Chapter 16 - The Return to the Sea
A month later, my leave officially ended.
I was standing on the tarmac of the private military airstrip in Austin, wearing my flight suit, preparing to board the C-17 transport plane that would take me back to my command fleet in the Pacific.
My mother stood at the base of the stairs, looking entirely different from the terrified woman I had found in that dark hallway. She looked strong, healthy, and fiercely independent.
“I’m going to miss you, Evie,” she said, hugging me tightly.
“I’ll call you every week on the secure line,” I promised, squeezing her back. “And remember, Agent Miller and his team are still permanently assigned to this sector. You have a direct line to them. If anyone so much as looks at you wrong, you call them.”
“I think I can handle myself now,” she smiled confidently. “But I appreciate the backup.”
I pulled away, offering her a crisp, genuine salute. “I love you, Mom.”
May you like
“I love you too, Admiral,” she beamed, her chest swelling with pride.
I walked up the ramp of the heavy transport plane, the engines whining to life. As the cargo doors closed, I looked back one last time, watching my mother stand proudly on the tarmac, bathed in the warm Texas sun. The war at home was won. Now, it was time to return to the sea.
