Chapter 9 - The Debt Paid in Full
As the federal agents escorted Senator Thomas Vance down the aisle in chains, the disgraced politician stopped beside Valeria.
His face was contorted in bitter, venomous hatred. "You ruined us," Thomas hissed through his teeth, his voice dripping with spite. "You were just a nameless soldier... a tool on a board... you were supposed to die in that trench!"
Valeria looked at him, her hazel eyes completely unbothered by his rage. She reached up with a calm, steady hand, pulling Marcus’s tuxedo jacket tighter around her shoulders to cover her scars.
"A tool breaks when you put too much pressure on it, Senator," Valeria whispered, leaning closer so only he could hear her next words. "A soldier adapts, survives, and comes back to execute the mission."
Thomas was shoved forward by the agents, his frantic protests fading down the hallway toward the waiting police cruisers outside.
The ballroom was a wasteland of abandoned luxury. The guests had fled through the service exits, the string quartet's instruments lay abandoned on the stage, and the multi-tiered wedding cake sat untouched under the golden chandelier light.
Marcus stood beside Valeria. He looked down at his own hands—the hands of a man who had almost married into the blood money that had murdered his unit.
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He slowly reached up and unbuttoned his silk bow tie, pulling it from his collar and letting it drop onto the floor.
"I didn't know, Valeria," Marcus said, his voice trembling as he looked into her eyes. "I swear to God... I didn't know what he did to you."
