TEN KIERAN

Kieran takes a gulp of water from the bottle Dakota passes him, smiling at her gratefully. He watches as Isabella stretches her arms over her head, making her way over to the chairs under the parasols.

She pats Miles on the shoulder and smiles at him reassuringly, and then Miles is making his way toward Kieran. He looks insanely nervous. Kieran can practically see the anxiety vibrating under his skin, but he"s distracted by the way the sunlight hits Miles" cheekbone, his eyes vibrant in the midday light. He"s so gorgeous, and Kieran has no doubt he"ll look incredible on camera. It"s almost a shame that Miles isn"t actually just a new face in the acting world.

Kieran might actually have a shot with him if that was the case.

He"s accepted the fact that he"ll just have to suffer through his pining, though. He can"t exactly hit on his sister"s best friend, especially not after Miles has made it so clear he"s not interested.

So he focuses on the movie instead, rehashing the scene in his head as Miles comes up to stand awkwardly next to him.

"We won"t be filming for this one, just give me a walk-through of it all so we can work on blocking," Octavia calls, settling into her own chair and pulling a hand fan out to wave in front of her face.

Kieran shifts and finds his marker, waiting as Miles finds his own. Miles shakes his hands in an attempt to get nervous jitters out, and Kieran smiles at the action. Chloe does the same thing. He wonders if Miles got it from Chloe, or if she got it from Miles.

"Action."

Kieran snaps into work mode as soon as he hears that, turning his back to Miles and raising his hand in a wave to an imaginary off-screen friend. He takes a few steps backward before colliding with Miles. His eyes go wide with affected surprise, and he turns, playing up a stumble and catching himself on Miles" shoulders.

It actually takes him a second to get his line out, caught up in the flecks of gold he can see in Miles" eyes when he"s this close. He hopes the hesitation comes across as intentional.

"Sorry," he breathes, straightening himself up and pulling his hands back.

Miles just stares at him for several moments too long, his mouth dropped half open, lashes fluttering on slow blinks. He finally seems to remember he"s supposed to be acting, and he forces his line out.

"Oh, um, no?" he stutters out, hesitant. "It"s fine. I, uh, I should have been watching where I was going. You didn"t do anything wrong."

It"s so stilted that it"s honestly kind of cute, and Kieran forces an affectionate grin down. Octavia doesn"t seem to agree, though, and she sighs, tossing her fan down in her lap.

"Cut!" she calls. "Miles, you do know your lines, yes?"

Miles flushes and looks away from Kieran. His shoulders hunch in an attempt to make himself look smaller as he nods bashfully at Octavia.

"Yes, ma"am," he says. "I"m sorry, I"m just nervous."

Kieran can tell. It"s understandable—even without the cameras rolling, being on an actual movie set is daunting. Miles probably isn"t used to putting himself in a character"s mindset, and he"s likely even less used to seeing someone else as a character they"re playing instead of a person he actually knows. It"s a hard thing to get into the habit of—Kieran knows that firsthand.

"Get over the nerves, Rivera," she tells him bluntly. "You and Kieran do just fine off-camera. Ignore everything but the actual scene and you"ll be fine. From the top."

Miles looks down at the sand, obviously upset, but he obediently finds his mark again as Kieran does the same. Kieran turns, waiting for their cue.

"Action."

He raises his hand in a wave again, taking a few steps back and bumping into Miles before steading himself on the man"s shoulders. He gets his line out easier this time, but seeing Miles this close is still so distracting.

"Sorry," he says, laughing a little at himself as he pulls back.

"It"s fine!" Miles half shouts at him, clearly even more nervous now. "I should have been watching—"

"Jesus, cut!" Octavia cuts him off. "Let"s break for lunch. Kieran, Miles, run lines together, get those nerves out."

There"s a flurry of movement before Miles can say anything, and Kieran sees him flinch a bit. He feels bad—he knows exactly how stressful the industry can be, especially when you"re just getting started. It"s hectic and exhausting and demanding.

He thinks the movie is probably going to be just as stressful for Miles as the investigation on Blackwood will be.

"Hey," he says softly, shooting Miles an easy smile. "It"s normal to be nervous, don"t let her attitude get to you. She gets like this when she"s actually working. It"s intense, but she doesn"t mean any harm."

"I just have no clue what the hell I"m doing," Miles sighs, offering him a shaky smile.

