Chapter 3

3.

I settled into the base quarters.

MPs patrolled outside. I knew I was being watched as much as I was being protected.

Until Lucas was cleared, the "whistleblower" was also a suspect.

Good. I needed peace to prepare my next move.

The investigators returned the next day.

This time, Miller brought two men in black suits and sunglasses.

FBI Counter-Intelligence.

"Mrs. Sterling, we reviewed the footage and questioned Lucas and Bella. Lucas claims it's a personal moral failure, a violation of UCMJ Article 134. He says he panicked because he felt guilty."

The FBI agent spoke with a flat affect, staring at me like a hawk.

"Bella also claims they are just in love and she knows nothing of his work."

"Is that so?" I raised an eyebrow. "Just love?"

I pulled an encrypted USB drive from my Hermès bag and slid it across the table.

"This is the recovered data from Lucas’s unauthorized laptop."

"It includes every WhatsApp chat since they met, every crypto transfer he sent her, and... the forged documents he made to apply for 'Military Housing Allowance' for her."

The three men stiffened.

Adultery is a scandal. But forging documents to defraud the federal government? That’s a felony.

"In the chats, Bella complains about feeling unsafe living alone. She envied that I lived on base."

I stated the facts calmly, like I was discussing the weather.

"To shut her up, Lucas used his clearance to forge a 'Department of Defense Analyst' ID for her, trying to get her access to restricted housing."

"That’s a severe breach of base security, isn't it, Sir?"

I looked at Miller.

His lips were a thin line. He was gripping his pen so hard his knuckles were white.

The FBI agent grabbed the USB drive.

"We verify this immediately."

After they left, Miller stayed behind for a moment.

"Savannah..." He sighed, looking exhausted. "I'm sorry."

I shook my head. "I care less about my feelings and more about the flag he swore to protect."

I meant it.

I married Lucas because I loved him, but also because I thought he was a patriot.

Now, he had shredded my faith in everything.

"We won't let a bad apple rot the barrel," Miller promised.

I nodded and stood up.

At the door, I paused, acting hesitant.

"Agent Miller, there is... one more thing. I didn't know if I should mention it."

"Speak."

"That woman, Bella. When I ran a background check on her, I found she has a brother. Boris."

"This Boris... appears to hold dual citizenship and operates out of the Middle East. In the chat logs, Bella mentioned several times that her brother was fascinated by Lucas’s 'SEAL training.' He kept asking... specific questions."

I chose my words carefully, painting myself as the concerned wife who had stumbled onto something dark.

"Questions about tactical gear specs, deployment timelines, extraction points."

"I thought it was just guy stuff. A military fanboy. But now..."

I lowered my voice, adding a slight tremor.

"I’m afraid... what if Lucas was being used?"

The tremor was half-fake, half-real.

Miller shot up from his chair.

The sympathy in his eyes vanished, replaced by cold, hard alert.

"What is the brother's name? Which country is he in?"

The nature of the game had just changed.

We went from a sex scandal to fraud, and now... potential espionage.

Lucas, I’ve just checkmated you.