The Gentleman at the Tilting Hat Bookstore

When Mavis found the Tilting Hat Bookstore, she had no idea what lay at the heart of it. She assumed, just as every other passer-by would, that it contained books. It was late in the afternoon, a cloudless sky let the sunshine down, but the shadow of the building covered the sidewalks and streets. Of all the stores she could have chosen to enter, this one stuck out.

It was not that she was an avid reader, in fact, she often neglected reading when possible. She would lament not reading more but took no action to change that fact. She was actually looking for a clothing boutique that had been prescribed to her by a classmate at the university where she was studying medicine. However, her classmate did not provide the best directions, and, she was unable to remember the name. Before Mavis could realize she was lost, she came upon the book store.

It was the smell, more than anything else, that brought her attention to the old brick front of the bookstore. It somehow reached out into the street, that woody earthy smokey vanilla smell that a good book carries in its pages. The briefest memory of joy came back in that scent, one from her childhood when she had read and enjoyed a lovely book. It was enough to pull her in.

The old door swung open and the bell rang to signal her entry to the staff. She waited, politely, for someone to come and greet her. When no one came after several minutes, she wondered if it would be best to leave. Glancing back at the door, she noticed that there was a sign on it, one that said help wanted. She had been looking for a part-time job, and this place seemed quiet enough to study while working, the perfect type of job for a college student.

When the bookstore staff failed to show, she decided it would be ok to browse for a little bit. There were several shelves of normal books, a rather large romance section, then three doors at the back. The doors were tall and made of solid wood. The trim and doorknobs for each were different from one another with unique and ornate carvings. Above each of them was a symbol, none of them she recognized, but one seemed more interesting than the others.

She wondered, judging by the large romance section, if one of these doors lead to a more promiscuous adult section. Logically, to her, it only made sense. Small bookstores were hard-pressed to compete with the larger online retailers in any meaningful way. In fact, offering something that you could not get from a big box book store would be a great niche for a local bookstore, she thought. Her hand was already on one of the doorknobs, half twisted, the door cracked open.

“Ahem!” a man cleared his throat so loudly that it made mavis jump and squeal. “Not a fan of the scarier genres it would seem.”

“Oh, my,” Mavis said, her free hand falling to her chest. “You surprised me.”

“Here at the,” the man nodded titling a top hat towards her. “Tilting Hat Bookstore, we are full of surprises. Is there anything that I can help you with today?”

“I was just browsing,” Mavis replied, blank of anything else to say.

The middle-aged man before her was well dressed, a three-piece suit of a peculiar color. He wore a top hat and sported a rather retro pair of eyeglasses too.

“I am afraid we are closed for the evening,” the man said. “Adjusted hours for today, but if there is anything I can help you find before you go, I would be happy to.”

“I was wondering, what do you have behind these doors here,” Mavis said, her hand still resting on the doorknob of one.

“Those rooms contain our most expensive books, signed copies, first editions, collectibles, and the sort,” the man said. “They are open by appointment only, I am sorry, this one should be locked.”

The man slipped gently between Mavis and the door forcing her to let go of the doorknob. He produced a large key ring with old heavy keys and proceeded to press the door shut and lock it. When he finished, he turned back around to see her.

“Now, will there be anything else before you leave?” the man asked with a smile.

“Um, the door,” Mavis said.

“Yes, I am sorry, I cannot allow you into these ones without an appointme-

“No, I meant the front door,” Mavis interrupted. “I saw that you had a help wanted sign.”

“Oh, do I?” the man said as he craned his neck to see around Mavis and down an aisle to the front of the store. “I had forgotten.”

“Are you still looking?”

“Looking for what?” the man asked.

“For an employee? I go to university right now, but I can work part-time and weekends.”

Just then, the store rumbled, a brief flicker to the lights ensued, then it was quiet again.

“I will have to think about it, but for now, you really must go,” the man said.

“What was that?” Mavis asked.

She had felt the shift in her legs and had dropped to a half squat to keep her balance.

“It's an old building. Please now, I must lock up.”

“Is that normal?” she asked.

“Happens all the time, now if you will be so kind, I must close the store.”

"Should I leave a phone number or is there an application for the job?” Mavis asked.

She was not altogether uncomfortable, but something about the conversation was making her uneasy. The rumble had felt like a slight earthquake but was so easily dismissed by the man. Also, this man, in his peculiarly colored three-piece suit, seemed odd, for lack of a better term. It was not a bad thing to be odd, it was just... odd.

