The next morning, Cassis was still burning with rage. The image of Janice looking at him with fear, as if he were a threat, made something twist inside him. He wasn't angry at her, but at whoever had put that fear into her. Someone would pay for that. And he had a pretty good idea who it was. If it were up to him, he'd already be at Janice's house kicking down the door, actually he would have done so yesterday already. But Arianna, though trembling with rage herself, and the rest of the group had urged caution. There could be more to this than they realized.

The group had gathered at his parents' house that evening to discuss about possible classes for the children. But the moment Cassis and Arianna had stepped in, they noticed something was wrong. After Arianna told the others what had happened with Janice just a few minutes ago, the room had nearly exploded with anger.

It was Helen who brought them back down to earth.

"Before we rush in," she'd said, "we need to think this through."

And she was right. She laid out the problems clearly:

If Janice was in danger, why hadn't she said anything? There had to be a reason. Was she being threatened? Was she afraid of being separated from her siblings?

Janice and her siblings were minors. Her uncle was their legal guardian. If he was abusing or neglecting them, they needed proof. Otherwise, any intervention could backfire, and the children could be taken away from them and returned to him by law enforcement.

Even if they removed the uncle, what then? Just threatening him wouldn't solve anything. Where would the children live? How would they eat? Who would take care of them?

Helen had promised to bring them a possible solution in the morning. Well, it was morning now and Cassis was ready to act. Arianna was too. Her face was cold with focus. He'd never seen her so angry. When he did something she didn't like or something that was actually stupid, she displayed anger that was hot in nature. This cold fury she showed him now was new.

They walked together to Helen's house, where the rest of the group was already waiting. To Cassis' surprise, a man in his fifties was sitting beside Helen in a wheelchair.

"Everyone," Helen said, "this is Sam. We used to work for the same employer, though in different divisions, and he's also a lawyer. He owns a large part of this neighbourhood."

Cassis blinked. So this was Helen's mysterious friend. He eyed the man. If he'd worked for the Shadows of Avaria like Helen, then which division? Probably Brain, given his calm presence and sharp eyes. Cassis usually scrutinised new people thoroughly, but right now saving Janice came first. Still, he mentally filed testing Sam away for later. For now, he would be civil and polite.

"Nice to meet you," Cassis said politely. "Aunt Helen's told us"—he gestured toward Arianna and himself—"a bit about her old work."

Sam turned to Helen, giving her a sharp look. She nodded ever so slightly. The man was intelligent. The wheelchair might make him look unthreatening, but those eyes saw everything. Still, for now, he was an ally.

They quickly laid out the situation: what they suspected, what they feared, and what they wanted to do. Sam — or Samuel, as he asked them to call him — listened intently, then said, "We need proof. Photos. Statements. Something that shows this man is unfit to care for children. Then we need a suitable alternative guardian."

Cassis immediately started to volunteer, but Samuel cut him off.

"Not you. And not Arianna. You're both too young, even if you're strong. That strength will count against you, not for you. You'll be seen as fighters who will be away from home too much."

Cassis clenched his jaw but didn't argue. After working with social services when he was a teacher, he knew Samuel was right.

"And it can't be anyone from this group," Samuel continued. "Danielle and Marcus are already caring for two kids. The young families are stretched thin. Liam and Camden..." He glanced at the couple. "You're both too young — and, frankly, as a gay couple, your chances are lower."

Liam looked down, hurt. Camden squeezed his hand and nodded grimly.

"I know," Camden said. "My grandfather founded Justice for Children, and I've worked there all my adult life. The law makes it very hard to help kids like Janice. And homophobia is real. It still affects these decisions, especially now in these uncertain times."

Cassis hated it. Hated that his brother was subjected to this kind of discrimination. Hated that in the middle of an apocalypse, they still had to play by the rules of a broken world. But he also understood that those same rules protected others, too. If they tore them down recklessly, society would collapse even faster.

Still... it burned.

Samuel continued. "Helen is our best option. Former government employee. Owns her home. Moderately wealthy. The only things she's missing are a direct connection to the children and a partner."

He turned to Helen and grinned. "I'll play the partner."

Helen rolled her eyes. Cassis looked at her. Was that a smile? Maybe, now he understood why she'd never brought Sam along on the dungeon run or the Belaney trip with the family. Samuel wasn't capable of going into that kind of terrain with his wheelchair. He wouldn't be able to move well, would be vulnerable and maybe even be seen as weak. Though Cassis doubted Samuel was weak, he'd be a physical burden. Add to that the fact that Helen was independent to the core and it got complicated. She was even more independent than he was. Sometimes it was still hard to treat Arianna as his partner, as someone he needed to make decisions with, not for, and she'd been his only companion for a decade in the other timeline.

