Page 29 of The Bookshop of Forbidden Books

“It depended on the day, but there were more and more days when I didn’t. They had a plan for me. And I had a different one.”

“Has it come true?”

“Almost. That’s why I came back.”

“Where had you gone?”

“Far away. Really far. But I’m talking too much, and you’re asking a lot of questions.”

The art of conversation was more complicated than Mitch had realized. There must be a certain minimum number of questions to ask, and also a number not to exceed. Books seemed wonderfully straightforward all of a sudden.

“What about your dreams?” Anna was asking. “Have they already come true?”

“I’m working on it. As we speak, in fact. I don’t mean right now, here with you,” he added quickly, faced with her confused expression. “Not that I’m not enjoying this a lot… am I allowed to say that?”

“You are, yes. What do you mean, then?”

“Well… I actually just got back from a long trip, too.”

“Where were you?”

“Prison.”

Chapter 14

Le Conquistador

“Did you kill someone?”

Mitch laughed dryly. “I’m flattered that was the first thing that occurred to you. Do I look like a killer?”

“I don’t think there’s a particular look for that.”

“Sorry to disappoint, but no – I’m not a criminal.”

“It’s not polite, making me wait like this. Are you going to tell me what you did or not?”

“Now I’m talking too much, and you’re the one asking too many questions,” Mitch retorted.

“Really? This is the game you want to play?”

“I had this friend in college who showed up to class one day with a black eye. Everyone thought he’d done something badass, got into a fight. For a while he had this whole mysterious aura about him. Turns out he’d been changing a tire on his motorcycle and smacked himself in the face with the wheel.”

“So you went to prison over a flat tire?”

“I was hosting a reading group for students in the cellar of my bookshop.”

“And that’s a crime?”

“Selling banned books was. They could have let me off with a fine or administrative closure, but the prosecutor was looking for a big career boost and made an example out of me.”

“Which books were banned?” Anna asked, clearly sceptical.

“Any that deviated from the government’s narrative. Books that challenged their vision of society or questioned the system. Anyone could report a book they considered inappropriate; all you had to do was fill out a form to get it flagged and pulled off the shelves. The one I sold you was on the list. I probably hesitated in handing it to you, I was reluctant to part with it. I hope you meant it when you said you liked it.”

“Are you serious?”

Mitch’s eyes answered for him. She ordered another vodka and downed it in one swallow, then thumped the glass down on the table like a pirate ready to surrender.