Violet woke up to the steady hum of the stillroad and the rays of light fleeting through the gaps of the shaded windows, stinging her eyes. She found herself lying next to a very awake Astrid, who was controlling the stillroad as it moved forward.

  “How are you feeling?” Astrid asked.

  “Like I got rammed by a wolf,” Violet groaned.

  Astrid smiled at that. “We’re almost out of the forest.”

  “That’s great,” Violet said as she got up and checked the physical state of the stillroad. The shield might have been up, but some runes could have burned out, and that would be bad—especially for the return trip. Hopefully, they wouldn’t find those things again.

  “Violet Elowen Zephyrine,” Violet said at the customs office after entering the city. She came there immediately to clear the goods and have them back on the way, so she and Astrid could get to enjoying all the city had to offer without worry.

  An hour later, Violet had the documents stamped and was done with the legal process. Now she would have to get the members of the Gaspinn Zephyr branch to have the goods transported within the next two days. She smiled to herself at a job well done.

  She stepped outside and found Astrid, and together they headed to the Zephyr, where they left their belongings and instructions. Violet and Astrid immediately set out and ravaged the city of all it had to offer—sights, food, and entertainment. They took it all in. They slept at the Zephyr but spent most of their days outside.

  Violet, of course, tried her luck with the halls, and unsurprisingly, she was shown the door. It heavily vexed her and greatly amused Astrid—and Maerith, who had kept in touch. Soon enough, the girls had been in Gaspinn long enough, and it was almost time to leave.

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  Violet told Astrid to rest while she took in one last tour of the city.

  Gaspinn was smaller than Viremont, but it had its charm. Its people were lively and seemed happier than those in the capital, who spent each day working just to make it to the next.

  She really had fun here.

  Violet was making her way back to the Zephyr when she spotted the Gaspinn Archive Hall. She snorted at the sight of it, still pissed that they wouldn’t even let her see a few charts. It wasn’t like she was going to do anything with them.

  For a moment, the urge hit her—to just sneak in and check them herself—but she sighed and turned away. She hadn’t gone far when she overheard a conversation between two men on the street.

  “Why aren’t they letting anyone in?” the first man asked. “Is there anything special happening today?”

  “I’m not sure,” the second man replied. “But I saw a bunch of armed men go in earlier with large crates. Then another carriage arrived with a dignified-looking man inside, and he was let in too.”

  “Could be some kind of relic, if the halls are involved,” the first man said.

  The moment Violet heard that, she stopped in her tracks, her eyes lighting up. She turned around—then paused. For a second, she paced back and forth, fighting an inner battle.

  Eventually, it won out.

  Violet spun on her heel and headed back toward the archive hall, her steps quick and determined.

  Soon, Violet was inside the maze-like lower floors of the archive, sifting through anything and everything she could with a satisfied smirk on her face. She had come in unnoticed and hoped it would stay that way. She went straight to the storerooms, hoping to find not only the city charts and statistics, but also whatever crates had been brought in.

  She found the former, but not the latter. Deciding to make a small sweep before she got caught, she finished going through the city’s documents and then moved on, sneaking through rooms she confirmed were empty. Eventually, she came upon a highly guarded area filled with armed men, and she saw no clear way through.

  Violet did the next best thing. She went back and entered a room adjacent to the guarded one. From a ring on her finger, she pulled out a pair of silver-rimmed glasses and put them on. Runes lit up along the frame, making the inside of the other room visible. She also activated the hearing artifact on her earring.

  A sharp buzz followed—and suddenly, she was part of what was clearly a very secret meeting.