Chapter 2 - The Snake Bracelet
Ethan stared at me as if I had spoken a foreign language.
“Treason?” he choked out, his chest heaving with sudden panic.
“You cannot arrest my son, he is being promoted to Major tonight!” Patricia screamed.
“His promotion was a carefully constructed trap to keep him on base while we secured this warrant,” I explained coldly.
Two Military Police officers stepped up beside Ethan.
They gripped his arms tightly and forced him to turn around.
The sound of steel handcuffs clicking locked around his wrists sent a shockwave through the crowd.
“Grace, please, you know me!” Ethan pleaded, tears welling in his eyes.
“I know the man who spent our savings to cover massive gambling debts,” I replied.
“I also know the man who sold encrypted drone blueprints to clear those debts.”
I walked past my sobbing husband and headed straight for Vanessa Brooks.
She stood completely still, her eyes darting around the room for an escape route.
“Beautiful bracelet, Ms. Brooks,” I said, stopping inches from her face.
She instinctively covered the gold snake wrapped around her wrist.
“I do not know what you are talking about,” Vanessa lied smoothly.
“That is interesting, because our cybersecurity team tracked your encrypted messages directly to a foreign intelligence server,” I countered.
“Your handler goes by the codename Viper.”
Vanessa’s confident facade began to crack.
“I am just a civilian contractor,” she insisted.
“You are a foreign spy who targets vulnerable officers with severe financial problems,” I stated loudly enough for the whole room to hear.
General Sterling stepped forward to stand beside me.
“We have footage of you receiving classified flash drives from Major-select Walker,” the general added.
Vanessa realized her lies were completely useless.
Her expression hardened from a cornered animal into something much more dangerous.
She reached into her small designer clutch.
“Do not move another inch,” I commanded, resting my hand on my concealed weapon beneath my dress.
Vanessa smiled a cold, calculating smile.
May you like
“You might have Ethan, Agent Walker,” Vanessa whispered.
“But you are completely wrong about who actually gave me those blueprints.”