"Totally normal," Kieran assures him. "It"s your first shoot. Octavia likes to get everything right in one go, but we"ve got plenty of time to get things right."

He leads Miles over to one of the benches sitting in the shade of some trees, and Miles breathes a sigh of relief. It"s probably soothing not to be in front of all those people for him.

"Thanks," Miles says, smiling a little easier.

Kieran is about to ask him if he wants to run lines or eat first, but Miles glances around, leaning closer in, and all thoughts disappear from Kieran"s mind.

"Any updates?" he asks quietly. "On, y"know," he nods subtly toward the mansion they can see peeking over the tops of the trees, "getting in?"

Kieran shakes his head, sighing ruefully.

"No luck on my end," he says, keeping his voice low. "You?"

Miles glances around again and opens his mouth to speak, but stops as Dakota comes over to them with two boxed lunches and bottles of water in hand.

"I saw your assistant is MIA, so I figured I"d pick up some slack where I could today," she says to Miles, smiling warmly. "And I got you an extra granola bar, I know they"re your favorite," she adds to Kieran, winking.

Miles thanks her, looking genuinely touched, as he takes the food and the water from her. Kieran does the same, cracking open his water as she heads off and taking a long drink.

"I don"t know where she got the idea that I like granola bars from," he tells Miles, grinning conspiratorially. "I probably said it in some interview ages ago just to answer a question and she thought I was being serious."

Miles grins at him, rolling his eyes.

"Can"t blame a girl for doing research on her crush," he says with a shrug.

"You think she has a crush on me?" Kieran asks with a laugh, shaking his head.

Not everyone who"s nice to him has a crush on him, but that seems to be what everyone thinks.

"Who doesn"t?" Miles asks, grinning widely.

Kieran freezes at that and tells himself to absolutely not read into it. Miles flushes, takes a sip of his water, and shakes his head.

"Anyway," he says, clearing his throat and leaning back in a bit as he opens up his lunch. "I didn"t get much, but I talked to the bartender from that little Tiki place yesterday."

Kieran nods, leaning in so he can hear Miles" lowered voice. He pulls his sandwich out and takes a bite, realizing how hungry he actually is. He usually has something other than a smoothie in the morning, but his stomach wasn"t too happy with him when he woke up, so he"s starving.

"The guy said Blackwood apparently has, like, a safari zone or something?" Miles laughs, glancing back toward the mansion. "It"s behind the mansion, apparently. He said Blackwood goes out there sometimes at night and watches the animals. It sounds kind of ridiculous, but maybe we should check it out?"

Kieran glances over his shoulder at where the mansion looms through the thick trees. A safari zone on a private island wouldn"t be the most ridiculous thing he"s heard of someone having, but it"s pretty high up there. Kieran is just impressed that Miles managed to get any information at all, especially when he failed spectacularly to even get a call back from Blackwood.

"It doesn"t look like we have a better option, I couldn"t even get in the front door," Kieran sighs. "It may be a long shot, but we could just go check it out after shooting today. If you want to, I mean."

"Yeah," Miles agrees. "I think it"s smarter to go together."

"Sounds like a plan, then," Kieran says. "Let"s run some lines for now, though, yeah? Octavia will kill us if she thinks we"re slacking off."

Miles laughs, finishing off the first half of his sandwich and nodding agreeably.

"She"s kind of scary," he says with a grin. "Let"s do what we were told to, we can be good for a little before we go trespass."

Kieran chuckles at him, setting aside the chips and granola bars for now.

They start from the beginning, and Miles plays into it, really slipping into character. He seems so much more comfortable when he"s not on camera, to the point that Kieran actually forgets for a moment that they"re rehearsing. He reminds himself firmly that they"re playing characters, that he"s indulging, but none of this is real. No matter how much he wishes that he could grin bashfully and ask to take Miles on a date after tucking his hair behind his ear, that"s not something he gets to do. Not in real life.

He shakes off his romantic stupor as Octavia calls them to places again and tries to get his head on straight.

"You ready?" he asks Miles as they make their way back to their marks.

"I"m trying to be," Miles answers, but his nerves are obviously coming back.

Kieran doesn"t have time to reassure him before Octavia is talking.

"Ok, walkthrough, no cameras," she says. "Give me a hundred percent, boys."

He and Miles both take a deep breath as they take their places.

"Action!"

