They ate together at mealtimes, shared walks together, studied together under an old tutor, and even when King Damien trained in arms in the courtyard, Ava was always there, looking on. And it was there, at the boy’s lowest and most desperate hour did Ava find him. Desi xxx “Damien is a boy, and has loved no other than that peasant girl that he is so taken by.” Girard had told her before she left. Altogether, Ava had known Damien longer than anyone else alive, and the two had spent a lot of time together while he was in hiding. But whereas it was easy for Damien to keep his vow when the two of them were out in the clear light of day, it was far more difficult for the boy
