Free Mute (Muted Trilogy Book 1) by Nikita Spoke Page A

the door open and close, and she walked back to the circulation desk.
    Jack came in, grinning when he saw her. He approached the desk, finger hovering over the tablet’s volume button, eyebrow arched questioningly. Jemma nodded, and he turned the volume off before typing.
    How was your week? he wrote.
    It was fine , she wrote back. Slow. I think everyone has wanted to be home.
    That makes sense, for those who have someone at home they can Talk to.
    Jemma glanced up at him. He was wearing his normal, charismatic smile.
    Do you? she typed. Have someone to Talk to, I mean.
    My dad. He lives next door to me. He’s been sick, so I’ve been working at his house. It’s nice to be able to hear him call if he needs anything. Means I can look out the window while he naps. What about you?
    He watched her while she typed. My family… Mom, Dad, sister. I hope your dad feels better.
    He is better, for now. He gets sick a lot, more since Mom died. That’s why I moved in next door. He’s got several good years left in him yet, though. He tapped the counter next to the tablet as he thought. Okay, I’ve got to get to work. Fell behind this week. I’ll catch you later.
    Jemma nodded and gave him a small wave as he moved up to his table.
    ***
    When the doors opened again a couple hours later, Jemma looked up from her Excel spreadsheet in time to see Cecily, the director of the library branch, come in, a sour look on her face. It softened some when she saw Jemma, whom she quickly joined behind the counter. Jemma remained where she was as Cecily reached for the tablet, turning it to face them and propping it up on the kickstand.
    “The tablets were a good idea. The main branch is using them now.” She frowned when LeVar Burton started narrating, then grinned, posture relaxing slightly. When she looked at Jemma, her smile dimmed. Had Jemma done something wrong? “They didn’t tell me we were open,” wrote Cecily. “I thought just the main branch was open. It made sense and seemed easier. I wouldn’t have left you here to shoulder the branch by yourself. I went in to see whether we’d be reopening in two weeks along with the East branch, and I was shocked to learn our branch had been the first to reopen, courtesy of your efforts.”
    “It gave me something to do,” Jemma typed. “I didn’t mind. I couldn’t quite manage our normal hours.”
    “You’ve been doing all the work yourself and are only ten hours short of hours typically managed by three or more employees. That’s much more than reasonable.” She scowled. “You would think they’d have found a way to contact me. Never could get my work email to connect right at home, and I know I didn’t have my cell phone on file, but if they’d dialed my house number enough times I’d have tried to figure out who it was calling.”
    “I think everyone’s been busy playing catch up,” typed Jemma.
    “Have we been this deserted the whole time?” asked Cecily.
    Jemma shook her head. “We were fairly busy until the telepathy kicked in. It seems like we might start getting back to normal, though.”
    Cecily nodded. “One can only spend so long talking to the same person all day. A need to get out of the house is what prompted me to check in with Jessica.” She gestured at the tablet. “The voice is a nice touch. They’re using someone I’ve never heard of over at the downtown library. Reading Rainbow is a wonderful association to have in a library.”
    Jemma brightened, remembering one of the things that had turned up during her free time that morning. “There’s an add-on to this app that lets you scan text. I was thinking that if we want business to pick up further, maybe we could have story time here, using this app to read.”
    “That sounds like a lovely plan,” typed Cecily. “You’ve been thriving here, haven’t you?”
    The computer chimed, and Jemma glanced at the screen to see a message from Jack.
    She’s been doing an amazing job, Mrs.