Chapter 5: The Truth Beneath the Uniform
The answer came before my father could speak.
A knock echoed through the apartment.
Three slow knocks.
My father immediately stood.
His face changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
“Who is it?”” I asked.
He didn’t answer.
The knock came again.
Three times.
My instincts awakened.
The same instincts that had kept me alive five years ago.
I moved toward the kitchen.
My father noticed.
“You still do that.””
“Do what?””
“Prepare for an attack.””
I looked at him.
“Because sometimes they happen.””
The door opened.
Not forced.
Not broken.
Opened with a key.
My body went cold.
Only one person had a key.
My father.
But he was standing right in front of me.
A man entered.
Older.
Gray hair.
Perfect suit.
A smile that never reached his eyes.
Victor Sterling.
He looked at me.
“Harper.””
I said nothing.
He smiled.
“You look exactly like your mother.””
The mention of her name made my expression change.
He noticed.
He always noticed everything.
“Still carrying anger,” he said.
My father stepped between us.
“Victor.””
His voice was low.
“You shouldn’t be here.””
Victor laughed softly.
“Richard, after everything I’ve done for this family, you still think you can order me around?””
I looked between them.
Everything suddenly felt different.
My father wasn’t protecting him.
He was afraid of him.
“What did you do?”” I asked.
Victor looked at me.
“Excuse me?””
“What did you do five years ago?””
His smile disappeared.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
“You’ve been talking to Admiral Hayes.””
Not a question.
A confirmation.
I took a step forward.
“How do you know that?””
Victor ignored me.
He looked at my father.
“You failed to keep her away.””
My father’s face tightened.
“I protected my daughter.””
Victor laughed.
“No.””
He looked at me.
“You protected your guilt.””
The words hit.
Because they were cruel.
Because they were close enough to the truth to hurt.
I clenched my fists.
“You destroyed my life.””
Victor tilted his head.
“No.””
He walked closer.
“I saved thousands of lives.””
I stared at him.
“What?””
“Operation Nightfall was compromised because someone inside the team betrayed us.””
My heart stopped.
Someone inside.
Emily.
No.
Impossible.
Victor watched my reaction.
“You thought Emily was innocent?””
I felt sick.
“You’re lying.””
“Am I?””
He reached into his jacket.
Pulled out a file.
Dropped it on the table.
The cover had one word.
NIGHTFALL.
My father looked at it.
Then at Victor.
“Where did you get that?””
Victor smiled.
“Because unlike both of you, I know the whole story.””
My phone rang.
Again.
Unknown number.
I answered.
No one spoke.
Then a recording started.
A voice.
My own voice.
From five years ago.
Panicked.
Broken.
“Emily, get down!””
Gunfire.
Screaming.
Then another voice.
A voice I recognized.
Victor’s.
The recording ended.
The room was silent.
Victor looked at me.
“Now you understand.””
I stared at the phone.
My entire world shifted.
Because if that recording was real…
Someone had been lying.
But I didn’t know who.
My father.
My uncle.
Emily.
Or me.
Victor walked toward the door.
“Ask yourself one question, Harper.””
He paused.
“When you survived that mission…”
May you like
He looked back.
“Why do you think they let you come home?””
