Chapter 64

CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR

Ellery

I dressed again before Ianto led us to a small encampment where four younger children cooked a couple of buxons over a small fire. The six older kids removed their weapons as they went to join the others.

After we entered the complex, Ianto closed the gate in the twelve-foot-high fence surrounding the small shelters tucked inside.

"How long have you been here?" Ryker asked Ianto.

"About a month."

Around the edges of the fence, a dozen lean-to shelters were tucked securely beneath the trees. There were enough of them for each child to have their own, and even though there were six teens amongst them, they were barely more than children.

One of the teenagers broke away to join a young girl of four or five; she was the youngest in the group and held a small, battered teddy. When the teen knelt before her, he ruffled her brown hair, which had a hue similar to his.

The girl smiled at him before wrapping her small arms around his neck. The young man lifted her and settled on the ground with her still in his arms.

"That's Avi and Danica," Ianto said as he followed the direction of her gaze. "They're brother and sister."

"How old is she?"

"She's four, and he's fifteen. Their parents were killed during the Ghoul War, and their home was destroyed."

My heart ached for all they'd lost. We'd soon have to move on from our manor, but that paled in comparison to all they'd endured so early in their lives. "And now they've lost their other home for some stupid reason."

"They're safe here… for now. This isn't exactly the best place to have children, but I didn't know where else to take them. I don't know why they set that orphanage on fire, and I didn't feel safe taking them to another. What if it happens again?"

"They wouldn't do it again!" I gasped.

"Wouldn't they? We have no idea why they destroyed this one; maybe they plan to burn them all. Maybe the king and his cronies are tired of supporting the children, and this is their eviction notice."

Horror filled me as my gaze swung to Ryker. "That can't be true."

He tore his attention away from the children, opened his mouth to respond before closing it again, and focused on the kids. "I don't know, Ellery. I spoke with my father yesterday and can assure you the burning of orphanages didn't come up in our brief conversation."

So his father is why he was in such a pissy mood earlier .

"I'd like to say they wouldn't, but I also didn't think they'd ever trap almost everyone in Tempest either," Ryker continued. "They're all greedy fucks, and the orphanages are supported by the realm. However, it's been a month since the fire, and there haven't been any more of them. If they did destroy the orphanages so as not to pay for them, then they would have taken them all out by now. Plus, I don't see them hiding their colors if this was the king's orders."

"You think the king's guard would march in there and proudly kill a bunch of kids? " I demanded.

"I think they'll do anything they're commanded to do. If they don't"—Ryker waved a hand at the small settlement—" this is their fate… or death."

"No," I whispered. "No one can be that cruel."

His eyes were distant and troubled when they met mine. "But someone already was."

I gulped as I looked back toward the dirty, bedraggled children. I doubted they escaped the fire with more than the clothes on their backs; some were still in pajamas. Dirt streaked their tiny, precious faces, but they were well-fed and smiling as a buxon came off the fire.

I blinked away the tears filling my eyes as I tried not to think of all the innocence they'd lost and the children who hadn't survived. "I hate this."

"We all do," Ryker said.

"They wouldn't have worn their colors," I stubbornly insisted. "Yes, they have us trapped and at their mercy, but they must realize that brazenly burning an orphanage would cause the amsirah to rise against them. They would have at least attacked the men who did it."

"It happened at night, and by the time most amsirah knew what was happening, they were too busy trying to rescue kids and stop the fire from spreading to notice the men. The kids told me they slipped away without anyone noticing them," Ianto said.

"That's probably why they wore black," Ryker said. "They were less likely to be detected, but how did the kids see them?"

"You know kids never like to do what they're told; some were up when they weren't supposed to be. It was a lucky thing I was also awake, or they probably would have all died."

I shuddered and hugged myself. "We're trapped with these monsters."

"And since we're trapped, there's not much we can do." Ianto's gaze raked over Ryker. "Or at least most of us are trapped here."

Ryker kept his attention on the children while speaking. "I can't leave Tempest either."

Ianto snorted. "It's known that the aristocrats kept the ability to leave Tempest for themselves."

"Those in charge chose to keep their family members from the curse. My father didn't make that choice for me. I'm as trapped here as you."

Ianto's mouth parted, and he blinked at Ryker before focusing on me. I gave a small nod.

The giant ran a hand over the stubble lining his chin. "That's fucked up."

"How observant of you."

"Is that why you're in the woods?"