Sam had his work cut out for him. Still... Cassis didn't hate him. Not yet, anyway. He'd see if he was worthy of his aunt soon enough.

"Well," Cassis said, "the connection can be me. Arianna and I employed Janice at our NGO as a part-timer. She was also my student. And she was at the school during the frenzy. Helen was there too and took care of her and her siblings."

Samuel nodded. "That might be enough. But first we need proof."

They worked out a plan that was simple, but effective.

Cassis and Arianna would visit the house under the pretence of speaking with the uncle to get approval for Janice's part-time work. Since he was her guardian, they needed his signature. Meanwhile, Helen would sneak inside, verify the living situation, talk to the children, and gather evidence. If the children wanted to leave, if they supported the idea, they could move forward.

If not... Then they'd have to find another way.

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Arianna rang the doorbell at Janice's house in the afternoon. Their research had shown that all the children were regularly going to school or kindergarten and should be home by now.

Cassis stood beside her, scanning the porch. It was a mess. Unkempt, littered with cigarette butts, a tipped-over chair rusting in one corner. From inside came the thumping of loud music and the occasional burst of male laughter.

Several motorcycles were parked haphazardly out front.

"Maybe we should get statements from the neighbours too," Cassis muttered.

They waited. No one came. Arianna rang the bell again. This time, heavy footsteps approached the door. When it opened, the music blared out louder, and a wave of alcohol-tainted air hit them like a wall.

Janice's uncle stood there. He didn't look like the monster Cassis had imagined, just a worn-down, average-looking man in his fourties. Not particularly tall. Not strong. Barely steady on his feet, in fact. The way he clutched the doorframe and squinted at them told Cassis all he needed to know: the man was drunk.

"Yes?" the uncle asked, suspicion already in his voice.

Though Arianna had rung the bell and stood in front, the man's eyes went straight to Cassis, ignoring her entirely. Typical, Cassis thought. He kept his expression neutral. He could play along.

"Hello. My name is Cassis Walker," he said calmly. "I wanted to talk to you about Janice."

The uncle straightened a little. "Janice? What about her?"

"My partner and I want to offer her a part-time job working with us. But we need her guardian's approval and signature."

The man's suspicious scowl turned into a toothy grin.

"A job? That's a good girl."

From inside, someone shouted, "Kevin, hurry the fuck up. It's your turn!"

Kevin turned his head and yelled back, "Take a break! I'm busy now!"

He still hadn't invited them inside. From what Cassis could see through the gap in the door, the entryway was filthy: cluttered, dusty, stained.

"Did we come at a bad time?" Cassis asked smoothly, then pulled out a neatly prepared employment contract. Everything was filled in; only Janice's and Kevin's signatures were missing. "We won't keep you long. If you could just go over this with Janice, then sign it and give it back, we'll be on our way."

Kevin's eyes scanned the contract, then widened slightly when he saw the pay.

"Yeah, yeah. That sounds good." He licked his lips. "Just a moment."

The door slammed shut again. Through the thick wood, they heard Kevin shouting for Janice. No answer. Then his heavy steps moved upward. He was going upstairs.

"Is Helen going to be alright?" Arianna asked, low.

"You know her," Cassis replied. "He won't see her. But all this shouting, all this chaos, it's good for our case."

Arianna nodded, jaw tight.

Several long minutes passed before the door opened again. This time, Janice stood in the doorway. Her uncle's hand clamped hard around her arm. Her eyes were wide, horrified. She was close to tears. Cassis forced a warm, calm smile onto his face, though rage boiled beneath his skin. That grip was far too strong. She'd have bruises by tomorrow.

"Hello, Janice," he said gently. "Like we discussed before we'd like to offer you that job. We just need your signatures here."

Janice nodded quickly, keeping her mouth shut. She probably didn't trust herself to speak without crying. Kevin still hadn't let go of her. With trembling fingers, Janice signed. Then Kevin scrawled his own messy signature next to hers.

"How lucky," Kevin said, giving Janice a shake. "Now you don't have to take that other job. Your brother caused a scene for nothing, that drama queen."

Cassis froze. What did he mean, her brother? Had something happened to him? But now wasn't the time to press. He smiled at Janice again and said softly, "Alright. Then we'll see you in a few hours for your first shift."

To Kevin, he added, "Sorry, we'll try not to keep her out too late."

