Gideon has been quietly coming to similar conclusions. When Zipporah falls mercifully asleep, he's found himself more than once regarding her and wondering whether her future will include the same miseries he suffered. Were she in his care permanently, he'd see to it she wouldn't--nearly anything would be better than tithing an innocent child to the Bastion's cruel hands--but, of course, she isn't.

He's not certain where these children come from, or where they will return to, but he hopes her true parents have the sense to keep her safe from harm.

What more can any of us do? Gideon shakes his head, staring down at his half of their conversation. Felix, you -

But he thinks better of it, turning his stylus around and using the wide, thick end to erase those words.