The Cold Geometry of Survival: A Master Chief’s Final Institutional Engagement
CHAPTER 1: THE IRON GAUNTLET The fluorescent light overhead vibrated with a low, hydraulic hum, casting a dead, sickly hue across the concrete corridor. The air tasted of chemical bleach and old skin, heavy and completely still. John Vance did not look at the walls. He didn’t need to. His heels were locked precisely two…