Thorne Point Of View.

The guard returned some time later, this time not alone. Behind him shuffled a small, timid boy, barely older than ten. His clothes were worn, dirt smudged across his sleeves, and his wide eyes darted nervously between me, Cairn, and the guards. He looked ready to vanish entirely if anyone so much as blinked too hard.

I stepped forward slowly, keeping my hands visible, voice low and firm. “You’re safe here,” I said. “No one will harm you. You don’t need to be ...