Kieran waves again, grinning as he takes a few steps backward. He bumps into Miles, spins, and steadies himself. It"s starting to feel more natural, the way Miles reacts, and Kieran hopes Miles is maybe even starting to enjoy himself.

"Sorry," Kieran gasps, steadying himself on Miles" shoulders.

"No, no, you"re fine," Miles waves him off.

His eyes are bright and playful, and he grins as Kieran pulls his hands back, reaching up to rub a hand over the nape of his neck.

"I should have been watching where I was going," Miles continues. "Caught up in daydreaming."

Kieran is a bit caught up in daydreaming, slipping out of character for a second and settling into his own desires as he makes an obvious show of looking Miles over. He"s wearing a rumpled button-down tucked into dirt-covered khakis, his hair artfully tousled. He looks every inch the archeologist he"s playing. Kieran grins dangerously, his tongue flitting out to wet his lower lip, and he takes a purposeful step closer.

"Maybe you could tell me what you were daydreaming about?" he asks lowly, his breath catching in his chest when Miles" eyes go wide and he leans in a bit closer. "I"d love to buy you a drink, if you"re interested."

Miles pauses, his eyes trailing over Kieran heatedly. He somehow manages to look innocent even while he looks at Kieran like he wants to eat him alive, and Kieran feels his gut tighten, heat coursing through his veins.

"I"d like that." Miles" words come out soft, and his smile is both teasing and sweet. Kieran"s heart stutters in his chest.

"Cut," Octavia calls, clapping her hands together in front of her. "Look at that. Brilliant, you two. Let"s get cameras rolling and get going."

Kieran beams at Miles proudly, and Miles offers him a hesitant smile in return. If they can keep this up, maybe he can take some of the stress about the movie off of Miles" shoulders. They find their places again as the crew scrambles to get everything in place.

"Action," Octavia says, and they start moving again.

Kieran waves, steps back, stumbles. Miles freezes again. It"s like the second he knows a camera is pointed at him, his mind goes blank. Octavia sighs in frustration, and they reset, starting over once again. They start and stop several times, Octavia getting noticeably more frustrated as time goes on.

Miles remembers his lines now, but he"s so stiff in front of the camera that it"s like Kieran is trying to hit on a plank of wood. It"s nothing like their easy back and forth when the cameras aren"t rolling.

Kieran thinks it"s probably his fault, too, because he can"t manage to stay in character. He keeps slipping into his own head, wondering if this is what Miles actually looks like when he flirts with someone; if this is what Miles would look like if he was flirting with Kieran. There isn"t a damn thing he can do to stop his heart from stumbling in his chest at those thoughts, and he keeps freezing awkwardly, too.

Their chemistry is just absolutely refusing to make an appearance on film.

After several long hours of attempts and direction and blocking changes, Octavia finally sighs, rubbing her hand down her face in vexation.

"Our light is gone for today," she sighs, glaring up at the sky as the sun starts to shift behind the trees. "Let"s wrap. You two," she adds with a firm look at Miles and Kieran, "need to get together tonight and figure something out."

Kieran sees Miles staring down at the sand, his brow furrowed in a frown. He looks dejected and frustrated, and Kieran figures he"s probably blaming himself. Taking a few steps to close the distance between them, Kieran claps Miles on the shoulder.

It"s kind of awkward, and Kieran immediately drops his hand back to his side, but he hopes it was somewhat reassuring.

"We"ve got plenty of time, Miles," Kieran reminds him. "Don"t stress about getting it right the first few times. It takes time to get the chemistry right on camera when you"re acting with someone new, and it"s nerve-wracking. Don"t be too hard on yourself."

"Yeah," Miles sighs, offering Kieran a half-hearted smile.

It"s not very convincing, but Kieran has always believed in the "fake it "til you make it" motto.

"Let"s go back and get changed?" he suggests.

Miles follows along, clearly still in his own head, and Kieran doesn"t try to chat. He completely understands how stressful this whole process can be, and when he"s stressed about work, the last thing he wants to do is make small talk. Hopefully, the distraction of trying to get some evidence tonight will be good for Miles. Sure, it"s just a different source of stress, but if it gets his mind off the movie for a bit, Kieran will count it as a win.

They walk back to Miles" bungalow in silence, following the crowd of fellow actors and crew out of the trees and back toward the white sand beach. The heat isn"t quite so strong now that the sun is starting to set, and Kieran is grateful for it. The walk to Miles" bungalow is further than Kieran"s, but he follows Miles all the way there, not quite ready to part with him.

