Chapter One: The Words He Missed

“The red umbrella. Right across from me.” On the recording, the opposite side of the broken glass was empty. Only a promotional flyer tumbled along the ground. The guard gave him a wary look. Lin leaned toward the monitor. Crimson writing emerged along the right edge of the footage, as though someone were writing from behind the recording. [The image did not omit her.] A second note appeared. [Reality did.]