“No need for that,” the man said as he gestured for her to walk towards the front.

“What are the normal hours for the store?”

“I don’t know really,” the man said as he gripped her by the elbow and forced her along with a few steps.

“EXCUSE ME!” Mavis shouted at the man as she pulled her arm back. “I am capable of leaving on my own.”

“Of course madam, I just need you to leave,” the man said.

He turned to lead her but was stopped short. The store lurched again, now strong enough to shake the bookshelves. The man fell, grasping at the shelf of books next to him.

“What’s wrong?” Mavis asked as she rushed to catch him. “Is this an earthquake?”

“Nothing my dear,” the man said as he corrected himself to his feet. “Just a bit of a rumble is all.”

“That is not normal, it feels like an earthquake,” Mavis said as she noticed the man still shaking. “Are you ok, do I need to call someone?”

“No, heavens no. I am fine, I just need to rest a little bit.”

As the man stood upright, Mavis could see a stain growing on the collar of his white undershirt.

“You’re bleeding!” she exclaimed. “You need medical attention.”

“I assure you, I am fine,” the man said, his breathing growing labored. “I have everything under control. I just need to lock up and get some rest.”

“NO,” Mavis said. “Something is wrong, you need help. Also, if this is an earthquake, we should get to somewhere safe.”

She pulled out her cell phone and began to dial, but the man slapped it away from her hands.

“FINE!” he said. “YOU MAY HELP ME,” he yelled before taking a deep breath and letting it out. “It is not an earthquake though.”

Mavis took a step back, she was afraid of what was happening. The man sat on a table near her that was meant for reading and unbuttoned his waistcoat before revealing the blood-drenched shirt underneath.

“Can you help me?” he asked.

Opening his shirt, he revealed what appeared to be a shallow stab wound.

“You need an ambulance or something,” Mavis said. “I... I can call for help.”

“I need your help, I cannot have anyone else poking around here. Please,” the man said.

“I don’t know what to do,” Mavis replied.

But that was a lie, Mavis did know what to do. She had read about it many times in her studies. How to stop the bleeding, how to clean it, and finally, how to stitch it up. She had never done it on a real person, but she had practiced in one of her classes.

“Aren’t you a medical student?” the man asked.

“Well yes, but…” Mavis stopped talking.

She looked up at the man locking eyes with him. She had not shared anything so personal about herself. A sense of fight or flight rose within her, but she could not bring herself to leave him as he was, wounded without any help.

“Did I overstep there?” the man asked. “Perhaps it is the blood loss, it is not a bad wound, but it is getting worse with the more blood I lose.”

Just then, the entire building shook again, but harder than before. The lighting dimmed for a moment, the front windows clattered, and a few books fell from their spots.

“What was that?” Mavis asked as she gripped the table to keep from falling.

“I need you to help me now Mavis,” the man said. “Once I am patched up, I can protect you. Only then, once this is over, I can explain everything.”

Mavis looked him in the eyes and nodded. It was something she did, not because she wanted to, but much like how the scent had caught her nose outside, she felt drawn to do it. It was not pretty, but she managed to stop the bleeding and bandage him, a small feat considering the supplies she had at hand. When the man was bandaged, he produced a fresh shirt from seemingly thin air, redressed himself with his waistcoat, jacket, and hat.

“Thank you,” he said. “I am afraid I do not have time for an explanation right this minute though. However, if you would like to inquire about the job opening, come back tomorrow.”

Then, he tilted his hat at Mavis and turned to walk towards the back of the store.

“You should still see a doctor,” Mavis said. “You are in no condition to do anything while that heals for a bit.”

The store shook violently again, whole shelves seemed poised to topple as the lights flickered on and off, but somehow they held. Mavis gripped the table next to her, hoping nothing fell that could injure her or the man.

“You should leave now,” the man said over his shoulder. “We can talk tomorrow.”

It was now nine in the morning of the next day, Mavis stood outside the door of the book store waiting for it to open. When she had gotten home the night before, it had felt like she had awoken from a dream, like the memory was fading. She did not even recall the walk home to her dorm and was up most of the night contemplating if what had happened was real or whether she would venture to return. But she was here now, if for nothing else than to see if the man was ok.

Wearing a different, but just as peculiarly colored, three-piece suit, the gentleman in the top hat came to unlock the door. He tilted his hat towards her with a smile.

“Good to see you again Mavis, I am glad you chose to remember. Come on in.”