“You’ll regret this, Emily,” he muttered as Miller guided him out.

“This isn’t over.”

The heavy door clicked shut behind them, leaving the room suddenly very quiet.

The hum of the air conditioner overhead seemed to grow louder in the silence.

The smell of old floor wax and stale coffee hung in the air.

The General turned to me, his expression softening only slightly.

“Colonel Parker, you have thirty minutes to secure those documents in your wall safe.”

“I expect a full briefing on the network breaches by sixteen hundred hours.”

“Yes, sir,” I said, saluting him.

He returned the salute with a crisp, practiced motion and walked out of the room.

Now, only my family remained in the high-ceilinged conference room.

My mother stared at the closed door, her shoulders slumping.

“I can’t believe this,” she whispered, her voice cracking.

“Claire, what is happening? Why did they take Andrew?”

Claire turned on me, her eyes red and wet with angry tears.

“Are you happy now, Emily?” she spat, pointing a manicured finger at me.

“You’ve wanted this since the day we got married.”