A strong arm locked around her mouth from behind while something cold and metallic pressed hard against her temple.
It was a gun. Pure terror exploded through her body. "Dare to scream," a deep voice said quietly beside her ear, "and I’ll paint this bookshelf with your brains."
The library was always Sienna Vale’s favorite place at night. It was awalys quiet, it felt warm and safe.
By eight-thirty, the loud groups of students were gone, the endless whispers had faded, and all that remained was the soft hum of the ceiling lights and the distant sound of rain tapping against the tall windows.
Sienna leaned against the front desk with her phone pressed between her ear and shoulder while she stacked returned books into a neat pile. A small smile stayed on her lips as she listened to the familiar sound of her boyfriend’s voice.
"Simon, baby, I’m closing soon," she said softly. "I think everyone’s out of the library now. I’ll make my final rounds and then come meet you at your house, okay?"
On the other side of the call, Simon Blackwood glanced toward the woman currently sitting on his couch. Lily Brown was half-naked and in a scattered room; it seemed they had so much fun together.
Sienna’s best friend.
Lily laughed quietly at something on the television, completely relaxed, completely comfortable in his home. One of Simon’s hands rested lazily on the back of the couch behind her.
"I’m not home," Simon lied smoothly. Sienna’s smile didn’t fade. She trusted him too much for that.
"Oh." She sounded disappointed for only a second before quickly recovering. "That’s okay. I can wait."
"No, don’t wait outside alone," Simon said. "I’ll come pick you up from the school library. Just stay there for me."
Sienna’s heart warmed instantly. God, she loved this man. Two years together, and he still did little things that made her feel cared for. "Okay, baby," she said with a soft laugh. "Don’t keep me waiting too long."
"I won’t."
"Love you." There was a brief pause.
"Love you too." The call ended. Sienna stared at the dark phone screen for a moment before smiling to herself like an idiot. Tonight mattered to her.
Second anniversaries weren’t as big as weddings or engagements, but to Sienna, they still meant something. She had even bought a small gift for Simon earlier that morning, a silver watch she definitely couldn’t afford but convinced herself was worth it.
Because Simon deserved nice things. At least, that was what she believed.
She tucked her phone into the pocket of her oversized cardigan and grabbed the cart of books beside the desk. Her white sneakers squeaked lightly against the polished floor as she pushed the cart between the endless shelves.
The university library was massive. Three floors of books, private study rooms, old archives, and hidden corners where students used to cry during exam season.
Sienna honestly loved it.
Most people still thought it was strange she dropped out of medical school to become a librarian assistant at twenty-five. Her professors had practically lost their minds when she left.
"You’re wasting your future."
"You’re one of the best students in your class."
"You’re throwing away your talent." Maybe they were right. But medicine had stopped feeling like her dream a long time ago. Every day in med school felt heavy. Suffocating. Like she was living someone else’s life.
Books were different. Books were quiet companions. Books didn’t demand perfection from her.
And honestly? She liked the peace here.
Even now, while making her final rounds, she found herself stopping to straighten crooked novels and smile at abandoned sticky notes left inside textbooks.
Her eyes drifted toward the tall windows. Rain poured harder outside now, streaking the glass in silver lines.
"Perfect anniversary weather," she murmured sarcastically. The lights flickered once overhead. Sienna sighed.
"Please don’t start tonight." The old building had electrical issues whenever it rained heavily.
She pushed the cart farther into the back aisles, where the medical and research collections were stored. Hardly anyone came back here this late.
The deeper she walked, the quieter it became it was too quiet then suddenly Sienna stopped walking.
Her nose twitched slightly. A strange smell lingered in the air, it was faint, metallic and sharp. Her brows slowly pulled together.
No... Her grip tightened around the cart handle. It was the smell of Blood. The scent was weak, but unmistakable. Sienna’s chest tightened immediately.
Most people wouldn’t recognize it so quickly, but she did. Years of medical training had burned the smell into her memory forever. Fresh blood smelled different from old blood. Fresh blood carried warmth beneath the metal.
And this smell. This was fresh, very fresh. A cold feeling crawled down her spine. "Hello?" she called softly but no one answer. She swallowed hard and slowly stepped away from the cart.
The overhead lights buzzed faintly above her as she walked deeper between the shelves. Her heartbeat became painfully loud in her ears. Maybe someone got injured. Maybe a student had an accident.
Sienna forced herself to breathe slowly despite the terror clawing at her chest. The smell of blood grew stronger with every step she took down the narrow aisle.
Not just blood, a corpse. Her fingers tightened around the edge of the metal cart as her eyes carefully scanned the shadows between the shelves.
Then she saw it. A body. Propped against the corner of the bookshelf, as someone had simply dumped him there and walked away.
A broken gasp escaped her throat. "Oh my God..." The man was covered in blood. he was not just injured but seem the man was actually butchered.
Dark red soaked his clothes, dripped down the shelves, and spread across the polished floor beneath him. His face was almost impossible to recognize beneath the damage.
Sienna’s stomach twisted violently. For one horrible second, she thought she might throw up. How...? How could something like this happen here?
This was the university library it was quiet and safe. Students had been here less than an hour ago. People studied here every night. How had nobody seen this?
Her pulse pounded loudly in her ears as she slowly looked around. The aisle was empty. Silent. Then her eyes lifted toward the ceiling automatically to her luck there was no cameras.
Her brows furrowed instantly. What the hell? Every section of the library had cameras. Except this one. Cold fear crawled down her spine.
This wasn’t random. Whoever did this knew exactly where to do it. Sienna took a shaky step back, forcing herself not to touch anything. Her medical training kicked in immediately despite the panic threatening to consume her.
Don’t contaminate the scene. Don’t touch the body. Call for help. Her mouth opened and suddenly a hand clamped tightly over it before she could scream. Sienna nearly died from the shock alone.
A strong arm locked around her mouth from behind while something cold and metallic pressed hard against her temple.
It was a gun. Pure terror exploded through her body. "Dare to scream," a deep voice said quietly beside her ear, "and I’ll paint this bookshelf with your brains."