When they reach Miles" door, Miles finally looks up, blinking as if to bring himself back to the present moment. Kieran smiles fondly at the sight.

"Want to meet me at mine after you change?" Kieran suggests.

"Right, we have trespassing to do," Miles laughs, nodding his head. "Sure, I"ll meet you there."

He slips into his bungalow and slides the door closed between them as Kieran steps back onto the beach. The light fades quickly as he walks, and even in the few short minutes it takes him to get back to his own bungalow, the dusk is starting to turn properly dark, evening shadows creeping between the bungalows.

His bungalow is unlocked when he gets to it, the overhead light on. Dakota must have come by after filming and laid out pajamas for him. He thinks back to Miles" comment about her having a crush on him, laughing at the thought.

Ignoring the pajamas for now, Kieran pulls out a pair of jeans and a fresh shirt. The heat will probably suck in jeans, but he"s sure the place has to be crawling with mosquitos, considering they"re right on the water. He"d rather not itch himself raw. He tosses his clothes in his filming hamper, knowing the costume crew will be by tomorrow to clean them and get them ready for whenever he needs to wear them next.

His hair is a wreck, and he pushes his hand through it in an attempt to get it to sit a bit more normally. He doesn"t have time for a shower before they go for their little trek, but he"d prefer to not look like a total idiot in front of Miles.

A knock on the door startles Kieran, his hand coming up to his chest even as he laughs at himself. It"s just the dark getting to him.

He gives up on taming his hair and exits his bathroom, pulling on his shoes as he makes his way to the door.

"Hey," he greets, smiling at Miles.

He"s kind of excited for this, in a way. They probably won"t actually find anything important, but it"ll be nice for both of them to get out of their heads for a bit.

"Ready?" Miles asks as they start their way across the beach.

"As I"ll ever be," Kieran chuckles.

Neither of them really knows where they"re going, exactly, but they wind their way into the trees from one of the paths leading from the beach. The bartender said the safari zone was behind the mansion, which was plenty vague, but at least the mansion is big enough that they never have to worry about heading the wrong way. Kieran is pretty sure they"d be able to see it even if they were face-down on the beach.

The island feels like an entirely different creature at night, far from the bustling tropical paradise it is when the sun is out. In the dark, everything is eerily quiet, shadows stretching long fingers out over the winding paths between the trees.

"It"s kind of creepy out here," Miles whispers, glancing over at Kieran with an uncertain grin.

"Yeah," Kieran agrees, doing his best to keep himself from peering into the forest. "It"s way different in the dark."

They walk for a long while, mostly in silence, both of them on edge and jumping at every snap of a twig. As they get closer to the mansion, they stumble across a stone wall. It"s barely hip-high and covered in creeping ivy and moss. Kieran and Miles share a hesitant look.

"This can"t be the fence he uses, right?" Miles asks, laughing nervously.

Kieran glances down the length of the wall, squinting to try to make anything out in the dark.

"Let"s hope not," he says grimly.

He steps over it without another word, bracing himself as his feet touch the ground on the other side. He almost expects alarms to sound, spotlights to train on them immediately, hell, hissing snakes to climb up their legs or something. But nothing happens. The oppressive silence stays just as thick as Miles climbs over the wall to join him.

They share another look, then keep walking.

It feels more unnatural out here, but it"s probably just his mind playing tricks on him. The dark combining with heightened anxiety isn"t doing him any favors. And the sounds are weird, too. The crickets are so loud in some places that he swears they have to be right next to his ears, and yet two steps away there"s just nothing.

After a few minutes of stumbling along in the dark, they come across a sign.

"Blackwood Safari Zone," Kieran reads aloud, his voice soft. "Private property, turn back."

Miles glances around them nervously, letting out a shuddering breath.

"I guess that was the fence," he murmurs.

"Can"t have anything too dangerous out here, then, right?" Kieran says, trying to soothe Miles" nerves as much as his own.

A twig snaps behind them, and Miles jumps, grabbing onto Kieran"s arm. His grip is tight, but Kieran can hardly feel it, adrenaline spiking in his veins. They take several steps back away from the sign, moving deeper into the shadows.

"What the hell was that?" Miles asks.

