Treville and his husband ran a children's home out in the countryside. They'd had it since the nineties; although formally named Maison de Fraise, it was nicknamed the Garrison, and the nickname stuck. At first, he and Richelieu had invited children for the summer, but early into the year of 2006, they'd proposed to turn the house into a real children's home.
Their first child came that April. Five-year-old Henri de Rochefort was short, bubbly and blond-haired. According to his files, his father was out of the picture, and his mother had been taken into hospital with a severe illness that rendered her unable to care for him. It was assumed that the placement would be temporary, but no more than a month later, the mother passed away.
Around a year later, another child arrived at the Garrison. A young girl this time, small and skinny but wide-eyed and curious. Sylvie Parris's mother was deceased, and her father was imprisoned. It was clear that the family had been impoverished, and it seemed as if this placement would also be permanent.
Then there came Mathieu Marcheaux. He was barely four years old, and according to his social worker, he'd been dropped off at nursery as per usual, but not picked up afterwards. The social worker had spent a good few hours trying to contact his parents, but to no avail. It was assumed he would be going home in the morning, but to Treville, it was painfully obvious what had happened.
In the autumn of 2008, an eight-year-old girl arrived at the Garrison. She would look nobody in the eyes, and played with her food rather than ate it. It was the sad story of a parent who had committed suicide and a mother who could no longer care for her child.
Philippe Achille arrived almost a year later, accompanied by a walking stick that looked like a dog had tried to play with it. His social worker explained the situation: a disability neither parents were willing to deal with. They adjusted the Garrison that year. There was a stair lift, as well as several handrails put in places so that it would be easier for him to get around. Philippe's walking stick was replaced, and Treville and Richelieu got him a walking frame that could fold up. They even looked into getting him a service dog, but after several bouts of rashes, they realised it probably wasn't such a good idea.
It was a year later before another child arrived at the Garrison. There was no horror like witnessing someone die, and seven-year-old Charles d'Artagnan, hid behind the sofa, had watched someone murder his father. The boy was skittish and quiet. At night he could do nothing to suppress the memories, and Treville and Richelieu could do nothing but comfort him as he cried. It seemed, as time passed, he became much more bubbly and happy; the only thing that put a damper on his spirits was the thought of going back to bed and having another nightmare.
Two months later, a young boy, in a similar position to Charles, arrived. His father had also been murdered, and his mother had left the boy in an alley. He had been found in the morning, freezing half to death, by a priest, who had warmed him up and sent him straight to the Garrison. He and Charles bonded quickly.
The February of 2011 brought a kidnapped twelve-year-old. The boy, who had grown up in a brothel, had been kidnapped by his father in a desperate attempt to see his son. The social services hadn't taken long to catch up with them and had placed young René at the Garrison.
No less than three months afterward came Lucien Grimaud, whose parents had been killed out on a trip whilst the eight-year-old was at home with the family's babysitter. It was said that lightning had hit the fishing boat and set part of it on fire. Subsequently, the child seemed to have taken a dislike to storms.
There were no more placements at the Garrison for two years, until Olivier de La Fère arrived. The teenager had been out on a paper round early in the morning, and when he came home, he found that his parents and younger brother had been murdered in their sleep. He was shaky and silent, but bonded quietly with René and Charles, and partly with Milady.
Anne Habsburg came to the Garrison late May, wearing creased and dirtied clothes. After her mother's death, her father had neglected his children, making her care for her brothers and sisters. After the social services found out, they had been forced to separate the five siblings.
Next came a twelve-year-old orphan. He had previously been in a foster home, but after a routine check showed all was not as it seemed, he and the two other children had been placed elsewhere. Treville read the report with his eyes almost closed; each line he read spoke of more and more atrocious sexual acts forced upon the three children. It took quite a while for the boy to trust them.
The most recent child who'd arrived at the Garrison was an eleven-year-old girl named Constance, who had previously been living in the care of her twenty-one-year-old brother, Jacques. However, he had spent a lot of that time sponging money to go and drink with his friends, as well as call his sister names, rather than actually caring for her.
The Garrison was busy day-in, day-out, and both Treville and Richelieu swore there was never a dull moment. How could there be, with thirteen children in the house?