This audiobook is narrated by a digital voice.

The rain drummed against the windows of the surveillance center with a steady rhythm that Marcus Chen had grown to find almost comforting over the past three years. Almost. Tonight, however, the sound seemed more ominous, like fingers tapping impatiently on glass, demanding entry into his carefully controlled world.

Marcus adjusted his headset and leaned back in his ergonomic chair, studying the wall of monitors that stretched before him like a digital constellation. Each screen displayed a different slice of the city—street corners, building lobbies, parking garages, even some private residences whose owners had voluntarily joined the Enhanced Safety Network. The program promised peace of mind through constant vigilance, and the citizens of New Haven had embraced it with surprising enthusiasm.

"Another quiet night in paradise," muttered his colleague Sarah from the workstation beside him. She was scrolling through footage from the downtown district, her tired eyes reflecting the blue glow of her screens.

Marcus nodded but didn't respond. He'd learned that small talk made the work harder somehow, made it more personal. It was better to maintain professional distance from both his colleagues and the subjects he monitored. The training manual called them "subjects," never "people." Marcus understood why.

A soft chime indicated an incoming priority assignment. Marcus's stomach tightened as he opened the encrypted message. Priority assignments were rare and usually unpleasant. They involved monitoring specific individuals deemed "persons of interest" by the city's algorithmic threat assessment system.