Chapter 4 — Blueprints of Control

Thomas Carter

The hum of the city drifted faintly through the thick glass walls of Thomas’s office, muted and distant. He preferred it that way—an orderly separation between the chaos of life outside and the clinical precision within these walls. The office was a testament to his success: a sleek, modernist design of sharp angles and neutral tones, broken only by the vivid green of a single potted plant in the corner. Floor-to-ceiling windows framed Manhattan like a portrait, the skyline stretching endlessly into the horizon.