Chapter Five: The Space a Lie Leaves Behind

When Lin asked whether Su remembered her father, she handed him *The river burns upon the roof* and placed Su Henian's name beneath NO. Ye brought news. An entrance to the Verge had opened inside the municipal archive, where records from the fire seventeen years ago were stored with the succession books of the Calendar Correctors. Zhou led the way, leaving instructions everywhere: *If you don't know me, read my left sleeve. If it calls me a liar, inspect my shoe. If that has changed too, handcuff me outside Vault Seven. Do not let me enter.* The archive lobby was crowded with citizens trying to prove themselves. A man shouted, “I am your husband,” and his wife's wedding ring cut into bone.