Chapter 10 - The Horizon Ahead
I turned away from my family without waiting for an answer, walking briskly across the park grass toward the lead Humvee.
Behind me, the park remained completely silent. No one clapped. No band played. But as I reached the vehicle, two hundred soldiers snapped into a synchronized, razor-sharp salute that honored every year of blood, sweat, and silence I had given to my country.
I climbed into the passenger seat of the Humvee, the heavy steel door shutting with a solid, reassuring thud.
General Vance slid into the driver’s seat, putting the vehicle into gear. As the convoy began to roll forward, turning away from the park and heading down the highway toward the horizon, I looked out the reinforced window one last time.
May you like
My father was standing alone by the podium, his head bowed, watching the dust settle behind our tires.
I reached out, resting my hand on the dashboard, feeling the steady, powerful thrum of the engine beneath my palm. The ghosts of my past were locked away behind me, and the road ahead was wide, open, and entirely my own.
