War did not begin with noise. It began with adjustment. The day after Danielle’s reassignment, nothing exploded. No public reaction. No visible retaliation. Which meant one thing. They had expected resistance. And they had already planned around it.

Lynda woke with that understanding sitting quietly in her chest. Not fear. Not even tension. Recognition.

She stood in her apartment, watching the early Atlanta skyline stretch into the pale morning. The city moved like it always did, cars, ...