We are on lockdown
Is what they say overhead

Cacophony of sirens
Shut the door quickly

No text pages no emails
We google 911

Mass casualty incident at this address
The halls are dead quiet

The blinds don’t fully cover the window
Isosceles of sunny day

Code blue ED is called
The news channel website loads

Breaking News: Live
Aerial footage of our building

We move the intern away
From the window

No audio
Police move diagonally

Something of interest at the minimart
Soundlessly the camera lingers

Someone gets a text
Drive by up the street

Report from three cars back
Behind the one that started shooting

Probably should still chart
Continue plan of care

Twitter says suspect at large
Twitter says somebody died outside

The streets are closed
Avoid the area

Tentatively doors start to open
Briefing in ten

End of the day
We’re overtime

It’s probably okay to leave
But not if you drove

The garage is still a crime scene
Use the main entrance only

News vans police lines
Yellow tape live mics

Before the briefing
Before the report

A woman crying
Sitting in the grass

People die here all the time
Just not like this

Still not unprecedented
Or fully surprising

But jarring
Scenes of violence

The surreality of how
It changes everything

Or nothing at all
Under a clear blue sky

This side of the street
Or that