Daniel let out a harsh, dry laugh that sounded hollow in the high-ceilinged room.

“A matter of law,” he mocked.

“You really think the people in this town care about your military regulations?”

He leaned forward, his face inches from mine, smelling of the expensive cologne I had bought him for our anniversary.

“If you let those investigators touch my daughter, I will burn your career to the ground,” he said.

He spoke the words slowly, as if he wanted to make sure I felt the weight of each one.

“I will call the local news stations before the sun sets,” he said.

“I will call every contact I have in Denver.”

“They will love a story about a high-ranking female general who uses her power to terrorize her sixteen-year-old stepdaughter.”

I watched his eyes, looking for any sign of hesitation, but found only a desperate, blind confidence.

He truly believed he had the power to destroy me.

He had spent so many years seeing me as the quiet woman who cooked dinner and folded laundry that he couldn’t see the uniform I wore.