn't we at least see it?" The girl finished. Rebecca re-adjusted the books in her arms. They were heavy and she was about tired of holding them.

"Fine." Emily said, unamused as she opened the box. Rebecca squinted, trying to see what it was. The girl reached in and picked it up. She was wearing a huge grin that spread from one ear to the other. She chuckled. Rebecca gasped silently, then covered her own mouth. Her eyes widened as the recognized the object.

What one earth are they doing with that? Rebecca thought to herself. I had only heard about something like that in school and even then, the teacher didn't want to answer questions about it. She knew what it could do. Who was their boss and what did they want with something like that?

A book slid off of the top of the stack she had been holding and hit the floor with a smack.

"What was that?" Emily asked, her friend putting the object back in the box. They turned to face Rebecca. She smiled nervously at them. Rebecca froze in place. This couldn't be good.

"What did I just myself into?"