Chapter 17 - The Final Message
Thirty minutes later, my personal phone—which I kept separate from my encrypted command line—buzzed on the corner of my desk.
An unknown number. I tapped speakerphone.
“Elena! What the hell is wrong with you?” Kevin’s panicked, furious voice echoed across the office. “I drove two hours out here, and your rent-a-cops treated me like a criminal! They threatened to arrest me!”
“You were trespassing on a secure military installation, Kevin,” I replied, my tone completely devoid of emotion. “Consider yourself lucky they didn't detain you.”
“Dad is a retired lieutenant colonel!” Kevin shouted, his voice cracking with disbelief. “We are your family! You can't just treat us like strangers!”
“You treated me like a stranger for thirty years,” I said quietly. “The only difference is that now, you finally realize what happens when you don't hold all the cards.”
“Mom is crying every day,” Kevin hissed, trying a last-ditch guilt trip. “Dad’s reputation in the retired officers' club is completely ruined because everyone found out you outrank him by two stars. You destroyed everything he built in one night!”
“I didn't destroy anything, Kevin,” I answered. “I simply stopped hiding his illusions.”
May you like
I tapped the screen and hung up. Then I blocked the number for the final time.
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