Leo stood in the middle of his perfectly clean living room. On his bed lay an empty blue suitcase. He was making a list of things to pack on a small piece of paper. He did not want to forget anything, so he wrote down every single item, from socks to toothpaste. He carefully folded his shirts and placed them neatly in the bag. Next to him, his phone rang. It was Maya.
“I’m already packed!” Maya’s voice was loud and cheerful through the speaker. “I just threw some clothes, my camera, and a few snacks into my backpack.”
Leo sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Maya, did you check the weather forecast for the weekend? The news said it might rain in Willow Creek.”
“I’ll deal with it later,” she replied happily. “Don’t worry so much, Leo. Just bring the old letter and your warm jacket. See you at the train station on Saturday morning!”
Hanging up the phone, Leo looked at his heavy bag sitting on the bed. He felt a strange mix of excitement and worry in his stomach. This was really happening. He was actually going to leave his comfortable apartment to look for a ghost story.
The next afternoon, the weather outside was clear and bright. Leo was at work in the bookstore. He was putting away some new history books on the top shelf when the bell above the door rang.
A man walked in. He was tall and thin, wearing an expensive dark suit and a silver watch. He did not look like a normal customer who wanted to read a novel. He walked very slowly, looking at the books with a cold, calculating expression. The atmosphere in the shop suddenly felt different.
Leo climbed down the small ladder and walked to the counter. “Good afternoon, sir. Can I help you find a specific book today?”
The man smiled, but his eyes were not friendly at all. “Good afternoon. My name is Arthur Sterling. I am a collector of rare and old items. I was told that this shop recently received a large box of old, unread books from an estate sale.”
Leo’s heart beat much faster. He immediately remembered the dark blue book hidden in the corner of the storage room. He kept his face calm and nodded politely.
“Yes, we got a box of old books yesterday,” Leo answered carefully. He had to keep his voice down so the other customers would not hear. “But they’re just old, dusty books. Nothing special or valuable.” Mr. Sterling stepped closer to the wooden counter. He lowered his voice as well. “I am looking for a specific item. A small, dark blue book with a soft leather cover. It is very valuable t