Chapter 1 - The Commander's Secret
The entire community hall held its breath as the decorated military officer stood frozen in a perfect salute.
My father stared at the man with wide eyes.
His calloused hands trembled against the fabric of his cheap trousers.
Julian scoffed loudly from the edge of the altar.
He adjusted his expensive tie and glared at the soldiers blocking the exit.
This had to be some kind of ridiculous prank.
The commander ignored Julian completely and took a step closer to my father.
He reached into his uniform pocket and pulled out a heavy gold medallion.
It was the legendary Golden Eagle of Valor.
Only three men in the history of the nation had ever received it.
The commander spoke with a voice that commanded absolute authority.
He declared that Arthur Vance was not a simple gardener.
He was the sole surviving heir to the Vance Defense Industries fortune.
My father was a ghost operative who had saved an entire platoon twenty years ago before disappearing.
A collective gasp echoed through the room.
Victoria dropped her designer handbag on the floor.
Her arrogant smirk instantly vanished.
Julian turned pale and stumbled backward.
He realized he had just publicly humiliated a man worth billions of dollars.
Julian immediately plastered a fake smile on his face and reached for my hand.
He told the crowd that it was all a huge misunderstanding and the wedding was back on.
I pulled my hand away in absolute disgust.
Before I could speak, my father finally broke his silence.
He looked at the commander with eyes full of sorrow and anger.
He firmly stated that the man they were looking for died two decades ago.
My father demanded that the soldiers leave his daughter's ruined wedding immediately.
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The commander did not move an inch.
He softly warned my father that they had been found by the very people he had been hiding from.
