page_56 < previous page page_56 next page > Page 56 world. And Mother would live here if Father gave her the choice." "Collin, your father has hopes you will one day join him, take your place in the Inner Circle." "Because he thinks it can benefit his career. My life is here and I'll be hanged before I allow Father or you or anyone to dictate to me." Collin pivoted on his heel, his shoes rapping on the marble as he marched away from her. Austin watched him disappear down the path, huge ferns and palm fronds seeming to swallow him. The young man would prove useless in this mission. He leaned back in his chair and pulled open the top button of his shirt. Owing to the humidity in the room, he had removed his coat and tie minutes after joining Isabel for lunch. "I apologize for Collin's behavior. I'm afraid his mother spoiled him. Perhaps to compensate for the fact that his father was always busy with his political career." Isabel met Austin's gaze, her dark blue eyes betraying her anguish. "The boy has spent too much time in the Outworld." Austin had been born in Avallon, born into a family of the Inner Circle. Yet he understood Collin's decision to live in the Outworld, that world beyond the boundaries of Avallon. "There are many like Collin, those who find the Outworld more exciting than Avallon." "The Outworld is hundreds of years behind us." "Only because we had a head start." In a very real sense, it felt like stepping back in time each time Austin left the boundary of Avallon. And yet he enjoyed the transition to this simpler world. "I don't understand how anyone could turn his back on six thousand years of tradition. Look at our advances in medicine and science. Look at how well   < previous page page_56 next page >