Page 219 of Salt Between the Wolves

To Eira's surprise, she found herself smiling back.

For the first time since arriving in Silverwake, it felt as though she had stepped into a room where nobody expected her to be anyone except herself.

Ilva studied her for another moment before turning away and gesturing for her to follow.

"Come."

That was apparently all the invitation Eira was going to receive before the older woman disappeared between the shelves without checking whether she was being followed, forcing Eira to hurry after her.

The deeper they ventured into the archives, the larger the building seemed to become, and what she had first mistaken for a large collection of books gradually revealed itself as something far greater. Rooms opened into other rooms, shelves vanished into distant alcoves, and ladders climbed toward shadowed galleries high above. Maps hung from the walls, cabinets contained carefully labeled scrolls, and everywhere Eira looked there were records of lives she would never live and places she would never see, a realization that left her feeling strangely humbled.

"How many books are there?"

Ilva glanced back over her shoulder.

"I've never counted."

"You oversee all of this."

"Which is precisely why I know better than to count."

The answer came so quickly that Eira couldn't decide whether it was wisdom or mischief, though she suspected it was probably both.

Eventually they entered a circular reading room overlooking the harbor, where sunlight spilled through tall windows onto several scholars seated at distant tables while the scratching of quills filled the otherwise quiet space. Ilva deposited her stack of books onto a desk, causing the wood to groan in protest, and then turned her attention back to Eira.

"Now," she said as she folded her arms. "What answers?"

Eira hesitated again, increasingly aware of how often she seemed to do that and how much she disliked it.

"The marks."

Ilva waited without responding.

"The old laws."

Still nothing.

"The North."

The silence stretched long enough for Eira's frustration to grow before she finally frowned.

"What?"

"What what?"

"You keep looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"As though I haven't actually answered."

Ilva's expression brightened.

"Because you haven't."

The irritation arrived immediately.

"I told you what I'm looking for."