Sunlit High Wire

I slipped out through the ground-floor screen door and jogged two blocks over into the neighborhood park. Smack in the center of the lawn sat an octagonal wooden gazebo, completely unoccupied under the midday sun. I scaled the lattice trellis hand-over-hand, clearing the top tier to balance along the curved green handrail. The whole park was laid out wide in front of me—swings gently swaying in the breeze, pigeons circling over the benches, and gravel paths cutting clean lines through the grass. I dropped into an easy crouch, planted my heels on the rounded wood, and took in the view from the best seat in the sector.