Ray and Joshua found Kieran at the stables near the Western wing of the manor, grooming his horse.

"You'll rest for the evening and head out at dusk to keep up the search," Kieran ordered without looking at them. "I'll join you tomorrow, before the cock crows."

Ray nodded, already at bay with the idea. Kieran probably had to write reports anyway.
"That's fine with us," Ray said. "But what of your bride to be?"

Kieran stopped what he was doing and looked at them, his eyebrow arched in curiosity. "What about her?"

His brothers exchanged glances.

"Well, you're courting her, right?" Ray said. "But then you're going to busy with this mission. Searching for the Eluder, and communicating back and forth with the Inspector and army authorities..writing reports...yet the whole concept of courtship is to see your lover every so often."

"I don't think this mission shall take such a long while that I am unable to see her," Kieran stated, and continued to brush his horse's fur.

"You sound eager to do so." The ever solemn baritone of Joshua spoke up. "I thought you didn't love her."

"I do not," Kieran averred, turning his attention back to his brothers.

"Then you need not see her every so often," Joshua plainly stated."Courtship isn't a mandatory process, you know. Yet you sound like you want it to be."

Kieran had a brief flash back to his talk with Alyssa in the library. It came back to him that he had originally been of the view that him and Elena should not court, and had agreed to just one date. Yet here he was, already forgetting about that and the fact that only two days ago, he had taken a mental note to keep away from her.

What was wrong with him?

"I don't..." he said, unsureness edging his voice.

"Kieran, remember why you're marrying her." Joshua said, enunciating the words slowly. He crossed his well toned arms and and looked at him through the bangs that fell over his forehead. "Don't you think that seeing her every so often will make her fall in love with you?"

Kieran barked a laugh at that notion and waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "That's impossible."

Elena's indifference was so far undisputed.

"Is it?" Ray countered. "Brother it's you. She may not find you charming as per now, but gradually, if you keep meeting her, she will develop feelings for you. And you definitely don't want that."

"Yes," Joshua agreed. "And then she won't be able to leave you alone."

"No." Kieran shook his head in refusal of their notions. "She's not the type. She's indifferent to my presence, and her involvement with me is purely platonic."

Ray snickered. "That's how it always starts," he said, and shot Kieran a serious and warning look. "Or have you forgotten your past encounters?"

Darn.

Ray had hit the nail on the head. Kieran instantly remembered how his past relationships aside from Debra had ended up, and it had been catastrophic for him. He had sought friendship, and he had thought that's what it was; until it grew into something else- an obsession.

It was the core reason Kieran did not have many lady friends; they had always sought more than he could give. For some women, their romantic feelings blossomed from what started as a friendship, and for others, flings that were not supposed to mean anything. But they always did mean something for them.

Debra had been the only different one. She understood the value of friendship, as well as the value of a good time. And boy did they have a good time. She never asked for more, never asked for love. The only problem was that she could be quite possessive, and wanted Kieran all to herself. That is why she could not warm up to the idea of him getting married, of him having a life long commitment. Because then, she would completely lose him.

He asked himself; could Elena turn out to be one of them?

No, the reply was almost immediate. She couldn't be. He didn't want her to be. He liked to be around her, liked to listen to her laugh, and liked to see the twinkle in her eyes every time she told a story, or gazed in awe at the nature around her. It was a twinkle of love that she never once expressed towards him.

He knew it in his head that it had to stay that way. If she did end up falling for him, it would be a complete disaster. He did not want to break her heart, nor see her cry because of him.

"Kieran," Joshua called, drawing him out of his deep thoughts. "If you're to see her, go ahead. But it's risky. And we're just looking out for your intentions of this marriage."

Kieran drew a breath.

"You're right," he finally said, and his brothers had to hide their smiles. "The safest thing would be to keep away from her." He looked at either of his brothers and offered a weak smile. "Thanks for reminding me, you two."

Joshua patted his brother's shoulder and smiled. "Any time."

As him and Ray departed from the stables, walking side by side, one lifted his right fore arm and the other his left, and they bumped them together in triumph.

Kieran gazed at one of the walls contemplatively for a moment.
"Yes," he told himself. "If I'm going to keep away from her, then I'll just have to skip the courtship."

