Two pools of light. A lot of dark between them. Seven in the evening, the feed store empty except for two people pretending they don't notice the other is still there. Clark Edwards works best after dark. He has a theory about the new brief that, if he is right, will matter. He has not said it out loud. Not once. The seeing of the move, the having of it, sits in him like a held breath. Travis comes up the dark center of the floor on his way out. They trade a word about the brief. The word is "mostly." It's a small word. Clark lets it sit. Featured: Clark Edwards, division strategist. Travis Stone. The Marfa Mavericks is a daily fiction podcast about a creative agency in West Texas. New episodes weekday mornings. Listen in order or do not. Follow the world at @marfamavericks on Instagram, TikTok, X, Threads, and Bluesky. . . . | ai-assisted fiction