Oh, dear. The little one was sucking his thumb, and the littler one was crying, and the smell coming off of one (or both) of them was awful. Malachi stepped back to get a better look around the immediate area, but another child came running out of an alley.

"...Mister Ward?"

That had been his name, Malachi was pretty sure. Concerned, he asked, "what are you doing out here?"