He nodded firmly and resumed grooming his horse.

After a while, he walked out of the stables and stepped around to the front yard, but froze on seeing a familiar figure saunter in a distance,walking towards the entrance of the mansion, a picnic basket in her hand.

"Lady Elena!" he called out, and she turned to search for where the voice had come from. He had been thinking of how and when he was going to deliver his newly made decision to her and as he walked over, he was amazed at how she had appeared right when he was thinking of her.

"Good day," he greeted, and he watched her bow as she returned the same greeting. "I wasn't expecting you."

Elena smiled, her gaze darting to the ground. "My sister says that the thrilling bit about courtship is the surprise visits."

Kieran swallowed, suddenly anxious about his impending announcement.
"Oh," he said dryly, it being the only word he managed to say.

"I, uh...." Elena stammered and stretched out the basket to him, holding the handle with both hands. "I brought you some apples."

This was surely a surprise.

The basket was covered by a white cloth with pretty fuchsia patterns, so one couldn't tell what was inside on first glance.

"Oh," he said again as he took the basket, not exactly sure how to reply. This was her first gift to him, and she was personally giving it to him on the same day he'd decided they skip their courtship. Well, darn.

"Thank you," he added courteously.

"My sister and I went apple picking today, and she thought I could pass by maybe," Elena explained. "I thought it a good idea to share."

"You're not here for long, then?"

Elena looked up at him. "Well...I'm still working on riding a horse alone so for today I'm walking back home. It's not very far."

Kieran smiled and thought not many people could utter those words. Elena really had a talent for trekking.

"Do you want me to stay longer?" She asked.

"Hm?" The question caught him off guard. "No. I mean yes. I mean, well..."

He sighed and braced himself to break the news to her.
"You don't have to come all the way here," he said, "just to bring me apples or say hello in the name of courtship. It's not mandatory to see each other."

Elena did not speak, but merely looked at him with curiosity.

"You know, lady Elena, I'm..." Kieran continued, looking for the best way to convey his message without sounding harsh. "I'm actually a bit busy. I will be, for a while."

"Yes, I heard about the escaped prisoner."

Kieran nodded. "And other military operations may come up in the future," he said, "My life as the General of the Prince's Guard is...unpredictable."

He could not tell her the core reason for avoiding to see her, so he settled with another truth.

"I have to pick my duty," he said. "Usually the missions are abrupt, just like this one. Aside from that, there will be paperwork, meetings...I don't want to get bogged down in the details but, do you understand what I'm saying?"

"That courtship is irrelevant compared to your duty?" She asked in a casual tone.

"Well..." He rubbed the back of his head, now thinking of how rude it sounded. "Not entirely."

"Sir, it's alright. I understand," Elena said calmly, but quickly, "Actually, I am busy too, with Anne's engagement round the corner."

"Oh."

"And you're a busy man, obviously. I shouldn't be wasting a lot of time by going on leisurely dates with you," Elena was speaking rapidly, and surprised him by bowing to him, "Pardon me for the intrusion, sir. I shouldn't and won't be bothering you anymore."

"You don't need to apologise," Kieran said hastily, already feeling awful about the whole ordeal.

"I'll be leaving now," she suddenly announced, causing him to widen his eyes in surprise. "But do enjoy the apples, General."

She offered him a small smile and turned around, and he did not stop her as she walked along the path towards the gates.

He stood there for a moment, a strange and uncomfortable feeling eating him up.

Had he really made the right decision?

He shook his head to clear his mind of doubts. Since when did he ever doubt himself or his decision? He often had to make decisions on the spot during hectic missions, and not once did he ever doubt that they were the right ones.

Yet somehow this decision had left him feeling unsettled the moment he saw her reaction.

He walked into the house, and met Aira in the hallway to the sitting room. The first thing she spotted was the basket in his hand.

"When did you have time to go on a picnic, brother?" She asked, eyeing the basket suspiciously.

"I didn't," he said just as Aira snooped in the basket and gasped excitedly at the discovery of the shiny red apples.

"Where did you get all these!" She asked, picking out one and examining it. "They look like they're from Lord Edgar's orchard. He's got the best, you know."

