The man who stepped forward from the encirclement held his crossbow aimed at Lewin's chest. He was older than the others, the kind of older that came from years of doing this exact work.
He kept the weapon steady. "The document," he said. "Hand it over, and the three of you walk out."
Lewin looked at him. He thought about the names on that first page and what they meant. He thought about his mother and his sister in the citadel workers' wing, and what would happen to them if Beorn's position collapsed.
He did not lower his eyes. "I don't know what you are talking about," he said.
The crossbows fired.
Lewin moved on instinct. He got behind the merchant house doorframe before the second bolt fired. A third bolt scraped the wood above him.
