"To be honest, it scares me."
"Has anything ever happened when there?"
The memories from their walk to the Raven Weaver floated back. "No, it's just so dark and ominous."
"But it's also peaceful. Usually quiet, at least in my neck of the woods. And I find the Helmarked who live there to be decent. They want to live well, have fun, and be happy."
"Isn't that what mortals want?"
"Yes, but the difference is, unlike in Helheim, mortals are in such a rush to have everything now. But when you live as long as we do, you learn a bit of patience or at least become accustomed to waiting."
"But you said you’re impatient.”
“I am. But I’m a thousand times more patient than I used to be.”
She chuckled. “Wow. I can’t imagine.”
Thor pulled out some money and tossed it on the table. "Are you ready to go back?"
"Are you?" She wasn't ready to end the night, but she didn't want to keep him longer than he wanted.
"If you aren't too tired, I'd like to show you one more place."
"Does it involve more fish?"
Thor laughed. "The next place will make up for the raw fish. Promise."
She nodded. “Okay. You have one more chance to get me to trust you.”
“Then I'd better not disappoint.”
CHAPTER TEN
"The Odyssey?"
"Don't judge this place by the outside, trust me, you are going to love it."
Thor led her to the deep blue door and pulled it open. It squeaked loudly, breaking the silence from within. The shop smelled of old paper and binding glue, layered over coffee that had gone cold hours ago. Somewhere deeper in the stacks, a kettle whistled and cut off. It had been a while since he'd been there, and it was obvious the place had gotten busier since his last venture inside.
He took Elle's hand and led her through a crowded aisle of shelves lined with books. He steered her away from a pile teetering on the floor and had to actually push a cart out of the way to reach the front desk. The cart's wheels shrieked against the floorboards. Books were stacked everywhere. On the counter, under the counter, in towers along the baseboards that leaned like drunk sentries.
A landslide of paperbacks buried the front desk. Their cracked spines showed titles in half a dozen genres. Atop the stack, a brass bell sat, green with tarnish.
He stood for a moment on the hard wooden floor and placed Elle in the center of the shop. Elle's mouth dropped open as she turned in a circle.
"What is this place?" she asked.
"A used bookstore."
The words echoed off close walls. The narrow but deep shop stretched back into shadow, where more shelves crowded together like teeth. Burgundy rugs, threadbare at the paths, covered the wooden floor between aisles. Hand-lettered signs in chalk hung from the shelf ends- POETRY, HISTORY, ROMANCE. A tabby cat was curled on a stack of atlases near the window, its tail draped over a globe the color of old tea.
Elle looked upward, and Thor followed her gaze to where the tops of the shelves reached the ceiling.
"Don't worry, they have rolling ladders if you want to climb up. I thought about taking you to a regular bookstore, but why waste money when I could bring you here? The books here are a fraction of the price of new ones."
Elle's eyes sparkled. "That means I can buy substantially more books."
Thor scratched his head. "Well, that's not exactly what I was going for, but I guess it's true. Does this mean you trust me again after the sushi debacle?"
