62 A Man’s Reputation

"Well?" Atticus had one eyebrow raised, his arms folded across his chest. Since the three hadn't fully climbed the stairs yet while Atticus was waiting right at the end of it, he was also on higher ground, enabling him to look down on them quite literally. "I'm waiting."

Jonah and Maisie kept silent; Jonah, because he was still trying to find a way to explain the situation without causing everything to implode, while Maisie was too terrified to speak. 

Meanwhile Daphne had no such reservations. She turned her flinty gaze on that imposing figure waiting at the top of the stairs and  snorted at his dramatics. 

"Nothing that you ought to care about," Daphne said dismissively, even as her fingers curled into fists. How annoying.

Of course Atticus would be here to greet them right as they left the dungeons― to call him a shadow was too complimentary, he was more like a foul stench that refused to go away.