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“She was cold and scared of the wolves. Nothing else happened.”

“But would you like something else to happen?”

“I think I would.” Alma said nothing, and I put the locket back down. “What is it?”

She set to polishing a candelabra, and I could tell she was trying to put together what she wanted to say. That was the thing about Alma. She never spoke before considering, and I loved that about her. I closed the drawer, my hand fumbling with the handle.

“I like Lilja,” she said finally, “but you have to admit she’s odd. The way she just showed up… And then there’s all these strange coincidences. The incessant snowfall, the wolves.”

“Some winters are hard, even in Norstad. It’s just a coincidence.”

“But it’s not just that. Lilja’s so different. As if… as if she’s not one of us. Helena thinks so too.”

Another shiver ran up my back. “You’re suggesting she’s some sort of unnatural creature?” I said. “Like a troll? That’s ridiculous.” I laughed, but the sound had no true mirth. Instead, it came out as cold as the wind that I had just made my way through.

“I don’t know. She just seems…” Alma shrugged. “As I said, odd.”

“Lilja’s on the run from a cruel family. There’s nothing unusual about that. She’s scared and unsettled, and she’s from far north. No doubt things are different up there. That’s why she seems odd.”

“All I’m saying is that you hardly know her.”

“I know she’s kind and helpful and good at the job I hired her for.”

“Perhaps, but you’ve only known her for two months.”

“You’d known Helena for two days when you knew you loved her.”

Alma sighed and let the cloth sink. “You’re right. I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Lilja’s the one who’s hurt, and she’s a good person.”

“I don’t doubt that, but… but you could get involved in something dangerous.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. Some sort of family feud. It’s all just a mystery.”

“For Lilja, I’d get involved,” I said. “And not just because of how I feel about her, but because it’s the right thing to do. You already know that about me.”

Alma’s eyes filled with tears. She stepped close and wrapped her arms around me. “I love you, Selma, and I want you to be happy. And if there’s anything I can do, I’ll do it.”

I held her close. “I know that.”

She stepped away and dabbed at her eyes with the cuff of her sleeve. “Did you find anything for Lilja?”

“No. Nothing seems quite right.”

“It doesn’t matter what it is. If Lilja cares for you, she’ll like whatever you get for her.”

“Is that why Helena’s closet is so stuffed it’s about to fall apart, and why she has a new bracelet every week?”

Alma shrugged. “She likes gifts.”

“No, it’s you who likes gifts. For Helena.”

Alma swatted my arm with the back of my hand and laughed. “Don’t be so right all the time.” She shrugged. “I just want her to be happy.”

“And she is. She loves you. I’m glad we went and got her.”