THOMAS CHEN: "I WATCHED MY FAMILY DIE FOR ASKING QUESTIONS"

TESTIMONY (Recorded October 2057)

"My daughter was sick. She needed specialist medical treatment only available in Zone 14. We had valid travel permits. Everything was legitimate. We waited three months for those permits.

When Inspector Jean reviewed our documents, she looked at my wife's ID and said 'This looks wrong.' My wife asked what was wrong with it. Jean just repeated 'It looks wrong' and set it aside. No explanation. No appeals process. My wife was crying. Lin was asking if we could see the doctor now.

I approached Jean one more time. I said 'My daughter needs medical help. What do we need to fix?' Jean looked at Lin - my seven-year-old daughter who could barely stand - and said 'Should have thought of that before bringing fraudulent documents.'

Then she gave the order. 'Clear them. Lethal force authorized.'

The first shots hit my wife and daughter. They dropped in front of me. Just... gone. Lin didn't even scream. One moment she was asking about the doctor. The next she was on the ground. Blood everywhere.

I don't remember running. I don't remember hiding. The next thing I remember is kneeling over their bodies after the shooting stopped. Begging them to wake up. Knowing they wouldn't.

Isabella Jean walked past me while I was holding my dead daughter. She was checking documents on the corpses. Making sure she had 'evidence' we were dangerous. She stepped over my wife's body without looking down.

I live in the Belt now. I can never go back to protected zones. If I did, they'd kill me too. But at least out here, I can tell the truth about what happened. My family died for nothing except Isabella Jean's cruelty. I won't let them be forgotten."

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