Meet the Children of Iron Oath Sentinels: Jefferson

Four children.

One is old enough to know that when trouble comes, someone has to stand between it and the younger ones. One has learned to watch adults carefully before deciding whether they can be trusted. One is still young enough to wonder whether the world might actually contain something good. And one is still small enough to simply follow the people he loves.

Meet Tommy O’Malley, Susan Carson, Ben Carson, and little Pip.

At twelve, nearly thirteen, Tommy is the oldest—and he has taken that responsibility seriously. He is wiry, wary, stubborn, and fiercely protective of the three children who depend upon him. Tommy has learned not to expect much from adults, and he certainly isn't going to hand over his trust simply because someone promises to help.

Susan is nine, but necessity has taught her to be older than her years. She watches. She thinks. She takes care of Pip because somebody has to. Unlike Tommy, Susan hasn't completely given up on the possibility that an adult might actually stay. There is still a little hope hiding behind those solemn brown eyes.

Ben is six, and he is the little spark of childhood that hardship hasn't managed to extinguish. He has known hunger and fear, and he knows when something is wrong. But he is still curious. Still capable of mischief. Still fascinated by the world around him. His bright red hair and freckles make him easy to spot—and his blue eyes make it very difficult to hide what he's thinking.

And then there is Pip.

Pip is barely more than a baby, too young to understand why the world has been so hard or why his older brothers and sister are always watching out for him. He simply knows Susan's hand is safe, Tommy is someone to follow, and Ben is one of his people.

Together, they have survived by becoming their own little family.

Then Constance Gwynne walks into Echo Ridge under the name Eleanor Hayes.

She sees four children who have been left to fend for themselves.

And, for perhaps the first time, someone sees them and decides they shouldn't have to fight for every scrap.