Don't give up on me ✓

[46] PR Savior

'And in the end all I learned was how to be strong...Alone' - Highway Heart

Chapter 46: PR Savior

Brianna screamed. Mrs Maythorne's words went around my head in some sort of twisted carousel.

I traded them.

The kids were gone because she traded them?!

"What did you trade them for?" Zander asked.

Not my first question but ok.

I picked up the lantern, apologizing to Kaya for the loss of her direct light. She put her charcoal down and stopped drawing. 

She should be paying more attention to her surroundings anyway. Her prison family was gone, these new intimidating people were here and she hadn't noticed a thing.

"I traded one group for another," Mrs Maythorne repeated, having no shame in that. "Don't look at me like I'm a criminal. I took them to a larger clan with more resources and adults to take care of them. Those kids need more than a big house. They need attention and care and I knew I couldn't do that for them.  We have a mission here."

We do?  I'm not sure what that's about. 

"But you left Brianna and Kaya here."

"They are both older than the others," Mrs Maythorne said, "Besides, Kaya is like a daughter to me and Brianna is Zander's girlfriend-"

"No I'm not!" Brianna snapped, "Zane and I broke up and those kids became my family!"

"You can go live with them if you want," Mrs Maythorne said without skipping a beat, "I am not keeping anyone a prisoner here-"

"Except for me," I said.

"Even you," Mrs Maythorne told me, "Now that you know what you are, you are free to leave though I doubt you will. Maythorne Manor trains specters. That's what I can offer here."

"So does that mean I can join the kids wherever they went?" I asked.  Because it sounded like a nice place. 

I'd be down to play puzzles with the kids.  Life here has been pretty dramatic these last few days.  Maybe I could take a vacation.

"I traded the small children for these bigger ones. Like I said, I don't have the capability to raise children.  But I do have the capability to train fighters.  This group comes from that larger clan of specters. I agreed to take care of them if their clan takes care of ours."

Seems like people are trading each other all over the place.

Brianna had started to cry. Honestly, I get her. I felt like that too when I came here.  Mrs Maythorne takes you away from everything you ever knew. 

Not to mention, she was stuck living with her ex-boyfriend. 

Speaking of ex-boyfriend, Zander was trying to soothe her though she kept flicking his hands away. 

The bigger group started to wander into our house, mumbling 'hellos' to us as they did. They'd listened to the whole conversation and knew that they weren't exactly getting a warm welcome from us.

The only person who was not letting this go, was Jesper.

"What's wrong, Jesper?" Mrs Maythorne asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?" 

"You trade human lives like cattle."

Wrong again.  We are not human.

But Mrs Maythorne's answer was a morbid warning, "If you knew what our enemies trade us for, you would understand. These are precautions. We are creating fighters."