Glossed over it the first time but came back to read in more detail. There's so much there. My favorite part was the show-don't-tell in chapter four: dirty shoes and clothes, a reference to the forest, and finally a bunch of people in a girl's pocket. That's like a whole shortstory on the side forming entirely in the reader's head, all by itself. You know what went down, even while the protagonist is too occupied by his own plight to notice or care. 

Now THAT's writing. Also the despair and fear of those who may or may not shrink is so well described that I can feel it. This story is great. Thank you for sharing.