Chapter 3 - The Audio Trap
"You’re paranoid, Elena," Harrison sneered, leaning over the table, trying to use his physical size to intimidate me the way he had when I was a teenager. "That helicopter crash rattled your brain. Failing firm? Vance Enterprises is worth forty million dollars. You are fabricating delusions because you’re jealous that your sister Chloe got the attention this weekend while you were playing war hero."
I didn't flinch. I looked at General Thorne, who simply nodded. I reached under the table and tapped the screen of my military-issued encrypted tablet, which had been recording the entire encounter from the moment my parents entered the house.
I pressed play. My father’s voice filled the room, crystal clear and dripping with cruelty: "You’re a shattered soldier now. You need to accept reality and let us manage your future. Sign the waiver, Elena. The military is done with you, and nobody else is going to take care of a cripple."
Evelyn covered her mouth with both hands, staring at her husband in absolute horror—not because she disagreed with him, but because she knew how fatal that recording would be in a court of law or a society ballroom.
"In accordance with federal law and the Uniform Code of Military Justice," General Thorne stated crisply, "attempting to coerce, defraud, or extort a wounded active-duty service member using intimidation tactics while they are under medical recovery is a felony offense. Furthermore, the defense contractor responsible for the rotor failure has already disbursed the six-million-dollar settlement into a federally protected military trust fund. A fund that requires two-factor biometric authentication from General Vance herself."
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Harrison stepped back from the table, his chest heaving as his eyes darted from the tablet to the stoic four-star general blocking his path to me. "This isn't over, Elena. If you turn your back on your family today, you will never step foot in our home again. You will be dead to us."
"You already let me die on Saturday night, Father," I said, my voice steady and unwavering. "General Thorne, please escort these civilians off my property."
