Uncovered

Chapter Five - Nyrie

Nyrie was woken up by a loud series of knocks on her door.

She sat up and covered herself with her blanket. How long has she been asleep for? She looked out her window and the sun was still up. She sighed in relief. Not too much time had slipped away from her which meant she still had time to prepare for her strenuous evening ahead. There were only very few people who ever knocked on her door.

"Come in."

The handle turned and the door opened.

A short figure peeked her head through and a kinky-waved pig-tail fell over her shoulder.

Unsure who she was or what she was doing here Nyrie motioned with her hand to tell the little girl it was ok to enter. Young girls weren't uncommon around here, especially ones who stood out for being exceptionally beautiful. Nyrie didn't know how they got here but they usually worked as house keepers and maids until they were mature enough to begin training under the guidance of an older brothel worker. Something Nyrie wished she received, instead of Ivan.

She was too busy herself to mentor any young girls which she was somewhat thankful for.

Truth be told, Nyrie had rarely seen maids in her room as she was usually so exhausted during the day when she slept after her night of pleasing clients, someone could have thrown a bomb in her room and it would not wake her. And the young girls she had seen were as quiet as mice and were very quick on their light feet.

They did the laundry, cleaned her floors, and would bring you food if you requested their service. Something Nyrie rarely did. She enjoyed her walks to the kitchen.

Anything to get out of her stale room.

The girls here use the same dining hall all the male guards do, but mingling was forbidden and there were set times allocated for each group. Not many girls chose to eat there, taking the opportunity for the room service instead. Every girl was banned from the Tavern below, Ivan fearing they would be used by unpaying customers, not to mention the fact they couldn't even afford a meal there regardless. Guards were allowed when they were off duty only, and they had to pay for their own meals and drinks. Usually only the long-serving guards would wind up there, the new ones stayed in the dining hall, not wanting to blow their minimal wages on a meal they could get free.

Girls here got paid by having a clean bedroom, a roof over their heads and meals provided. If they were lucky, their client may leave them a tip. But she'd heard of Ivan rummaging through their rooms and taking whatever money he could find, deeming it to be his property.

Nyrie kept to herself, so she chose not to know anyone else by name or memorise too many faces. But she wasn't stupid and did realise that girls came and then were never seen again. Unsure how they arrived, why they would want to come here, or how they left. She'd thought about asking Brax many times, but the more she knew about the place, the more she'd likely want to vanish herself.

And knowing that was impossible, kept the flame on the questions blown out.

Nyrie didn't recognise the girl as she crept in quietly, shutting the door behind her. Her hair was fair, and on the closer side to a light orange. Perhaps you would call it strawberry blonde. It kinked and waved about. Not tight ringlets like Shaylin. A pretty, round face and large eyes. She looked to be around eleven years old.

But from here, there was something unusual about her face that had Nyrie squinting from the distance to make out what it was that was off about it.

Nyrie got her answer when the girl walked closer. A jagged scar on her right cheek, starting just under her eye and making its way down to her jaw over her sparse freckles. It looked to be an old wound, from the colour of it. Not pink and fresh, rather closer to her own fair skin and slightly raised. It was too straight to be anything but intentional.