"Uh, lady Elena brought them," he replied. "She said she was apple picking, but didn't say where."

There were now stars in Aira's eyes. "Elena was here?"

"Yes, you just missed her."

"Oh no!" Aira mewled in despair. "Why didn't you tell me? You kept her all to yourself!"

"It's not like that. She was just passing by and decided to share. It was only for a little while. She had to walk back home."

Aira blinked. "Wait," she said, replaying his statement. "So what you're saying is, Elena came all the way here, bright you..us..some apples out of the kindness of her heart, and you let her walk back home alone?"

Kieran shut his eyes, her account of the situation only making him feel worse.
"She likes to walk." He said lamely.

"Kieran!" Aira exclaimed, her face full of dismay. "She is your future wife. How could you not think not to atleast walk her home, or offer. Did you offer to?"

Kieran bit his lower lip, unable to say the truth. He was apprehensive of what would follow.

Acquiring the answer from his silence, Aira's shoulders stooped, and he saw upon her face the look of genuine disappointment. He could not help but feel from her eyes that he had let her down somehow, and one of the feelings he despised the most was helplessness towards his family; especially his siblings.

"It...it didn't occur to me," he didn't know why he was explaining himself, but Aira's frown made him feel small.

"Something must have made you forget your manners," said Aira, "because you never do, even in unpleasant company."

Aira believed the reason ladies kept on flocking to her eldest brother even after he turned them down was because of his politeness. It was icy, but nonetheless meant no disrespect. The women were crazy, he had said, but they weren't wicked.

Kieran thought about what she said. Had he been so determined to keep away from her that he forgot even the most basic of manners?

"I know you have no affection for Elena, but she is a nice woman," Aira continued, her voice soft. "So be nice to her as well. And behave."

She took a large bite out of the apple and hummed in ecstasy. Her lashes fluttered as he she enjoyed the taste.
"This is definitely from Lord Edgar's orchard." She said in between chewing. "I'll be taking that."

She took the basket from Kieran, and turned around, skipping back to the sitting room.

What Aira said struck a chord within him. He kept on thinking of whether in his abrupt cancellation of their courtship, he'd come off as mean unintentionally. She hadn't really given him much of a hurt reaction, but the manner in which she had quickly apologised and left suddenly expressed otherwise.
To top it off, he hadn't even offered to walk her home, as the chilvarous thing to do.

Had he really hurt her?

**** ***** ***** *****
Elena speed walked into the Rivera compound and found Mara in the middle of dance rehearsal for Anne's engagement ceremony. She was on the terrace, prancing and twirling about happily as Elena climbed up the steps.

Mara spun around, and instantly expressed surprise at seeing her, gasping and placing her hand on her chest.

"Sister! That phantom-like behaviour of sneaking up on people will really kill me one of these days!" Mara exclaimed. "Why are you back so soon? It's not even twilight yet!"

Elena looked at Mara blankly, as though she had just asked a dumb question.

"What are you saying, Mara?" She asked coolly. "I had to come back as soon as possible so we could do our rehearsal and then decide on the design arrangements for the linens. I hope they've been delivered already, by the way. Have you forgotten how much work we have got?"

"I haven't forgotten, and the linens arrived a while ago. Mother has been complaining about the shade of colour, so we might have to swap them out."

Elena let out a drained sigh. Their mother was too particular.

"But I thought you would spend some more time with General Kieran," Mara said, stepping closer to her sister. She looked around and asked, "Why didn't he come with you?"

"And why should he come with me?"

"He didn't walk you home?"

Elena rolled her eyes. "And why should he walk me home? I now know that the General is a busy man. He has to search for the escaped prisoner and capture him, among other things. He has got no time to be walking me home yet he has other urgent matters to attend to."

"But still!"

"And I am busy as well, since there's still a lot to do before the engagement ceremony," Elena continued. "If he were to walk me home, it would have only taken more time, yet time is of the essence. So when he said we don't need to see each other, I had to come here immediately, and continue the preparations."

"Wait, wait, wait," Mara waved her palm about. "What do you mean you don't need to see each other?"

"Since courtship is not mandatory, the General prefers we not do it." Elena's response was blunt and flat.

