Then his brain starts working again all the way, and he realizes the free woman--Claire, her name is Claire, he needs to keep his head afloat--asked him a question, so he opens his mouth and what comes out is quietly steely.

"Summer and Winter care," he said. "I'm not owned by Winter right now, but they care. They would notice if I stayed here, and miss me, and I would miss them."

And then he cuts it off before he can reveal more emotional vulnerabilities than is wise. Matt winces at himself; he must really be panicking if he's blurting things like that out.