"I'm sure the governor would be very interested to hear that she's a man and has a child who looks like he's rolled in dirt roaming the streets instead of staying in whatever nice school she picked out for him," Garth'zel says dryly, ignoring the kicks. Good luck getting through that heavy boot leather.

"No parents, huh?" He studies the boy for a moment, never releasing his hold on his arm. Under the layers of dirt, he could see he was too thin. "What's your name, kid?"