CHAPTER TWO: THE BURDEN OF PROOF

I looked straight at Patricia and offered a faint, restrained smile that never reached my eyes.

It was not because I found anything amusing, but because every combat veteran recognizes the instant before b@ttle when the air grows unnaturally quiet.

“You really should have thought twice before you thre:atened my daughter,” I said, my voice steady and controlled.

Patricia’s smile narrowed into a thin, bitter line.

“We were simply advising her on how to behave in public,” she lied through her teeth.

I slowly shook my head.