Chapter 8
Dane’s mouth opened.
“General, I can explain.”
“Good,” Whitaker said. “You can explain it to investigators.”
Two MPs moved behind Dane.
His eyes darted around the yard, searching for support.
He found none.
The same soldiers who had feared him minutes ago now looked at him with disgust.
Dane pointed at Elena.
“She broke protocol.”
General Whitaker stepped closer.
“No. She saved lives after you decided they were acceptable losses.”
Dane flinched.
“Those chemicals were part of a classified disposal operation.”
Whitaker’s voice dropped.
“They were supposed to be removed six months ago.”
Dane’s face went gray.
The general continued.
“You signed the delay order. You hid the inspection reports. Then when the fire started, you sealed the sector to protect yourself.”
The survivors heard every word.
The little girl’s mother began to cry.
Elena looked down.
Not because she was ashamed.
Because she was trying not to break.
For the last six months, she had been treated like a problem soldier.
Too stubborn.
Too emotional.
Too attached to her dog.
Too unwilling to “respect the chain of command.”
Dane had written her up twice.
Once for refusing to leave Max behind during a training evacuation.
Once for questioning why expired chemical drums were being moved at night.
He had told her she would never rise above staff sergeant because she “didn’t know when to shut up.”
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Now the truth stood in the smoke with all of them.
Read Part 9 to see the moment Dane finally realized the people he abandoned were now witnesses.
