“What’s her name?” General Hayes asked.

Mark and I had argued over names. He wanted something fashionable. I wanted Grace, after my grandmother.

He dismissed it as old-fashioned.

But Mark was not here.

“Grace,” I said. “Grace Eleanor Whitmore.”

General Hayes smiled faintly.

“A strong name.”

Elise turned toward the window.

I noticed.

So did the general.

Part 4: The Leak

“Sir,” I asked quietly, “what is going on?”

General Hayes hesitated just long enough for dread to find me.

“The promotion orders are legitimate,” he said. “So is the command authorization. But that is not the only reason I came personally.”

I held Grace closer.

He explained that an internal review had uncovered possible unauthorized disclosure connected to my previous assignment. Someone near my administrative chain may have accessed restricted personnel and family information.

“Family information?” I asked.

“Home address. Spouse information. Medical scheduling. Leave status. And certain financial identifiers tied to your trust paperwork.”

The room seemed to tilt.

My grandfather’s inheritance.

The twenty million dollars I had told no one about because the legal transfer was bound by confidentiality.

I had followed every rule.

“Are you saying someone leaked it?”

“We don’t know yet.”

I looked at Elise.

She did not move.

But silence could confess in its own language.