Flash Fiction - The Shadow In The Library

The man walked passed the rows and rows of books. Each book had the exact same title "The Obedient Citizen". They were all the exact same size. The exact same colour. The exact same print. The man kept his head down as he made his was through the library. It was a bit of a maze. He knew where all the cameras were. He kept his head down so not to be spotted by any of them.

He adjusted his hood and made his way upstairs. The book he was looking for was on the second floor. After a few more rows of "The Obedient Citizen" he found what he was looking for. It was a small book but it had a few pages. The title was "Free Speech In The Modern World." There were several cameras all pointed at it. It was a trap. But he had to have it. Had to read it.

There was little he could do. So he grabbed it and ran. Every alarm in the library blarred. Drones flew from the back. They had tiny darts on the end. One touch and the man would be knocked out cold. He ducked under one as he made his way towards the stairs. Each step on the staircase turned red. It was a gel that would stop him on contact. He hopped on the railing and slid down. Almost there.

Last was the door. A shutter started to come down. The man pulled out his phone. He aimed it at the shutter and pressed a button. He already hacked their system. The shutter came back up. The man went shoulder first through the glass. It shattered around him His partner was waiting outside in a car.

"Did you get it?" he asked.

"Ya! Drive!"

The man pressed the gas. Three robotic guards ran out but it was too late. The shadow now had a copy of the book. It would be uploaded on the blockchain within the hour.