I nodded, trying to figure him out. “What if you could come to Gimel? There are plenty of homes, we’re doing our best to provide food, and most of that is free. If you want stable… we could arrange that. Say… five people from your family.”

“Ten.”

“Five… Ten if you abide by our rules,” I said, ninety percent sure they would. “You don’t kill anyone when you distract. You don’t kill anyone after.”

“Killing like this destroys you,” the boy said.

“Gets you executed,” Rain interpreted.

“If you hurt anyone it’s someone who deserves it,” I said.

“A man. He gave Goddess names of people who were educating their children alone so they would not learn Goddess Tongue in schools. Later he gave Coalition names of those who were loyal to Goddess. Some of ours. He’s a man of sick loyalty, always turning around. The prisons love him so they go easy.”

“Maybe,” I said.

The boy translated the conversation so far for his parent and other family members.

The adult responded.

“We’ll take that knife for your distraction. Put a blade through his tush so he won’t be able to hold his shit in.”

“Tush?” Rain asked.

“Rain,” Ashley said. “It’s not important.”

“Wrong word?” the boy asked.

Rain nodded, while I pressed, “No harm they can’t heal.”

The father said something.

“We could harm three,” the boy said. “Three to distract. All deserving. Sick loyalty, sick eyes, and a sick that lasts for generations. Two men and a woman.”

Rain touched my shoulder. I looked at him and he indicated the group.

They were agitated.

Armstrong was here.

“Don’t hurt them too much,” I said.

Rain added, “We can’t guarantee we’ll give the visas to any specific people. This is for your family as a whole.”

“Yes, of course. We’re happy here, but some of ours don’t have prison, hoping we don’t get punished so we can stay longer. Some don’t have anything. They’ll go.”

“They’ll be good?”

He nodded.

For a lot of lines, for a kid who wasn’t older than Kenzie, he wasn’t even asking his dad or translating. He just seemed to accept it as the rule or fact of their whole dynamic.

“When we signal,” I said. “You distract. Do it near the showers. Keep guards away from the, ah, prayer room?”

“Yeah,” Rain said. “The eating room?”

The boy said a word.

“That, yeah,” Rain said.

“And don’t tell,” I stressed. I figured it was a given, but not kidnapping and assaulting diplomatic envoys seemed like a given too, and Shin was way the fuck behind the learning curve on that one.

“Keep your deal and we keep our throats closed.”

Ashley reached out again. The boy reached to take the knife, discreetly putting it away. He began explaining to his family.

We walked back to our group.