“I am not joking, Caroline,” Nathan said, his voice dropping an octave.

“Then why did you just salute my sister?” Caroline asked, her hand falling away from his arm.

“Because she is Rear Admiral Hart,” Nathan said.

The dining room went completely silent.

The only sound was the steady ticking of the grandfather clock in the hallway.

My mother, who had been quiet until now, set her linen napkin on the table.

“Nathan, please,” Mother said, her voice tight and defensive.

“Evelyn is in the Navy, yes, but she does paperwork in Virginia,” Mother continued.

“She’s a mid-level manager,” Mother said, looking at me for confirmation.

“With all due respect, ma’am,” Nathan said, “Admiral Hart is the Director of Maritime Operations.”

He finally shifted his gaze to my father, his face grim.

“She commands the entire division that oversees my unit’s deployment,” Nathan said.

My father’s hand hovered over his plate.

His fingers twitched against his silver fork, the metal scraping slightly against the porcelain.

“An admiral?” Father whispered.

He turned his head slowly to look at me.