Stolen Heart - By Bennett, Sawyer Page 0,47
Ava’s permission, of course. I would like her to go with me to lend authority to my challenge.”
“That’s asking an awful lot, Kieran. The House of Foss is a longtime ally to Kestevayne.”
“I know, and I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important. If Ava doesn’t want to go with me, I will go on my own and do what needs to be done. Then it will not have the Clairmont name behind my actions.”
“Without telling me why you’re doing this, it’s going to be a hard sell to Ava.”
“I know, but I can’t tell you. I can only tell you that Mason deserves to die for what he has done to Annika, and Renard, well, he deserves it to, but I’ll be happy with just Mason’s head on my platter.”
Carrick was silent but Kieran knew he was contemplating his words with care. “I’ll talk to Ava, but I’m sure she’ll agree to have your back. We’ll discuss it further when you return.”
“Thanks, Carrick. It means a lot.”
“You love her then?”
Keiran sighed and sat on the end of his bed. “Yeah, I do.”
Carrick gave a soft smile. “And does she return those feelings?”
“Who knows. She says she’s not capable of love, but I’m not letting that deter me. Seems I once knew a stubborn bastard who used to say the same thing. Now look at him. He’s completely whipped by love.”
Carrick let out a bark of laughter. Kieran was referencing Carrick’s own refusal to admit his love for Ava all those years ago. Carrick walked over to Kieran and clapped his hand on his shoulder. “You’re right, bro. People succumb to love all the time. I hope it happens for you and Annika, truly.”
Kieran briefly clasped Carrick’s hand while it rested on his shoulder. A silent gesture of thanks. Then he pushed it off. “Let’s stop with this sappy crap and let me get to work.”
***
Annika and Kieran arrived in Balvraine just as the sun was setting. The Veil they traveled through set on the outskirts of the city, which rested on the edge of a vast, flat desert. Kieran could see nothing but sand in one direction, as far as the eye could see. In the opposite direction, sat Balvraine. It was an oasis in the middle of the stark landscape.
The city was surrounded by a large stone wall with wooden gates that were currently open. He could see tall palm trees peeking out over the top. People traveled in and out and there didn’t look to be any type of security checking visitors. That would make their entry easy enough. Annika and Kieran had both dressed in middle class clothing which they figured was their safest bet.
Prior to leaving, one of the Conclave members had met with both of them to educate them about Balvraine. As far as the AltVeritas itself, it was very small. While the desert stretched for miles and miles, the only inhabitants were in the city of Balvraine, as it was the only oasis that provided water in the entire AltVeritas.
Even though Balvraine sat in a desert, it didn’t succumb to the torrid temperatures normally associated with such climates. Oh, it got hot--just not brutally hot. And the sun, which looked very similar to the sun of The First Dimension, didn’t produce the same blazing heat. Still, the AltVeritas was dry and the water was in limited demand.
Annika and Kieran learned that the societal makeup was not much different than Vyronas. You had a working middle class that provided the basics of daily living. Farmers, craftsmen, retailers. There was a warrior class but it was small. Given the isolation of Balvraine and the fact they had no major commodity of trade, it was unlikely that they would be invaded by neighboring AltVerita. Finally, you had the Royal family, which really consisted of a young ruling Queen, Claire Moldevaine. She had recently inherited the throne at the age of twenty-five after her father died. She had no siblings and no other relatives of note. She also had no advisors. Whereas each ruling family in Vyronas had a Conclave to act as a panel of advisors, it appeared young Claire was running the ship all on her own. Talk about pressure.
Kieran considered Claire Moldevaine further. There was not much information about her. The history of Balvraine showed nothing more than they were a peaceful people. They led a simple life and had never aspired to be more than a small nation that kept to themselves. He found