Chapter 2 - The Garage Sanctuary
They took my compliance for capitulation.
Within twenty minutes, Priscilla and my mother had hauled my remaining clothes—dumped unceremoniously into heavy-duty black trash bags—out through the side door and tossed them onto the concrete floor of the unheated garage.
The temperature outside was holding steady at twenty-eight degrees, and inside the garage, it felt like an icebox. A single overhead fluorescent light hummed with a harsh, flickering buzz. My old folding camping cot, which Tristan and I had used during our camping trips in the Rockies before his deployments, sat leaning against a stack of spare winter tires.
I didn't argue. I didn't cry.
I walked out to the garage, stepping carefully over my boxes. I zipped my winter parka all the way up to my chin, pulled a thick wool beanie over my ears, and sat down on the camping cot.
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
It was a secure, encrypted notification—not SMS, but a high-priority military relay protocol.
SENDER: MAJOR GENERAL ELIZABETH VANCE (COMMANDING)
STATUS: EN ROUTE. ETA 1145 HOURS.
SUBJECT: CONTINGENCY PROTOCOL OMEGA.
I stared at the small screen, a cold smile touching my lips. Major General Elizabeth Vance wasn't just any military officer. She was Tristan’s older sister—a fierce, unyielding three-star general stationed out of the Pentagon, a woman who answered only to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and held a security clearance that made local politicians look like children playing in a sandbox.
For months, Elizabeth had been tied up in overseas classified tribunals and operations. But she knew every single detail of what was happening here. She knew about my pregnancy, she knew about Tristan's final mission, and she certainly knew that my family had moved into my home.
And now, a military convoy of heavy tactical vehicles was currently cutting through the snowy passes outside Colorado Springs, heading straight for our driveway.
May you like
Inside the house, I could hear muffled laughter through the garage door. Gregory was already testing out his new home office, blasting classic rock music while rearranging Tristan’s heavy oak desk.
Let him enjoy the view while he still could.
