AllFreeNovel
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I didn’t realize then that her offer was permanent, that the only way out of it was death. There are worse things than the life Mother has given me, but it still isn’t what I want for these kids. They should have more choices than the brothel houses or slave labor.
The girl slinks up to me, wariness coating her small features.
“Jessa.” I ruffle a hand through her lice-ridden hair, and she pretends to hate it. “Do you have anything for me?”
“Doyouhave anything forme?” she demands.
I’ve taught her well.
I hand over a couple of coins and a roll I pilfered on the way over here. She pockets the coppers and tears into the bread with her teeth, talking around the mouthful.
“More kids are getting taken.”
“Going to work on the ships?” I ask. That isn’t unusual in the slums closest to the harbor.
She gives me a look like I’m an idiot. “No. Stolen. Younger than the ones that work for the shippers.”
I bite back a curse.
“Slavers.” The bastards are getting bolder, now that Madame has taken them under her protection. Every time I burn one group to the ground, two more pop up in its place.
Still, it’s satisfying enough work. Looks like someone just got moved to the top of my list.
Jessa’s expression is fierce, but her small form is frail. Some long-forgotten instinct has me warning her.
“Remember to only report what you hear freely. Don’t put yourself in danger. And for stars’ sake, if the slavers are out in full force, don’t go out after dark.”
“That’s the best time for nicking!” she protests.
I toss another coin her way. “There. Now you won’t have to.”
She only gives me a dubious look.
“Anything else?” I hold out another copper, closing my fist when she reaches for it.
She scowls, but answers. “That Jokith King, he’s on his way here.”
“What?” My tone is sharper than I intended. “How do you know that?” Usually, she only knows what’s going on in the city.
“One of the palace runners has a brother ‘round here.”
I toss her the copper, my mind racing. The king hasn’t left Jokith in at least a decade. The borders are shut down so tight it took me weeks just to find Zai, let alone get a letter through.
Though he got his false story about my sister’s untimely fall from a horse out just fine.
Is he coming to admit what a liar he is? To pretend to grieve a woman he publicly dubbed his plaything and knew a whole three months?
For all the numbness I have felt lately, the news about the king makes my blood thunder in my veins. Whatever his reasons for coming, it’s a chance for me to get some answers.
