5 Chapter 5 Lord Stonewall

As Lord Stonewall entered the room, they both took note of his appearance. He was bald, with white hair around his ears. His long moustache was thin, running from under his nose, to meet up with the hair just over his ears. He wore a monocle over his right eye, and sported a light brown overcoat over a pale blue vest. Fur trimmed the edge of his overcoat, that was the same white as his hair. A gold chain, ornately decorated to appear as a long thin leaf, held the coat on, as his immense size threatened to have it drop off his shoulders.

He gave them a thin smile, that gave hint to pearly white teeth, as he lowered himself into a large chair.

"I am Lord Stonewall. How may I help you this day?"

"We are here, to look into the rumors," said Airow.

Lord Stonewall gave a massive chuckle. "Which rumors would that be? In a town of this size, there are countless rumors circulating at any time. Could you be referring to the wall, or the recent skirmish between the angels and demons?"

"Well, I guess that is true. There are many rumors. We are here because of the ones about child trafficking."

"Ah, those rumors. And what of them?"

"We have already gathered a bit of evidence, but we don't wish to jump to conclusions. Is there anything you can provide us with? However, from what I've seen so far, I don't think there is any reason for you to have done such actions. You are already quite wealthy, which could be a good or bad form of evidence."

Lord Stonewall looked at him, obviously confused, as he glanced at Grey. She was watching for any signs of guilt in his actions.

"Look, I'm not sure what rumors you've heard, exactly, or what game you are playing, but as for my innocence in such accusations, allow me to show you something."

Lord Stonewall heaved himself up from the chair, and led them to the door. They followed, on guard for any foul play. He led them down the fancy entry hall, to a door on their left.

"This doorway leads to the west wing. My family has participated in caring for the orphans of this city since before I was born."

He opened the door, and led them inside. As they stepped into the small room, it appeared to be some form of storage room. Shelves holding piles of neatly folded clothes lined the walls.

"Whenever a new orphan arrives, the first thing we do, is bath the child, and place clean clothes upon it. Then it proceeds through here," Lord Stonewall led them out of the initial room, and down a short hall.

A door to the right opened to exposed a long room of beds.

"This is where they sleep at night. I have nannies that tend to them in case any wake with night terrors, or other such needs."

"Where are the children now?" asked Grey.

"They are here, on the left."

He threw open the door to their left, and stepped out of the way so they could see the many faces turn in their direction. While they didn't look starved, they didn't look plump either. They were various ages ranging from two or three, to nine or ten. The long room they were in contained desks for them to learn reading and writing, and an open area with several different kinds of simple toys.

"Are you satisfied?" he asked, giving them a scathing look.

"What happens to the children that are older then these?" asked Airow.

"Many of them get jobs as apprentices outside amongst the city. They are welcomed because those taking them know that they can read and write, unlike many of the poor children who have families."

"Doesn't it take money for such training? I don't imagine those teaching the children would take them on as apprentices just out of the kindness of their hearts." Grey frowned as the children hesitantly turned back to the woman who had been talking to them. She didn't believe Lord Stonewall was being entirely truthful.

"The city pays for that, as well as refunding any expenses my household incurs raising the children. We provide the room for the orphanage, and hire the workers, as well as tending to the children directly."

"It seems that the weak outer wall around the city would allow demons to come in and ensure there were more orphans to attend your orphanage," observed Grey, shutting the door back so the children didn't overhear her. It was obvious from Airow's expression, that he had been thinking the same thing.

Lord Stonewall sighed, and shook his head.

"It is no secret that my family is the one who attends to the walls in the city. The outer wall, encircling the city, had once been a thing of beauty and strength, but an earthquake when I was young, caused it to crack and crumble. My father had it rebuilt, but it has never been as good as it once was. The materials available to rebuild the wall have been stretched thin from the constant attacks from the demons. About ten years ago, give or take some time, the city was attacked by a massive army of demons, that almost wiped us out. The people had fled here, to my estate, to try and survive the onslaught. If the angels had not arrived when they did, we would not be having this conversation right now. I only wish those blasted angels had stuck around a bit longer after they drove off the horde, to help with the cleanup. Many died in the aftermath as we struggled to get our city back to order. I had so many orphans at that time, that sadly, I had to send some to another city. To keep them safe from demons on the road, they were taken in locked wagons. That is where the rumors of child trafficking originated."

"Thank you, Lord Stonewall," said Airow. Grey nodded and they left the estate.

"We should check out the records for the town, to see if what he has told us holds up," said Grey, once they were outside. "I'm not sure what else to do."

"Good idea," agreed Airow.