HIRAM'S POV:

My driver pulls up to the convention center in Boulder City, parking near a tree stripped bare by winter. The air bites a little-just cold enough to remind me it's December. The streets are quiet except for a couple of locals strolling past. "Hang around, or you can come in with me," I say to him as I look at the building in front of us.

Above the entrance, a banner hangs: BOULDER CITY ART FESTIVAL 2024.

I step out of my car, making my way towards the entrance. The moment I step ...