The Room Behind the Library Wall

When Evelyn began working at the old municipal library, she was told that the western reading room had been closed because of water damage. The door remained locked, and no key on the librarian’s ring could open it.

One evening, while shelving books after closing time, Evelyn heard the sound of pages turning behind the wall. She assumed that a visitor had been left inside, but when she called out, the sound stopped.

The following night, it returned. This time she pressed her ear against the wall and heard someone whispering a list of names. The final name was her own.

Evelyn searched the library archives and discovered an architectural plan from 1891. It showed a narrow room between the reading hall and the outside wall, but no door or corridor leading to it.

With the director’s permission, a maintenance worker removed one of the wooden panels. Behind it they found a small chamber filled with dust, shelves and hundreds of handwritten notebooks.

Each notebook recorded the name of a library visitor, the book they had borrowed and the date on which they would return it. Most of the dates were ordinary, but some were written many years after the borrowers had died.

Evelyn found a notebook bearing her name. The first page listed every book she had read since childhood. On the final page was the title of a book she had never seen:

“The Room Behind the Library Wall.”

Beside it was the next day’s date.

When the staff returned the following morning, the wooden panel had been replaced. Evelyn was missing, and a new notebook had appeared on the shelf behind the librarian’s desk. Its pages were blank except for a single sentence:

“She is still reading.”