Mara was agape.

"What!" She screamed.

"And I absolutely agree with him," Elena said, nodding her head as if in appreciation of his decision making skills. "I was so worried about how I was going to balance work at home and dates with him, but he did me a favour by relieving us of having to see each other."

"What!" Mara screamed again, disbelieving of her sister's reaction. She knew romance wasn't anywhere on her mind, but she had hoped that it would soon be, with her betrothal to the General. "That's preposterous! You'll only be busy up until Anne's marriage. What happens after that? Does it mean you won't see him after Anne's marriage?"

Elena shrugged. "I do not know. We may see each other for a bit just to practice our engagement dance, but other than that, I am not sure." she said casually. "Either way, it really does not bother me. It's not like I am in love with him to be eager to see him."

Mara was gaping at her sister, who looked completely natural and unaffected by the change. All her life, Elena had had an indifferent attitude towards men. She never engaged in the usual girl chatter about they looked, about romantic feelings and neither did she get giddy about it.

Mara had always felt pity for the lads that wooed her sister and received platonic friendship in response.
But she had thought that this time it would be different, since it was The General Kieran. She thought he would be the one to bring up the spark in her eyes that other girls got when they spoke excitedly about their love interest. He was, afterall, absolutely irresistible!

But alas, Elena's eyes seemed unable to even tell genders a part; she talked, smiled and laughed with everyone in nearly the same way.

If even General Kieran could not redeem her, then who would?

"Now let's get to rehearsal," Elena chirped, her face lighting up at the thought of dancing. "There is no time to waste so let's finish up the routine."

Mara grunted in begrudging agreement.

*****     *****     *****     *****

The search for The Eluder resumed the next day. The sun was at it's peak in the sky when messenger soldiers from the espionage team, dressed entirely in black clothes, approached The Prince and Kieran, in a village, to inform them That The Eluder was no longer in Rievelt.

The search came to a halt, and Kieran at once called the Guard's meeting.
Within a couple of hours, the captains gathered in the meeting chambers at Hammedatha Manor, along with Kieran and Prince Luke. Sir Graham gave the report on The Eluder. They'd managed to track some of his connections who gave information on his intention to leave Rievelt, but didn't know where he was going.

A merchant had testified that morning to seeing a man who matched his sketch pass him along the Rievelt-Sepir border to the East the previous late night, when the merchant had been bringing in new goods to Rievelt.

"How could he have escaped to Sepir when the Kingdom's borders have been lined by army guards? The kingdom has been besieged! What were the guards doing?" Prince Luke queried, the anger eminent in his voice.

"The authorities found two army guards who had been missing from their post," said Graham. "They were passed out drunk in an alley, and the rum was found to contain traces of a powerful sleep inducing herb."

Neither Luke nor Kieran could beleive their ears.

"Are you telling me the guards were drinking on duty?" Luke spat. "The negligence!"

"I'll inform The Commander to have them dismissed right away," Kieran said, clear irritation in his voice.
The Commander didn't bother himself with in door crimes- there was the Inspector and body of authorities for that. But all dismissals within any body or unit of the army had to be endorsed by him, even when effected by any of his army corporals or captains.

Luke sighed. "Atleast none of our men had anything to do with his break out." he said. "Inspector Faulkes reported to me that they have the person who helped The Eluder break out of the cell in custody. But even he knows not of his final destination."

"So we cannot be sure whether he is still in Sepir," Graham concluded. "Sepir is a small county, and it's been a long while since he left Rievelt. We don't know how far he could have gone, so even if we leave now, the highest chance is we won't find him there."

"If he has left Rievelt, then the matter is nolonger in our hands," said Captain Harvey. "It's out of our jurisdiction."

"Yes, but he did, infact, escape from our custody," said Captain Aggrey. "I believe he is still our responsibility. We have to get him back somehow."

"Why not just alert the other nations?" Joshua suggested. "The core advantage that the Eluder has had up until now is that nobody knew his face. Now that we discovered his identity, we can make it known so that it's easier to capture him."

Every one else nodded, in tune with the idea.

"What do you think?" Joshua asked Kieran, who in turn looked at Luke.

