Page 119 of Salt Between the Wolves

"The kind that listens longer than most people can tolerate."

That was not what Eira had expected.

"You make him sound harmless."

A soft laugh escaped her sister.

"No," she replied immediately. "Not harmless."

For reasons she couldn't explain, that response unsettled her more than anything else she had heard all day.

Below them, another lantern flared to life as the estate continued its quiet preparations, waiting for what was to come. And for the first time since arriving, Eira found herself wishing she knew what awaited her at the end of that road.

After leaving Maelin, Eira found herself with nowhere she particularly wanted to be.

The house had become too restless, not because it was loud or chaotic, but because it seemed strangely aware of something approaching. Every corridor carried the same invisible tension. Conversations lowered when she approached, servants moved with greater purpose, and doors opened and closed more frequently than before.

By evening, she had retreated to one of the quieter corners of the estate, hoping distance would make her thoughts easier to untangle.

It did not.

Leander Silverwake.

She knew almost nothing about him beyond the fragments Maelin had offered. He was powerful enough that an entire household adjusted itself in anticipation of his arrival, yet that alone told her very little. Power wore many faces, and Eira had spent most of her life learning how dangerous it could become in the wrong hands.

Perhaps Maelin trusted him.

Perhaps Aldric trusted him as well.

Neither of those things eased the unease settling deeper in her chest.

She had come here to think, to put distance between herself and the choices waiting for her in the north. If Leander recognized what she represented, that fragile peace could disappear overnight. Questions would follow. Decisions would follow. And whether she wanted it or not, other people could find themselves caught in the consequences.

Not only Maelin. Aldric. Their children.

Everyone who had opened their home to her without demanding anything in return.

The thought lingered long enough to become conviction.

Leaving before Leander arrived would be simpler. Cleaner. It would spare them the risk of becoming entangled in problems that had never belonged to them.

By the time darkness settled over the estate, Eira had almost convinced herself it was the sensible choice.

She moved quietly through the sleeping house.

The pack slung over her shoulder held little beyond spare clothing, a knife, and the handful of possessions she still considered her own. Most of the estate lay dark and silent as she crossed the courtyard and made her way toward the stables.

She had nearly reached them when a familiar voice stopped her.

"I wondered if you might try this."

Eira closed her eyes briefly.

When she turned, Maelin stood beneath a lantern at the edge of the courtyard, wrapped in a dark cloak against the cold. She looked neither surprised nor angry, as though she had been expecting this outcome from the moment Leander's visit had been announced.

"I didn't want to wake anyone," Eira said.

"I know."