Mia had become the librarian. She showed a six-year-old how to zoom in on a giant monster’s foot. She helped a retired mechanic find a complete run of Trucker Wolf , a ridiculous 90s indie comic about a werewolf long-haul driver. She watched as the fear in people’s eyes softened into focus.

Elias was Keeper #19. His specialty was “Apocalyptic Small Press, 1999–2005.”

“A woman named Clara Vega,” Elias said softly. “She printed 500 copies in 2002. Sold 300. The rest flooded in her basement. She died in 2015. Her work would be gone forever if not for the Keepers.”