"Sire, any objections?" Kieran asked. Usually it was him as General who called the shots of their operation, but under circumstances where the Prince was present, he gave the final order.

"We aren't making anything about this issue known outside Rievelt." Luke said, and everyone looked at him with perplexity on their faces.

Luke seemed dead serious.

"A thing my father holds above many things is his pride," he said. "He'd already assured the Count that The Eluder was in our custody and would be delivered to him by us. That promise gives us less than 10 days to hand him over. If the Count gets to know of The Eluder's escape, his trust in our kingdom will falter. I personally know how difficult it is to calm him down. He breaks ties far more quickly than he makes them."

"That's understandable," said Joshua, well aware of how King Amos loved to boast. "But how are we going to be able to capture the Eluder if we don't work together as nations?"

Luke smirked at that, causing them all to eye him curiously.

"You seem to have forgotten who you're speaking to," he said smugly. "The Eluder might have some connections, but I have an entire network, stretching as far as anyone can travel."

Joshua expelled a breath of relief and nodded, smiling, "The fraternity of Shadows."

"Correct." Luke snapped his fingers in Joshua's direction. "With the fraternity of shadows, I'll pinpoint the Eluder's exact location. Afterwards, Kieran and I shall set off to retrieve him. Since it is now a secret operation, only the both of us shall go. The rest of you ensure that no word of this leaves the borders of Rievelt. That is the final order."

"Yes, sire," They all responded loudly and simultaneously.

The fraternity of shadows was a wide spy network, attached to various kingdoms and nations. It was controlled by a board of leaders referred to as 'governors', and people who hired the fraternity had to pay handsomely for their services. Their spies were highly skilled and trained in the arts of stealth and disguise, and their real identities were always unknown. The fraternity also maintained a client confidentially.

One could never know who exactly was in the fraternity, and their numbers were also unknown.
The fraternity was thus especially difficult to access. However, Luke and Kieran had over the years gotten to know some of the governors personally, and formed a friendship with them. It would be easy for Luke to call in a favour, especially since one of the governors lived in Rievelt, and was the one who had recommended Jethro to Luke. (Jethro was part of the fraternity.)

After the meeting, Kieran, Joshua and Luke went down to the dining area to reveal the plan, as the other Hammedatha siblings had a late lunch with Alyssa. The Commander was at the castle.

"Sounds good," Ray said after Kieran finished recounting the details, and Joshua had already sat down to eat.

"Now, sire?" Alyssa said smiling warmly up at the Prince. "Since you're already here, care to join us for the meal?"

Luke grinned. "I was waiting for you to invite me, ma'am."

He had always considered Alyssa his second mother, ever since Her Majesty passed on from an illness when he was only a young child. Alyssa had always treated Luke like he was her own son, and she had often visited the castle to check up on him and Debra in their younger years.

Luke grabbed a chair to sit just as Aira stood up from hers.

"I'm leaving now," she declared.

"Hey," Luke called, nodding his head upwards towards her. "Deciding to leave right after I decide to stay? Your timing is too perfect, little one. You should be more subtle with your conflict with me."

Aira rolled her eyes and huffed a breath in annoyance, blowing a stray strand that was over her face. "Relax, shorty. I'm not leaving here because of you," she informed and added in a stricter tone, "And don't call me little one! I'm not a child anymore."

"Aira, where are you going?" Kieran asked, and she brightened up.

"I'm going to Rivera Manor!"

Kieran was a bit surprised. "So suddenly? Why are you going over there?"

"Actually, I met Mara as we were returning home and she told me about their arrangements for Anne's engagement," Aira replied. "The way they conduct their ceremony seemed very interesting, so I'm going over there to partake in their preparations. I want to see how they do it."

"Moreso, she can actively participate when it's Elena's turn to get engaged." Aaron added, and watched for Kieran's reaction. He did not say anything.

"Speaking of Elena," Aira said this like she had just come up with a bright idea. "Kieran why don't you come with me and see her?"

Ray nearly choked on his rice.
"And why must he come there?" he retorted quickly. "It is not necessary. Right Joshua?"

"Right."