Kevin snorted. "See that you don't. She's needed here too. The children don't take care of themselves."

That's your job, Cassis thought bitterly. Not a teenager's.

But being a selfish asshole wasn't against the law. Not yet. He and Arianna turned and walked away. Every step felt wrong, like they were abandoning her. But this was part of the plan. They had the first piece. Now Helen had to get the rest.

About twenty minutes later, they met Helen one street over from Janice's house. She looked grim. Cassis had already been imagining terrible things. But seeing Helen's expression, tight-lipped, pale, her fists clenched, he realized the truth might be even worse than what he'd feared.

Before he could ask, Helen began talking. Her words came out sharp and fast.

"The children are on board. The reason they haven't said anything is because they're afraid of being separated. And that fear's not without reason."

She took a breath and went on.

"When the uncle's friends moved in — yes, the ones you heard in the living room and the charming owners of the motorcycles — and they started drinking and being their charming selves, the kids contacted social services. A caseworker came. But the uncle sweet-talked her. Told her his friends had lost their places and were staying temporarily. Claimed they felt safer together in these dangerous times. Said it was better for the children, since now there were four grown men to 'protect' them."

Helen made air quotes with her fingers, her voice bitter.

"The kids had also told the worker that the uncle took all their parents' money. The uncle told her he 'invested it,' because feeding five children wasn't cheap, especially with food prices going up."

"The caseworker believed him," Helen said through clenched teeth. "Worse, she warned the kids not to make waves. Told Janice to 'endure' until she turns eighteen. That's when she could apply for guardianship over her siblings."

She looked furious. Then, with effort, she pushed it down and continued.

"They don't get money from the uncle. The three oldest, Janice and the twins, work part-time jobs or cashed in their own accounts just to feed themselves and the younger two. That's why Janice and the twins are so thin. They give most of their food to the little ones."

"The uncle and his friends? They just drink, gamble, play cards, watch TV. Janice and the twins have to cook, clean, serve them."

She looked up, her expression darkening.

"One of the twins told me they started taking on more chores recently because the men had begun looking at Janice."

Arianna stiffened. Cassis's hands curled into fists.

"They tried to keep her away from the men, but on Monday she came back late from her job with you two. One of the men saw her come in from the back. The uncle was furious. He didn't know she'd gone out. He likes to control them."

"When he found money on her, he accused her of being a prostitute. Then he pushed her toward his friend, saying she didn't need to 'go out' for work."

Helen's voice cracked slightly.

"By the time her brothers saw what was happening and attacked them, Janice had already been stripped to her underwear."

Cassis felt like he'd been punched in the gut.

"The boys managed to pull her away, but they got beaten for it. The uncle's friends are almost level 10 from what the children told me. Stronger than the boys. One twin has a broken arm. The other had a head injury. He was unconscious the entire night. He only woke up yesterday morning."

"They still went to school," Helen finished quietly. "No one noticed."

Cassis couldn't hear the rest. He'd already taken two steps toward the house.

"Cassis." Arianna's voice was firm. She grabbed his arm, stopping him. "We need to do this right. Otherwise, they could be taken back."

Only then did he realize how far he'd gone. His pulse was racing. He hadn't even thought, he'd just started walking towards the house.

Helen, now calmer, handed over a folder. "Here are the twins' written statements. I took photos and videos of the inside of the house too."

Cassis took the folder with a tight nod. "We need to get statements from the neighbours," he said, his voice tight. "With all that shouting, someone had to have heard something."

Arianna looked like she wanted to cry and scream at the same time. "I really want to go back and heal them," she said. "But as irritating as it is we need their injuries documented. They have to see a doctor immediately, and the injuries need to be reported properly."

"I already told them that," Helen said. "They'll leave with Janice. The excuse is that they want jobs too. Once they're out, we'll take them straight to a doctor, and then to the police."

She exhaled slowly.

"Sam is already working on the legal side. He's contacted the social worker. To get out the two younger children, we need her. With all this evidence, she needs to take them into custody, even if the process of becoming their legal guardian will probably take months, if not years. Cassis, it's best if the two of us go with the social worker since the uncle and his friends are strong. Arianna should go with the teens, and Sam will be with the police when they finally arrive. But we need to take out the younger children fast, otherwise the uncle could hurt them."

They all nodded. Now there was nothing left but to wait. They stood near the subway station, scanning the sidewalk, watching for Janice and her brothers. Cassis's knuckles were still white as he held the folder full of statements, and the undeniable truth: These children were in danger. And nobody had helped them until now. Nobody had seen the real depth of their despair, not even him.

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