Chapter 8
The statement aired on the military channel.
My dad happened to be watching the news. The moment he saw it, he called me, his voice shaking.
“Maddie, turn on the news! Now!”
I switched on the TV. On the screen was a spokesperson in uniform, his expression grave.
“After investigation, our military intelligence department, in cooperation with national security agencies, has success- fully uncovered a major espionage and defection case.”
“The suspect, Gilbert Jensen, formerly a pilot in our Eastern Air Force, three years ago, exploited a technical mal- function during a training exercise to defect.”
Gilbert.
The name echoed like thunder in my head
Hadn’t he died?
Defected?
The spokesperson continued. “After his defection, Gilbert remained undercover overseas, stealing and illegally pro- viding large quantities of critical military intelligence to foreign entities.”
“His accomplice in the country, Sarah Boyer, used a forged war hero widow identity to receive ongoing financial sup- port from Douglas Northam, Gilbert’s former comrade, and used this cover for illegal activities such as money laun- dering and intelligence transmission…”
The screen flashed photos of Gilbert being apprehended. Then Sarah’s photo appeared-it was the same one from her hospital stay.
I felt my blood freeze in my veins.
A man who’d been dead for three years was alive.
A pitiful widow was actually an accomplice.
And the loyal, devoted man had become the punchline of a cruel joke,
On the other end of the line, my dad was so furious he could hardly speak,
“Monsters! Both of them! They played that poor Douglas for a fool!”
I hung up and sat on the couch, numb and motionless for a long time.
0.0 %
10:49
Chapter 8
288 Vouchers
When Bradley came home, he found me like that.
He walked over and wrapped me in his arms. “I saw it.”
I buried my face in his chest.
I didn’t cry. I just felt the sheer absurdity of it all. It was overwhelming.
Douglas’s life had become a meticulously orchestrated dark comedy.
He had sacrificed his future, his love, even his body, to protect a lie-a traitor who betrayed him, and betrayed the
country.
The next day, Douglas was taken away for questioning as a key person of interest.
When they led him out, he looked completely lost.
Even then, he probably couldn’t believe that the “buddy” he’d given everything to make up for had been using him from the very start.
Sarah was taken in, too. Her “amnesia” was miraculously cured under the care of national security agents. She con- fessed everything.
It had all been a setup from the beginning
Gilbert had planned his defection long ago. He needed someone on the inside, and a steady source of money-a “wal- let.” He chose Douglas.
Because Douglas was loyal, and guilt made him easy to manipulate.
During that exercise, Gilbert staged the emergency, making Douglas believe he’d caused Gilbert’s death. Then Sarah appeared, right on cue.
One overseas, one at home, both working to keep Douglas under control.
Every one of Sarah’s illnesses, every suicide attempt, was calculated-including the car accident.
It was only when things went wrong between them-Gilbert suspected Sarah of skimming off the funds, and they had
a huge fight on the phone-that Sarah, in a fit of rage, grabbed the steering wheel from Douglas, crashing into the guardrail.
The baby really was Douglas’s.
But to Sarah, it was nothing more than another bargaining chip to keep him tied down.
Nothing more.
49.4 %
10:49
