Agent Morales did not answer immediately.
“We don’t know yet,” he said.
The room pressed inward.
“Was Ryan involved?”
“We’re investigating.”
That meant yes, maybe, or we cannot prove it yet.
All three answers felt like ice.
I left that interview with a new kind of anger. The private anger of betrayal had been hot and personal. This was different. This was colder. Wider. It carried other women’s names.
Linda had not simply wanted me obedient.
She wanted me erased in a pattern.
But command did not pause for personal revelation. The Army, for better and worse, moves. Missions do not wait for heartbreak to become convenient.
My formal assumption-of-command ceremony was scheduled for Friday.
Sarah advised postponing.
General Halvorsen offered leave again, not as doubt but as protection.
I refused.
On Friday morning, I dressed with ritual care. Dark green service uniform. Ribbons aligned. Shoes polished. Silver eagles centered. No wig.
