Rain beat hard against the arched windows of the grand ballroom.

The sound of the storm was a steady hum beneath the chatter of eighty guests.

My dress blue uniform felt stiff and heavy against my shoulders.

The silver double tracks of my new captain rank pinned to my collar caught the light of the crystal chandeliers.

My mother, Carolyn, adjusted my lapel with trembling fingers.

“You look beautiful, Natalie,” she whispered, her eyes shining with a fragile sort of pride.

“Thank you, Mom,” I said.

I looked past her, searching the crowd for my sister.

Madison leaned against a marble pillar near the back of the room.

She looked pale in her green silk dress, her eyes scanning the guests as if searching for an exit.

Then I saw my father, Richard.

He stood near the mahogany bar, silhouetted against the dark rain outside the glass.

He was talking to Colonel Hayes, my commanding officer.

Hayes stood rigid in his dress uniform, his face carved of granite, nodding slowly at whatever my father was saying.

Richard held two flutes of champagne.

His hands were steady, his fingernails immaculate.

I watched him through the crowd, a habit from two tours in theater where you never stopped scanning for threats.

His thumb flicked over the top of one glass.

A tiny, square paper packet, hidden in the palm of his hand, emptied a fine white powder into the sparkling liquid.

The powder dissolved instantly, leaving the champagne perfectly clear.

He turned, his face shifting into a warm, paternal smile as he spotted me looking.

He walked toward me, carrying both glasses, his shoes clicking on the polished parquet floor.

“A toast to my eldest daughter,” Richard said, his voice carrying easily over the chatter.

The room began to quiet.

Guests turned toward us, their faces expectant and smiling.

Richard reached me and extended the poisoned glass.

“To Captain Natalie Brooks,” he said, raising his own glass. “May her career continue to bring honor to this family.”

I looked down at the pale yellow liquid.

Tiny bubbles rose to the surface, carrying no trace of what I had just seen him drop inside.