Perimeter Check

Too much indoor dust. Needed a high perch to scout the perimeter, so I scaled the ribbed radiator and hauled myself onto the wide wooden sill. There was a latch mechanism right in the center—thick zinc alloy, locked tight into a brass strike plate. Slid a claw beneath the latch arm to test the resistance. Stiff spring, zero play. Outside, branches were swaying and the horizon opened up wide. The glass is cold, but the boundary holds. For now.