"Uh...." Kieran debated on his answer as Joshua and Ray exchanged fiery competitive glares with Luke and Aira.
On one side, Kieran wanted to stick to his decision and keep away from Elena, and on the other, he didn't feel right about how things had gone down between them the previous day, and wished to clear that up. Aira probably suggested his coming along for the latter reason, he thought.

"That won't do," Alyssa spoke up, as she served more stew onto The Prince's plate. "Elena must be busy right now. It is but a day to the engagement and women of the house usually handle quite the tasks. I'm sure Victoria is wearing them out, anyway.
If Kieran goes with you, Aira, he will not only feel out of place with the nature of work, but also be a bother to Elena."

"Mother's right," said Ray, a triumphant grin on his face. "Can you imagine the Great General Kieran Hammedatha sitting down to make garlands or choose which flowers to arrange together in a vase?"

The guys chuckled at that thought.
Aira pouted sadly, "Alright then. I'll have to leave without you," she told Kieran who nodded, grateful that his mother had sorted his dilemma.

***** ***** ******
At the fall of dusk, Kieran stood outside at the terrace, his hands gripping the banister of the balustrade as he leaned forward. He was thinking about what had happened with Elena the previous day, and wondered how to go about it.

"I shouldn't and won't be bothering you anymore."

It was ironic because her words kept on replaying over and over in his head, and he was most definitely bothered by them.

He sighed deeply, and was then joined by Aaron, whose shout of, "Catch!" alerted his brain to respond immediately, and he found in his grasp, a bright red apple.

"These apples are delicious," Aaron said between chewing a chunk. Another apple was in his hand, with bite already taken out of it, "I heard Elena brought them."

He stood next to Kieran and gazed out into the compound. The servants had started to light the lanterns on the stands lined up along either side of the wide path that led to to the gates.

"Mm," Kieran hummed absent-mindedly, his thumb stroking the smooth red surface of the apple.

Aaron looked over at Kieran and noticed how intently he was regarding the fruit. "What's troubling you, brother?" he asked.

"I've cancelled my courtship with Elena," Kieran replied after a thought. "Yet it troubles me."

Aaron wasn't really surprised at his announcement, and he couldn't say he didn't see it coming.

"You must have found it irrelevant since neither of you are in love," Aaron mused. "But since when did you have second thoughts about your own decision? This is a first."

"I'm not," Kieran said, looking up, "I just feel like I left things....unresolved. I was a bit thoughtless at the time, and I'm just wondering about talking to her more about it."

"Well.." said Aaron, "If you think it's still unresolved on either of your sides, then you should. Had she agreed with your decision?"

Kieran shrugged. "More or less..." he mumbled. "She said she understood."

Aaron nodded.
"Hm." He hummed, "I think maybe Elena has a lot more to say than she's letting on. Both of you should talk it out again."

"You think so?"

Aaron took another bite out of his apple and nodded in the affirmative.

It was then that Aira made an appearance, riding into the Manor compound.

"You can ask Aira about her," Aaron suggested. "Maybe Elena told her something."

Kieran watched his sister as she approached the terrace, with a big smile on her face. One of the servants took her horse to the direction of the stables.

"You look elated," Aaron noted as she climed up the steps to join them. "How was the visit? I see you got a makeover."

Aira blushed and twirled, showing off her perfectly braided pigtails, each adorned with small cute blue and white flowers. She had left home with a messy ponytail earlier.

"Do you like it?" She asked, tugging gently at the ends of one of the pigtails. "I wanted to copy Elena's style."

"You look like a younger version of her," Aaron said, smiling. Kieran simply gazed at her.

"Being over there was so much fun!" Aira said giddily with glee of a young Hammedatha receiving his/her first dagger. "I wish I could tell you all about it but you wouldn't understand. Girl stuff."

Kieran and Aaron glanced at each other.

"Girl stuff....like girl talk?" Aaron asked and Kieran cleared his throat oh-so-subtly.

"Well, yeah," Aira replied. "But I was talking about the work there. And I met Elena's other cousins. They're also fun and so amazing! Oh, I also got to see the dances! The groom and bride have such a beautiful dance." She gazed at Kieran. "I can't wait for yours, brother."

"What?" Kieran asked, not expecting to hear something like that. "I don't dance."

