"You're very confident."

But then, hadn't Ellis been warned? Bastien's chosen approaches have been made clear to him, after all.

And it doesn't feel like such a stretch. Even straightening, Ellis is aware of all the rising aches on his body. One knee is throbbing from a stray kick. His torso, all those stretches over vital organs, are going to be blotched purple and blue in the morning unless he is somehow mistaken.

So yes, he could concede now, but first—

"Did this help?