Heaven Hath No Rage - Book Two

Secret gained, secret spilled

It was a bright morning, made even brighter by the fact that she was finally going to be let out on the town. Several guards were walking ahead of her, escorting her out of the estate. A few feet behind her was Arnelo. The doors to the main entrance of the estate opened and she hurried down the stairs. At the bottom was Vivexa, waiting for her.

"Why didn't your sister come with you?" Viv asked.

"Why did you?"

"Because I'm here to watch you."

"Arnelo is here. Go back to watching me from afar," Ava said as she walked to the carriage and opened the door.

"What's with the attitude, princess? Thought we were supposed to be working together," Viv followed her inside the carriage.

"I said I would think about it. You need to do stuff for me first. Gain my trust," Ava reminded as she settled into the seat for the short ride into town.

"Then give me something to do," Viv said.

"Fine. I will think about what I want," Ava said, crossing her hands in her lap and looking out of the carriage window.

They rode in silence, the shift from the paved road leading out of the estate onto the main road into Aubermasse was obvious by the way the carriage bumped along. She searched her brain for anything pressing but nothing involved Viv. She needed to get to know the staff at the estate. She needed to listen to what they had to say, perhaps even make reforms in her time there to make some people's lives a bit easier. But Viv couldn't do that for her. Neither could she attend court for her, which she hadn't tried to get out of anyway. She needed to be at court because she needed to be able to gather as much intelligence as she could about the happenings of nobles for when she did run away. She could be of use to the crew with her information.

Ava was still thinking, running through the different options when they arrived at the center of town. Viv got out first and held the door open for Ava.

"What are you planning on doing in town?" Viv asked as Ava stepped out.

"First, I would like some breakfast. Then, I would like to go visit the bookstore. Then, I would like to visit a bakery. Then, I would like to go to the loungehouse."

"You're serious?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know. I was assuming you'd use your freedom for more nefarious purposes. This is so mundane," Viv laughed.

"Well, I tend to stray away from nefariousness so it's not surprising that it isn't the route I chose," Ava looked over and laughed, "if you are bored, you can leave."

"Ah, so you do have nefarious plans. You're trying to bore me so then you can get up to no good once I'm gone."

"Or, after having been through quite a lot in the past few cycles I am giving myself a sun to relax and enjoy myself," Ava shrugged.

"I might withdraw my offer. You may not be the political animal I had begun to picture you as."

"Then withdraw it," Ava challenged but Viv just rolled her eyes with a small smile.

Ava walked ever so slightly ahead of her, wanting to have some semblance of being alone. She did exactly what she set out to do that morning. First, she went for a rich breakfast. By the time she was done, she wanted to curl up and fall asleep and never move an inch again in her life. But she kept about her sun. She went to the bookstore and spent an hour browsing the shelves. There was nothing of interest. No history, no political books, nothing but children's books, propaganda, and romance about koldis.