Not a stolen copy. Not some sketchy “free download” link riddled with pop-ups for Russian dating sites. She needed the real, clean, beautifully formatted ePub. The one that would let her bump up the font size to something her tired eyes could handle. The one that would sync her highlights between her phone on the bus and her tablet in bed.

The —her local library’s OverDrive portal. She’d ignored it for years, preferring the feel of paper. But tonight, desperate, she logged in. Her library card number was dusty in her memory, but she found it on an old grocery list in her wallet.

And best of all? In 21 days, she could return it. And borrow After That Night .

The results were a battlefield.

The top half of the page was a graveyard of broken promises: shady websites with names like FreeEbooksNow!!.net and EpubHaven-NoVirus(Maybe) . She clicked one. A banner screamed: “CONGRATULATIONS AMAZON USER! YOU WON A FREE KINDLE!” She closed it. Another site offered a single, battered file for Triptych —the first book—but the comments section was a war zone. “File corrupted!” one user shouted. “This is just the first chapter!” another wept.