The Concrete Seam: A Modern Post-Western Tale of Asphalt, Iron Boundaries, and False Sovereigns
CHAPTER 1: THE MEASURE OF AN INCH The metallic click of the steel-cased pen was the only sound inside the cab. Click. Release. Click. Outside, the morning air over the cul-de-sac was thick with the scent of cut fescue and damp asphalt, a clean, sterile midwestern peace that always felt hours away from rotting. Through…