A popular bookstore has closed its doors after an alleged stalker left the owner fearing for her life in a saga with an uncanny resemblance to the Netflix show You.
Nia-Tayler Clark opened her dream business BLACKLIT – a Black and community-focused bookstore – in Farmers Branch in 2022.
However, she said running the operation became a nightmare after an unnamed man, who lives in the apartment complex next door, started harassing her in January.
Fearing for the safety of her employees, family and herself, Clark reported the man to their joint landlord, filed a police report and even obtained a restraining order.
‘He deliberately intimidates our employees, our guests. He stands outside and walks past our windows. He adjusts his body to make sure we see him and know he’s there,” Clark said CBSTexas.
Texas bookstore owner Nia-Tayler Clark (pictured) said she was forced to close her business after being harassed by a stalker
She said the unnamed man (pictured) lives in the apartment complex attached to the building
‘He locked me behind a register. He wouldn’t let me leave. Most of it is alcohol-induced. He usually comes in with a cup. You can tell he’s been drinking.’
Clark told NBCDFW he has made sexually charged comments such as, “I’ll stay here every day until you run out of man” and “You don’t know what you’re missing.”
In the first season of the Netflix hit series You, actor Penn Badgley stars as bookstore manager and serial killer Joe Goldberg, who falls in love with aspiring writer Guinevere Beck, played by Elizabeth Lail. Clark’s experience bears a disturbing similarity to the fictional plot.
In one case, the man allegedly crashed an all-female Bible study in the store, and Clark’s terrified employees sent her disturbing messages.
“He just started talking about how he just got out of jail. He’s been arrested 30 times this year but he always gets out,” the worker texted Clark.
“He left as soon as we turned off all the lights in the store and crouched down together. By the time my friend came, he was gone and we all made it to the parking lot safely.”
Clark said even her young son began to notice and would try to defend her.
In one case, the man allegedly crashed an all-female Bible study at the store
“I started seeing him jump. When I started, he started carrying a baseball bat. Like, “Ma, is that him? Is that him?” That’s not the way for a child,” she said.
She made the decision to temporarily close the store and relocate her family, but hopes to return to Texas soon.
“It really felt like a dream come true and an answered prayer, and for it to just be ripped away because of one man absolutely crushed my heart and a lot of other people’s hearts,” Clark said.
“Honestly, it has been a huge burden to be responsible for the safety of all these individuals within BLACKLIT, myself and my son.
‘I keep trying to remind myself that this is not goodbye, but see you soon. I’m the type of person who likes to finish what I start.’