His gaze flicked up to hers, just for a moment, and something soft passed across his face before he looked away.
Her father hadn’t known who would be on the committee, that was true, but Yuri Amos?
She wasn’t sure whether she wanted to stride across the room and hug him because he was back in Sitka or slap him for not keeping her letters secret.
She drew in a slow, steadying breath and forced her feet forward, then took her seat at the table.
Yuri spread his hands, a wide grin on his face. “I’m sure some of you are wondering what I’m doing here. I promise I’m not here to sabotage the library. Alexei was called out of town, so I’m his replacement. I suspect this is punishment for something, but I’ve yet to determine what, so I’ve decided the lot of us should have a grand time planning the library while he’s gone. Should we get started?”
Everyone at the table smiled. Or rather, everyone except for her. She still wasn’t sure whether she wanted to hug him or slap him, and she wasn’t sure how she felt about him being on the board either. Alexei seemed like a much better fit.
Next Yuri launched into what her father had already explained: the library was to be built with a generous donation from Andrew Carnegie and supplemented by additional funding from several of Sitka’s leading businessmen.
After that, Yuri went on to discuss the agenda, and Rosalind felt her shoulders relax as the meeting continued. Yuri had a way of talking that put everyone at ease.
About a half hour into the meeting, the topic of whether to use a new building or repurpose an empty one came up.
“I say we build new.” Mr. McCreedy slapped the table with his palm. “I have plenty of lumber, and we can hire the Ashtons to erect the building. They do good work and they’re fast.”
“We should have enough money to purchase land.” Mrs. Pembroke looked around the table. “But where do we build it?”
“Somewhere central, I’d imagine.” Arthur Bixby, who’d been designated the secretary of the group, scratched his chin. “The closer it is to the heart of town, the more convenient it will be for people to access.”
“The main road near the market would be a prime location,” Mr. McCreedy suggested. “It would put the library right in the center of daily life.”
“You mean right next to your lumber mill?” Mr. Bixby adjusted his glasses and leaned forward. “What about somewhere near theSitka Gazetteoffice? Literacy and news go hand in hand.”
Mrs. Pembroke gave a small nod, her back and shoulders painfully straight. “That’s a fine idea. It would also be closer to the bank if we put it there, and a library should be built where respectable clientele will frequent it.”
“The bank? The newspaper office?” Mr. McCreedy crossed his thick arms over his chest. “The library is for fishermen and prospectors as much as it is for bureaucrats and business owners. If we can’t build it next to my mill, I say we build near the harbor, where sailors and dockworkers and their families can make use of it.”
“What about near the water, but not by the docks, which are noisy and busy?” The words were out of Rosalind’s mouth before she had fully thought them through. But none of the locations that had been mentioned so far felt right. “It could be within walking distance of the sound, though, and maybe somewhere near the school. There are plenty of open plots of land overlooking the sound. If we build the library in such a place, we could design it with large windows so people can read while looking out over the water.”
“Oh, well.” Mrs. Pembroke blinked, a bit of the stiffness leaving her shoulders. “That’s a rather wonderful idea. The waterfront would make for a beautiful setting.”
McCreedy grunted. “I suppose it could be done, but I still think we’d be better off putting it closer to the docks.”
“I like the idea.” Yuri leaned forward. “If the rest of you are in agreement, I’ll reach out to the land office to inquire about available plots.”
Murmurs of approval filled the room.
Rosalind drew a breath. She hadn’t expected them to like her idea so much. “Since constructing a new building will take time, I’m also wondering if we could use one of the buildings in town now to set up a temporary library? I hate the thought of waiting until October or November for people to start using the library.”
The newspaper owner put his pencil down and sat back in his chair. “That’s another good idea. I say we do it.”
“I like it too,” Mrs. Pembroke said. “We’ll need to make a budget to decide how much of our funding will be used for the new building itself, and how much for books, and then we can start ordering books for the temporary library.”
“We also need to figure out if we will pay the library workers after this is set up.” Rosalind shifted. “I mean, Mr. Carnegie’s grant is a one-time gift, right? I know my father’s is. Does that mean the library is going to be run by volunteers? Or is the town of Sitka able to contribute something for annual salaries? I don’t mind volunteering at the library a couple days a week, but it won’t work for me to be there every hour that the library’s open.”
Yuri was nodding. “Perhaps while we’re in the temporary building, we can limit the lending hours to only a couple days a week, and we can ask for volunteers.” Again, his voice was soft as he spoke, almost as though he had a special tone he used with her alone. “That will at least get people access to books early on. My family has a nearly empty building at the end of Lincoln Street. The second floor is being used for storage, but the first floor is open, and we might be able to move the goods on the second floor to the warehouse. I’ll need to check to make sure,but if that’s the case, we can use the entire building until the new library is built.”
“I don’t think there’s need for all that. We can have a library built lickety-split.” Mr. McCreedy snapped his fingers. “Got plenty of lumber, like I said.”
Mrs. Pembroke humphed. “Yes, but no one else here is keen on the idea of putting our community’s books into a lickety-split kind of building. If we’re going to spend the money on a new building, then I expect it to be rather grand.”
“Let’s vote on it,” Yuri said. “Does someone want to make a motion that we build a new building and set up a temporary library on Lincoln Street in the meantime?”
“I’ll make the motion,” Mrs. Pembroke said, her gaze still on Mr. McCreedy. “Provided it’s not something thrown up in a rush that will have a caving roof after two years.”
