And Kyle lay sprawled on the pavement beside it, bleeding heavily from his forehead.
Major Lewis knelt beside him immediately.
“Call an ambulance!”
Kyle groaned weakly.
My mother arrived seconds later shrieking hysterically.
“My baby!”
But it wasn’t Kyle that froze my blood.
It was the driver of the black sedan.
Because the man behind the wheel was dead.
And even through the shattered windshield…
I recognized him instantly.
Colonel Harris did too.
His face darkened immediately.
“Son of a bitch.”
“Who is he?” I asked.
Harris looked grim.
“Federal intelligence contractor.”
My pulse stumbled.
“What was he doing here?”
Nobody answered.
Then Major Lewis reached into the dead driver’s jacket and pulled out a small flash drive.
The moment Harris saw it, his expression changed completely.
Fear.
Pure fear.
He grabbed the drive quickly.
But not before I noticed the label printed across it:
OPERATION NIGHTFALL
The name meant nothing to me.
Yet somehow…
It sounded familiar.
Very familiar.
Then Kyle suddenly grabbed my wrist.
Hard.
His face was pale with pain and terror.
“Savannah…”
“What?”
His eyes darted toward Dad.
Then toward the flash drive.
And finally back to me.
“You need to leave.”
A chill crawled through me.
“What are you talking about?”
“They know who you are now.”
Every instinct in my body ignited.
“Who?”
Kyle’s breathing became ragged.
“The people Dad worked for.”
Silence crashed over the parking lot.
Even Colonel Harris froze.
My father shouted suddenly.
“Kyle, shut your mouth!”
Too late.
Kyle looked directly at me with genuine fear for the first time in his life.
“The plane wasn’t stolen,” he whispered.
My heart stopped.
“It was delivering something.”
“What?”
Kyle swallowed hard.
Then whispered six words that changed everything.
“They used your wedding as cover.”
Two hours later, my wedding guests were gone.
Police vehicles surrounded the lakeside venue.
Federal agents occupied the reception hall.
And my marriage ceremony sat unfinished beneath abandoned flower arrangements blowing in the wind.
Connor found me alone near the dock overlooking the water.
Still wearing my Air Force uniform.
Still trying to process reality.
He sat beside me quietly.
“You okay?”
I laughed once.
“No.”
Reasonable answer.
Connor stared out across the lake.
“You think your father’s involved?”
I hesitated.
Then answered honestly.
“Yes.”
Saying it aloud hurt more than I expected.
Because despite everything…
Part of me still wanted to believe my parents were simply cruel.
Not dangerous.
Connor exhaled slowly.
“Harris told me your dad worked military intelligence during the Gulf War.”
I looked at him sharply.
“What?”
“He said your father specialized in logistics transportation.”
Transportation.
Cargo.
Aircraft.
Suddenly pieces began clicking together inside my head.
The stolen C-17.
The classified shipment.
My security codes.
And my family deliberately keeping me distracted during the exact hours the aircraft disappeared.
My wedding wasn’t random collateral damage.
It was planned.
Every second of it.
Then Connor said something else.
“There’s more.”
I looked at him.
“Harris thinks someone inside the military leaked your wedding location intentionally.”
Cold fear slid into my stomach.
Meaning whoever orchestrated this operation expected me to be here.
Visible.
Public.
Distracted.
A perfect scapegoat.
I suddenly stood.
“My garment bags.”
Connor frowned.
“What about them?”
“They destroyed the dresses after I went to sleep.”
“So?”
I stared at him.
“They weren’t just humiliating me. They were making sure I wore the uniform.”
Understanding flashed across his face instantly.
“Oh God.”
Military officers.
Media coverage.
A decorated Air Force captain publicly present while a classified aircraft vanished using her credentials.
The optics were catastrophic.
Someone wanted me connected to this.
Publicly.
Officially.
Permanently.
Then my phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
I answered cautiously.
“Captain Reed.”
Static crackled briefly.
Then a man’s voice spoke softly.
“You should’ve canceled the wedding.”
Every muscle in my body tightened.
“Who is this?”
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