Chapter 3 - The Salute
The next morning, the winter sun broke through the clouds.
I woke up feeling different.
The fear was gone. The grief had been replaced by a cold, tactical focus.
A knock came at the door of my temporary housing unit.
I opened it.
Two uniformed military police officers stood outside, standing tall and sharp.
“Good morning, Colonel Carter,” the older officer said.
They both snapped crisp, perfect salutes.
I stood straight and returned the salute.
“Good morning, gentlemen.”
“Headquarters has processed your emergency documents, ma’am. Your secure transportation is waiting.”
They were there to escort me to base headquarters to handle my maternity leave transition and temporary assignment.
I walked out, holding Tyler's hand.
As we walked toward the waiting black government SUV, a familiar, cheap sedan pulled into the parking lot.
It was Mark.
He had somehow tracked my phone location before I turned off the sharing feature.
He stepped out of his car, looking furious.
“Emily! I told you to leave the car—”
He stopped dead in his tracks.
His eyes moved from the heavy armored SUV, to the two imposing military police officers, and finally, to me.
The officers instinctively stepped between Mark and me.
“Sir, step back,” one of the officers ordered, his hand resting near his duty belt.
Mark looked completely bewildered.
“Emily, what is this? Why are they saluting you?”
His voice cracked. “Colonel? Did he just call you Colonel?”
Before I could answer, my phone rang.
It was the estate attorney, Mr. Sterling.
I answered and put it on speakerphone.
“Good morning, Colonel Carter,” Mr. Sterling’s crisp voice echoed in the cold air.
Mark flinched at the title again.
“Good morning, Mr. Sterling. Is everything finalized?” I asked.
“Yes, ma'am. There's just one final matter regarding your aunt’s trust that we need to execute today.”
I glanced at Mark. His face was pale.
“What matter is that?” I asked, holding eye contact with my soon-to-be ex-husband.
The attorney paused, rustling some papers.
“The property you were unlawfully removed from yesterday.”
Mark took a step forward, confused. “Unlawfully? It’s my house!”
My heart beat steady and calm.
“What about the house, Mr. Sterling?”
“Your aunt acquired the mortgage note eighteen months ago through the trust. The previous bank sold the debt.”
The words hung in the freezing air.
I stared at the man who had abandoned me and his son.
Mark was still trying to process the military officers, the SUV, and the title of Colonel.
His brain couldn't compute this new, devastating piece of information.
“Since the mortgage is three months in arrears—which we noted this morning—the trust has authorized immediate foreclosure and eviction proceedings,” the lawyer stated matter-of-factly.
Mark’s jaw dropped.
He looked at me as if he were seeing a ghost.
May you like
Neither he nor Linda had known who they were messing with.
Because they had just thrown me out of a house that I now legally controlled.
