Chapter 6 - THE GENERAL’S LAST MESSAGE
My father's face filled the screen.
Older than I remembered.
Tired.
But strong.
For nineteen years, I had carried memories of him.
His laugh.
The way he tied my shoes when I was little.
The way he called me "soldier" before I ever understood what that word would mean to me.
Now he was speaking directly to me from the past.
"Natalie, if you're seeing this..."
My breath caught.
"...then I wasn't able to come home."
I couldn't move.
Ethan stood behind me.
His hand rested gently on my shoulder.
Dad continued.
"First, understand something. None of this is your fault."
My eyes filled.
The video shook slightly.
Then my father turned serious.
"Robert has been stealing from protected military accounts."
My uncle stared at the screen from where investigators held him.
"Daniel Mercer helped him move the money."
Mercer's face appeared in documents beside the video.
My father continued.
"And your mother..."
He stopped.
For the first time, I saw pain in his eyes.
"...made choices I cannot forgive."
My mother whispered, "Thomas."
But the dead man on the screen kept speaking.
"I found evidence of the affair. I also found evidence that Margaret knew Robert and Daniel were using family accounts to hide transactions."
Chloe stared at her.
"You knew?"
My mother broke down.
"I was scared."
I turned toward her.
"You stole from Dad."
"I didn't start it!"
The room went silent.
She covered her face.
"Robert came to me after your father died. He said everything would be taken from us if the investigation continued."
"And you believed him?"
"No."
Her eyes met mine.
"I was terrified of him."
Robert laughed.
My mother looked at him with hatred.
"You threatened Chloe."
Chloe went still.
Robert's smile disappeared.
My mother continued.
"He said if I didn't cooperate, Chloe's real father would disappear forever."
Chloe whispered, "Mercer?"
My mother nodded.
The truth became uglier.
Robert had used my mother's affair to control her.
He used Chloe's identity.
He used money.
And after my father died, he kept using fear.
But fear didn't excuse what my mother had done.
I looked back at the screen.
Dad had left more.
A document appeared.
His final will.
Protected accounts.
Separate trusts.
And one sentence that changed everything.
THE FUNDS MAY NOT BE CONTROLLED, TRANSFERRED, OR ACCESSED BY MARGARET CARTER WITHOUT THE EXPLICIT APPROVAL OF THE NAMED BENEFICIARIES.
My mother had known.
She had known all along.
"How much?" I asked.
She looked away.
"How much did you take?"
She whispered the number.
Almost one million dollars.
Chloe covered her mouth.
I felt nothing.
Not anger.
Not sadness.
Just emptiness.
Then Ethan received another call.
Mercer had been captured.
But before he was taken into custody, he had made one statement.
He wanted to speak to me.
Alone.
Ethan immediately said no.
So did everyone else.
But I knew I had to go.
Because Mercer knew who killed my father.
And because somewhere inside me, I needed to hear the truth.
That night, I walked into an interrogation room.
Daniel Mercer sat alone.
He looked older.
Broken.
But his eyes were still sharp.
"You came."
I sat across from him.
"Who killed my father?"
He studied me.
Then smiled sadly.
"You're just like him."
"Answer the question."
He leaned forward.
"Your father knew Robert was stealing."
"I know."
"He was going to expose him."
"I know."
Mercer looked down.
"And Margaret begged Thomas not to."
My chest tightened.
"Why?"
"Because Robert threatened Chloe."
I closed my eyes.
"Who killed him?"
Mercer whispered one name.
And it wasn't Robert.
It wasn't Mercer.
It wasn't my mother.
It was someone I had trusted for years.
Someone who had attended my engagement party.
Someone who had hugged me that night.
I stood slowly.
Mercer smiled.
"Now you understand."
I walked out of the room.
Ethan was waiting.
He looked at my face.
"Natalie?"
I couldn't speak.
Because the name Mercer gave me belonged to the man I had invited to walk me down the aisle.
My father's best friend.
General Samuel Hayes.
May you like
And suddenly, I knew my wedding was about to become a battlefield.
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