Chapter 10 - The Horizon Line
Before my father could formulate a reply, my phone vibrated against the tabletop.
I glanced down at the screen. It was an encrypted message from the Department of the Navy Directorate of Logistics.
“Secure transport asset is staged at Charleston Executive Airfield. Commander on standby whenever you are ready, Admiral.”
I tapped the screen closed, placed my napkin neatly beside my glass, and pushed my chair back from the table. The slight scraping sound of the wooden legs against the polished floor cut through the quiet murmur of the hall, drawing every eye in the room back toward me.
“Have a wonderful reception,” I said smoothly, looking up at my father one last time as he stood frozen beside my seat. “Don't worry about sending me a slice of cake. I have a flight to catch.”
I stood up, adjusting the jacket of my dress white uniform, and walked steadily toward the grand glass doors of the pavilion. Jack Hayes and half a dozen operators rose instantly from their seats, falling into step behind me as a protective, unyielding escort.
May you like
Outside, the salty coastal wind whipped across the yacht club lawns, carrying the sharp, familiar scent of the open sea. I climbed into the back of the waiting tactical SUV, watching through the tinted window as my family stood stranded in their sea of expensive glass and shattered pretenses.
As the vehicle accelerated down the coastal highway toward the airfield, I looked out toward the endless horizon where the ocean met the gray autumn sky, knowing that the hardest battles were never the ones fought against an enemy, but the ones where you finally learned to walk away.
