The clerk actually called the road crew. They closed the bridge at dawn 'for inspection.' When it finally cracked that afternoon, the road was already blocked off. Edwin watched the news that night and saw his warning had worked, even if no one knew it was him.

The clerk forgot all about it. The bridge fell exactly as the paper said, and five people were hurt. Edwin felt the failure like a stone in his chest. He swore he would never trust anyone else with the slot's warnings again, and went home to write his next note alone.