Read Dead Is Not an Option for Free Online Page B

promise to Lil had nearly slipped my mind. My first stop was the library, where I combed every shelf and searched for the type of books Natalie had suggested. I was dusty and hot when I ran into my favorite librarian, Ms. Johns. Her curly brown hair was longer than when I'd seen her last, but her merry smile was the same as I remembered.
    "Daisy, I haven't seen you for ages!" she said.
    "I know," I said. "I've been so busy lately."
    "We just got some wonderful new cookbooks in," she said.
    "Thanks, but I'm looking for something a little bit different today," I replied.
    "What exactly are you looking for?" she asked.
    I lowered my voice. "Do you have any specialty stacks?"
    She frowned in puzzlement. "I don't know what you mean."
    "Stuff only certain people in Nightshade would want to read?"
    "You're going to have to narrow it down a bit," she said.
    "I'm looking for a way to break a spell," I finally blurted out. I knew I could trust her. She was a librarian, after all. It was their job to save lives with books.
    She didn't even pretend to look surprised but tapped a finger on her chin while she thought. "I've got it!" She snapped her fingers. "It's in a private collection."
    She led me to a tiny room near the children's storytime tent. A metal desk was against one wall, and books were stacked in every available space. She ignored the shelves to focus on the books in a locked display case.
    "I thought so," she said. She produced a tiny key and twisted it in the lock.
    She thumbed through a couple of texts, then settled on a large leather-bound book. She handed it to me carefully. It felt like it weighed about fifty pounds.
    "They used to cover books in human skin," she said. I nearly dropped the book I was holding.
    She laughed. "Oh, not this one."
    "Why was it locked up?" I asked.
    "This is part of my private collection," she said. "I know you'll take good care of it."
    She checked her watch. "I'll be back in about an hour to check in on you," she said. "I hope you find what you're looking for."
    I hoped so, too. I sat on the floor and started reading, turning the pages gingerly. About halfway through the large tome, I spotted something promising. I marked the page with a piece of scrap paper.
    Ms. Johns poked her head in the doorway. "Did you find anything helpful?"
    "I think I did," I said. "Can I borrow this one too?" I pointed to another book. The title was Witchcraft for Dummies, which seemed like something I could read quickly.
    "Certainly," she said.
    "And now, where are those cookbooks you mentioned?" There were some thank-you brownies in Ms. Johns's future.

    I was reading the books I'd checked out from the library when Rose knocked on my door. I was relieved to see her, because my thoughts kept turning back to the latest attack instead of staying on the words in front of me.
    "Council meeting tonight," she said.
    "Should we go?" I asked, but I already knew the answer. There was a mystery to solve, which meant it was time to attend another Nightshade City Council meeting.
    It wasn't exactly that we weren't welcome at the meetings, but my sisters and I usually tried to keep a low profile, which is why we tried to sneak in after the meeting had already started. We were minus Poppy, which was unusual. When we'd told her about the meeting, she'd murmured something vague about meeting us there.
    Rose was behind the wheel. "Did Nicholas say where tonight's meeting is?" I asked her.
    "His dad's funeral parlor," she said. Her boyfriend, Nicholas, usually filled us in on council events.
    We hadn't mentioned our destination to our parents, but we did tell them we'd be home late. Otherwise, Dad would have had Chief Mendez searching for us. I blushed as I recalled the particularly embarrassing time when the chief found Ryan and me making out in the front seat of Ryan's car. Not my finest moment.
    When we arrived at Mort's Mortuary, the parking lot was full and there were cars parked down the street and around the block