He sounds terrified. Kieran doesn"t blame him, his own heart is pounding in his chest, but he does his best to sound calm.

"Probably just a monkey."

It"s not very convincing, even to him.

"It would have to be a big fucking monkey, Kieran," Miles hisses, his head turning rapidly from side to side, trying to find the source of the continued stumbling in the brush.

The noises get closer, and Kieran sees a flash of blond hair in the trees. Is there a fucking person out there? His brow furrows, and he pulls Miles behind him protectively.

"Who"s there?" he calls out.

His voice sounds unnaturally loud in the quiet of the forest.

The noises stop for a moment, and then a person pops out from between the trees.

Fucking Ethan. It"s bad enough that he apparently can"t have a single second alone with Miles without the annoying shit popping up, but he can"t be here right now. This needs to be confidential, Ethan can"t be poking his nose in right now. Kieran snarls at him in anger, his fist clenching at his side before he gets control of himself again.

He walks out with a bashful grin, his hands raised in surrender, laughing at the two of them.

"Sorry, sorry," he chuckles. "I didn"t mean to scare anyone. I saw you two sneaking off and wanted to know what you were getting up to. I just caught up with you."

Kieran thinks back to the rustling leaves and snapping twigs they"d heard the entire way here. Just caught up with them, huh? He fucking doubts that.

"Where the hell were you all day?" Kieran spits accusingly. "You know you"re here to do a job, right?"

He"s so frustrated, and he needs an outlet. Ethan just so happens to be available. Plus, hopefully it"ll keep the idiot from asking too many questions. Ethan"s eyes go dark and stormy, and his mouth curls into a sneer for half a second before Miles shakes off his anxiety and steps out from behind Kieran, breathing a sigh of relief.

Before he can respond, though, flashlights blind the three of them, beams of light cutting through the trees.

"Stay where you are and put your hands up," a voice calls out from the darkness.

Miles and Kieran both raise their hands above their heads obediently as two uniformed men step out from the trees. Both of them have their hands resting on guns holstered on their hips. Kieran glares at Ethan until he raises his hands, too.

Fuck. This could get nasty.

"What are you doing out here?" one of the guards asks gruffly. "This is private property."

Kieran opens his mouth to answer, but Miles is already talking.

"We didn"t realize we were on private property, we"re so sorry!" he simpers, and Kieran glances over to see him aiming wide, innocent eyes at the two guards. "We just heard there were some cool animals out here and wanted to come see if we could find any of them." The guards look at him dubiously, but Miles glances at Kieran, who offers the guards a shaky smile. "We"re acting in the movie that"s being filmed here. We didn"t know we were on private property until we saw the sign, honest."

Kieran is honestly kind of surprised at how convincing Miles is, but he follows suit seamlessly, grinning bashfully at the guards.

"I"m sorry, we must have gotten caught up in the atmosphere," Kieran adds, hoping his usual charm will do him some good here. "We saw the sign and were trying to figure out which way we came from to get back."

The guards glance at each other but relax slightly. They"re no longer resting their hands on their guns, at least.

"We"ll escort you out," the shorter guard says.

It"s an instruction, not an offer. Kieran and Miles both nod in agreement.

"We"ll have to report this to Mr. Blackwood," the taller guard adds. "He"ll decide how he wants to move forward. Follow me, please."

He turns and starts down a path in the trees. Kieran, Miles, and Ethan hesitate, but follow him, the shorter guard falling into step behind them. They come to a clearing that leads to a roughly paved road, a car idling there. The guard opens the door to the backseat, and Kieran swallows harshly.

He glances at Miles but climbs in with a grateful nod to the guard. Miles slides in next to him, and Ethan follows. The three of them are sandwiched in the backseat, and Miles glances up at Kieran with wide, questioning eyes as the door closes behind them. Kieran shakes his head, hoping Miles understands that they should all stay quiet for now.

His heart is starting to race, and he does his best to calm his breathing as his thoughts whirl around in his head.

This could be…bad, to put it lightly. They don"t really know what kind of person Desmond Blackwood is, so there"s no telling what he"ll do. Money can go a long way in covering someone"s sins. If he doesn"t turn out to be a complete psycho on the first meeting, though, Octavia is still going to skin both him and Miles if they get in trouble with the owner of the island.

Maybe they can pin it all on Ethan. It"s vindictive, but Kieran thinks he deserves a little of that right now.

