Chapter 2
Maddox leaned closer.
“You deaf?”
Rachel did not answer right away.
She looked at the fallen tray.
Then at the spoon lying near her foot.
Then at the young private sitting two tables away with a split lip he had tried to hide behind a cup of coffee.
The private quickly looked down.
Rachel saw it.
She had seen a lot since arriving on that base.
Too much.
A corporal forced to clean a hallway with a toothbrush while Maddox filmed him.
A nineteen-year-old recruit denied dinner because he forgot to say “Sergeant” fast enough.
A female medic shoved into a supply closet and called useless after reporting missing medical kits.
And every time Rachel asked questions, the soldiers gave the same answer.
“Don’t say anything. Maddox will ruin you.”
That morning, Rachel had entered the cafeteria with one goal.
Let him show the truth in front of witnesses.
She had not expected him to do it so quickly.
Maddox stepped even closer.
“You people think because you got a visitor pass, you can just wander in here and take food from soldiers?”
Rachel’s expression stayed calm.
“I paid for the meal.”
“You don’t belong here.”
The room went still.
A young cook behind the serving line gripped the edge of the counter.
One of the lieutenants near the window looked like he wanted to speak.
Then he decided against it.
Maddox noticed.
He smiled.
That smile told Rachel everything.
This was not about rules.
May you like
This was about power.
Read Part 3 to see the moment Maddox crossed the line in front of everyone.