"You have to," Aira said, a sneaky smile on her face. "It's Rivera tradition. Elena said so herself."

Aaron and Kieran perked their ears.

"What else did she say?" Kieran asked, trying to keep his face straight so his sister would not sense his eagerness to know.

"She just made it clear that you have to dance on your engagement," Aira replied. "I did tell her that you didn't fancy dancing and she said you'd already informed her of that fact. But she said you would have to either way."

"Is that all she said about him?" Aaron asked.

Aira cocked her head to the side and wondered why the guys were so interested in what Elena had to say.

"Hey," she said firmly. "If you're waiting to hear tales of praise and adoration for you, you're not going to get them. Elena is not the type to swoon and speak romantically about her lover infront of everyone."

Kieran rolled his eyes. "I know that. That's not what I wanted to hear." He shrugged. "I just...want to know how she is."

"I also want to know how she is," said Aaron, deciding to become Kieran's spokesman. "Whether she's troubled or anything."

"She's fine. Peachy as always," Aira replied and looked closely at Kieran. "Oh my goodness, brother. You look as though you are worried she might run away from you." She laughed a bit and added, "Elena's not going anywhere. She's going to be your wife, so don't worry."

Kieran thought about Aira's words.
"You are right," he said in a low tone. "As long as she's still marrying me, there is no problem."

"What do you mean?" Aaron asked him with haste, apprehensive of his brother's incoming, and no doubt, wrong conclusion.

"You heard Aira," Kieran spoke louder, his voice and countenance firm now, "Elena's fine. That means I don't need to talk to her."

"Kieran-"

"She was even talking about our engagement," Kieran said quickly. "That means she's still okay with marrying me. That means everything is okay."

"Kieran-"

"Problem solved," Kieran announced and hastily walked off the terrace and into the house.

Aaron turned and glared hotly at Aira,
"You ruined everything." He growled.

"What happened? What did I do?" She asked, perplexed.

Aaron rubbed his temple in frustration, "Aren't you supposed to be on the love side?" he asked, referring to the bet.
Aira had informed him of it, and he wasn't supposed to partake in it, but he was on Luke and Aira's side.

"I am! That's why I went over there to help patch things up between Kieran and Elena. But it turns out she's totally okay with Kieran not walking her home yesterday."

"Kieran didn't walk Elena home?" Aaron asked in surprise.

"I know! It was thoughtless of him," said Aira. "I wanted to know her feelings on the matter, but you know how Kieran doesn't like it when we meddle in his personal life, even though we do it almost all the time, so I didn't tell him my intentions. Anyway, Elena's cool with everything and I didn't want Kieran to worry so i told him the truth."

"With everything?" Aaron echoed, "even him cancelling their courtship?"

Aira's eyes widened in disbelief. "He cancelled their courtship!" She shrieked.

"Pipe down, sister! Kieran will have all our heads if he discovers how often we discuss his personal life behind his back, much less bet on it." Aaron said, lifting a warning finger. "But I thought you knew."

"I did not!" Aira said, still agape with the news, "How could he do that? I can't believe it! Elena didn't mention anything about that but she also wasn't bothered."

"What do you mean?"

"Well...she was just so relaxed today," Aira answered. "She was smiling and chatting with everyone and there was nothing out of the ordinary. Since she's not in love with Kieran, then I think she's fine with it."

Aaron and Aira looked at each other, and horrific realisation crossed their faces.

"This is bad, Aaron!" Aira wailed in despair, slapping him in the abdomen with the back of her hand. "If they've ruled out the courtship process then that means they won't see each other. How are they supposed to fall in love if they don't see each other!"

She placed one had on her hip and the other to support her temple, displaying distress.

"Have faith, sister," Aaron encouraged. "It is only a day left to Anne's engagement. They will see each other then, and they will have to talk."

"How?" Aira cried. "Kieran just said there's no need for him to talk, and Elena is definitely going to be up and about that day. You know how short an engagement ceremony is. We won't see the bride's family until the exchanging of rings. And then it'll be the dance performances and it'll be over before the sun even sets."

She tossed her head back and groaned. "I can't lose that bet. Ray and Josh will never let me live in peace."

"I'll think of something," Aaron said contemplatively.