The car starts moving as both guards clip themselves into the front seats, quiet radio chatter an undercurrent on the air. One of the guards pulls out his phone, lifting it to his ear.

"Nix, this is Jameson," the guard says. "Could you please alert Mr. Blackwood of some intruders found in the safari zone? We"re on our way in with them now."

Kieran"s stomach is in knots, and he clenches his jaw in an attempt to fight off a wave of nerves trying to climb its way up his throat. The guard hangs up shortly after, and they pull up to what looks like a back entrance of some sort, the car rolling to a stop.

The shorter guard steps out of the car before opening the back door and waiting for the three of them to pile out. Kieran glances around as he steps out. It"s too dark to see much, but there are multiple paths that lead deep into the trees on either side of the road. He doesn"t have much time to look, though, because the guards flank the three of them and escort them toward the door.

Desmond Blackwood himself is standing in the center of the entryway when they step inside. His hands are clasped behind his back, and he"s smiling widely. His eyes find Kieran, and his brows raise.

"Mr. Callahan," he greets, grinning unsettlingly. "I didn"t expect to run into you again like this. I"ve not seen you since that gala in Los Angeles."

Kieran forces an embarrassed laugh, hoping he doesn"t look as terrified as he feels.

"Mr. Blackwood, this is truly a misunderstanding," he says, stiffening when Blackwood"s eyes shift off of him and find Miles, lighting up in interest. "I apologize greatly, we were just out exploring a bit and didn"t realize how—"

"Oh, I"m sure," Blackwood cuts in, waving his statements off with a wide grin. "No apology necessary, my friend. Please, introduce me to your companions here."

His eyes don"t leave Miles for a single second.

"Ah, yes, this is Ethan," he says, unfailingly polite, as it"s really the only thing he has to fall back on right now. "He"s Miles" assistant. And this is my co-star, Miles Rivera."

Blackwood glances back at Kieran for just a second, his brow arched in interest.

"This is a new face to me, I believe," he says, inspecting Miles.

Kieran cringes internally, trying to stomp down the part of him that wants to pull Miles behind him again and shield him from this man. There are lots of different types in the industry, and Kieran has learned to trust his gut when he feels like something is off with someone.

Something feels hugely off with Blackwood.

"This is my first movie, actually," Miles says shyly, glancing between Kieran and Blackwood with a small grin. "I"m trying to get my start in the industry, Kieran helped me get a role in this."

He looks scared, but it"s a reasonable enough situation to be nervous in, so Kieran hopes Blackwood will write the worry in Miles" eyes off as nothing more than jitters. Blackwood steps forward, grinning widely, and clasps Miles" hand firmly in his own, pumping it twice before releasing him. He doesn"t step back.

"I"d love to chat with you about that further sometime, Miles. You could be a real star," he says.

He grins over at Kieran, and Kieran offers him the same in return. It makes him feel dirty.

"It is rather late, though, and I"m sure you both have a long day tomorrow," Blackwood continues, clapping both Miles and Kieran on the shoulder in a friendly gesture. It feels more like a threat. "Why don"t you come by for dinner tomorrow after your filming is done? I"d be happy to give you a tour of the house and the safari in the daytime." He pauses and winks at the both of them conspiratorially. "It can be dangerous out there in the dark."

The way he says it sends a chill down Kieran"s spine, and he swallows back another wave of nerves even as he lets out a sigh of relief. Sure, he"s nervous as all hell about the way Blackwood is looking at Miles, but there"s not much he can do about it. He can feel as protective and jealous and scared as he wants, but this is, ultimately, why they"re there. He can"t let his own feelings jeopardize the mission.

"That sounds great," Miles agrees, smiling brightly.

Kieran can see the way it wobbles at the corners.

"Yes," he says, "I think that would be an excellent way to spend the evening. We appreciate your hospitality, Mr. Blackwood."

Blackwood chuckles warmly, finally stepping back. Kieran feels like he can breathe again now that he"s not close enough to count the lines around the man"s eyes.

"Oh, call me Desmond, the both of you," he invites, that wide, unsettling grin still on his face. "I look forward to seeing you two tomorrow. Please let my guards drive you back to the bungalows. It"s a long way to walk."

That"s not more of a request than the guards" offer to drive them here earlier was. Kieran nods gratefully, obediently following the guards as they lead the three of them back out to the car.

Blackwood watches them until the doors close between them.