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The Surprising Truth About Lying
failure on the elevated rail line. Our preliminary
assessment points to a single, non-systemic electrical
relay issue. Full power restoration is expected within
the hour.”
No derailment. Structural debris. Standard
mechanical failure.
Henry looked at the gaping, torn-up concrete wall,
the train carriage lying on its side, and the pool of dark
fluid seeping into the pavement. He looked at the
ambulance that had just slammed its doors shut, taking
the cost of the lie away to a hospital.
This lie wasn't elegant like his Slumberol script. It
was insulting. It was cheap. It was a bureaucratic
fiction designed to save the city’s bond rating, not a
single human life. It didn't try to comfort or persuade;
it just told the world to shut up and wait.
The reporter, clearly baffled by the discrepancy
between the "structural debris" and the visible
wreckage, stammered, "But, Director, we've seen rescue
personnel extracting victims from what appears to be a
carriage."
The Director cut him off with a practiced,
compassionate head tilt. "Our fire crews performed a
routine safety sweep of the rail line immediately
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