Free Tahn by L. A. Kelly

waiting, and she forced herself to meet his intense eyes. These were children, and for their sakes she must speak boldly.
    “I saw that you can read, sir,” she began. “Are you teaching it to them?”
    “I haven’t gotten to that yet,” he answered with no excuses.
    She swallowed hard, searching for the words. “You do agree that it’s important?”
    “I suppose so, yes. But first things first, Lady.”
    “ First they should be children! You’re supposed to teach them, you say. But you hurt them, and they hurt each other when they act this way! It is letters they need, and a decent chance to develop a moral strength. Don’t you consider such things?”
    He looked at her in a way that she found impossible to discern. And then he nodded. “I would be grateful,” he told her, “if you would choose to begin while I am gone.”
    He called to Vari to follow him, and then he turned and walked out.
    Netta wanted to scream at him. How could he act as though he could just snatch her and take over her life? He had no right to expect her to do his bidding, no matter what his reasons were. She was angry, but then she turned and looked at the children. They were all staring at her as if waiting for something. She couldn’t just walk away.
    They were so quiet and solemn, with a look in their eyes that told her they had seen more than their share of suffering. He had said they would need to rest. A shame not to have decent beds. “Are you all very tired?” she asked.
    “No,” Tam answered, looking at her with his face scrunched up. “Are you going to stay with us?”
    “A little while,” she told him. “Until my ankle is strong, at least. But I need to find my family when I can.”
    “But our teacher said your family is dead,” Stuva told her.
    The words were like a blow to Netta. Surely not. Not all of them!
    “It’s all right,” six-year-old Rane added. “We don’t have family either. We make it all right.”
    “We’ve got each other, though,” Briant said. “We’re a shayleelay.”
    “A what was that you said?” Netta asked.
    “A shayleelay. Since we’re not a family,” the boy told her.
    “But what does that mean?”
    “It’s just what we are. Since we stay together and all.”
    “Where did you hear that word?” she asked.
    “I made it up. Vari said I could.”
    Vari was returning to the chamber just then and laughed. “I didn’t know you’d take me seriously.” He was carrying Netta’s belongings that had been by the entrance, and he set them down beside her.
    “The teacher said to bring these in,” he explained. Then he gave Netta a long look. “You shouldn’t be so upset. He’s the best.”
    She thought of Karll once more and could barely squelch the tears. “He’s a killer,” she said quietly and then immediately wished she hadn’t spoken. She was still unsure of this boy, or even the smaller ones. But her words didn’t seem to bother any of them.
    “Yes,” Vari acknowledged. “We know. But he’s the best. He’s quick and he’s quiet. He don’t brag, just gets the job done.”
    Netta was certain that she read admiration in the boy’s eyes. “Surely you don’t wish to be like him?” she asked, unable to hide her horror.
    But he was looking at her oddly. And he sighed. “Not completely like him, I guess,” he finally answered. “I never wanted to be a killer, nor much of a fighter neither. And he respects that.”
    Netta stared at the boy in front of her. He was as big as she was. With wild hair and wildlooking eyes, he truly looked like he could be dangerous. What he said had surprised her. But especially what he said about that frightening warrior. Hadn’t he just been teaching them, even the littlest ones, to fight?
    Vari must have seen her doubt. “You can be sure none of us’ll hurt you,” he said. “We’d fear the Dorn over that, indeed. And he won’t hurt you neither, ma’am. He’s taken with you, perhaps. I don’t know.”
    His words hung in