Page 102 of Salt Between the Wolves

"The first week," Eira explained, a reluctant smile tugging at her mouth. "The bread was terrible."

For a second Maelin simply stared before bursting out laughing.

"That's the first thing you remember?"

"It was memorable."

"More memorable than the terrifying northern alpha everyone keeps whispering about?"

"The bread nearly killed me."

The laughter lingered between them, warm, easy, and real, and by the time it faded Eira realized something unexpected. This was the first time she had spoken about Ironfang without thinking about grief, guilt, or the pain of leaving, and that realization made the next memories easier to share.

She found herself talking about the training grounds, learning to ride through mountain passes, the first snowfall, Brenn teaching her card games and cheating whenever he thought she wasn't paying attention, and Lyra's age and how she would have adored Riven.

The name slipped out before she could stop it.

A silence followed, though it wasn't uncomfortable so much as gentler than before.

Maelin waited while Eira stared into the fire, and for a moment she could almost hear his laugh again.

"He used to talk about the sea," she said quietly. "He had never stopped missing it."

Maelin remained silent, listening.

"He complained constantly."

"That sounds healthy."

"It was."

A small smile touched Eira's lips.

"He annoyed everyone."

"I liked him already."

"So did everyone else."

The smile faded gradually, and neither woman mentioned how his story ended because they didn't need to. The grief remained there regardless, lingering beneath every memory.

For a while the fire crackled softly between them before Maelin spoke again, choosing her words more carefully this time.

"Did you love him?"

The question arrived so unexpectedly that Eira looked up.

Only then did she understand that Maelin wasn't asking about Riven.

She was asking about Soren.

The room suddenly felt very still as snow drifted past the windows and the fire continued its quiet work in the hearth.

Eira stared into the flames for a long moment before lowering her eyes. The answer existed, and she knew it did, yet speaking it aloud felt strangely impossible because the truth frightened her more now than it had when she lived beneath the same roof as him.

Maelin watched her with patient understanding, willing to wait as long as necessary.

Eira never answered, and somehow the silence answered anyway.