Dan sat behind the wheel of his cruiser, the glow of the dashboard casting a faint blue hue over his face. The city was quiet—for now—but his mind wasn’t. He reached for the radio, keyed it up with a practiced hand, and spoke low.

“Unit 14 to Unit 22—check in when you get a sec.”

His voice was calm, but his thumb tapped a nervous rhythm on the steering wheel. She was late checking in. Maybe just caught up on a call, maybe nothing—but Dan’s gut never let him rest until he heard her voice on the other end.