Chapter 10 - The Price of Blood
Eleanor gasped, clutching Richard’s arm as if she were the victim of an unprovoked assault. "How can you be so cruel? We are your flesh and blood! We gave up everything for your sister, and she—"
She choked on her own words, cutting herself off abruptly.
I looked at both of them, catching the flicker of desperation hiding behind Richard’s tailored suit and Eleanor’s frantic tears. I noticed what was missing: there was no golden child walking behind them. No Allison.
"Where is Allison?" I asked, my voice cold and steady. "Where is the brilliant investment you sacrificed me for?"
Richard looked away, his jaw clenching. Eleanor’s face crumpled completely, the veneer of pride dissolving into raw, bitter humiliation.
"Allison... Allison ran into difficulties," Richard muttered, refusing to meet my eyes. "The pressure at university was too much. She dropped out. She got involved with the wrong people. She made terrible financial choices... she’s gone through the trust."
"All of it?" I asked.
"All of it," Eleanor wept. "And the house is mortgaged to the hilt. Richard’s firm downsized last winter. We have nothing left, Hannah! Nothing! We gave her the entire world, and she hasn't called us in three years!"
The bitter irony hung thick in the air. The golden child had consumed their treasure and vanished, leaving them bankrupt and hollow. And now, seeing their discarded, "average" daughter featured in the newspaper as a decorated military major with status, stability, a generous military pension, and national accolades, they had scrambled to the parade ground to claim their lost equity.
Rachel stepped forward then. She had walked down from the VIP stands quietly, her presence commanding attention without a single harsh gesture. She stood right beside me, slipping her arm through mine.
Richard looked at Rachel, his eyes narrowing in sudden recognition. "You... you were the night nurse."
"I am her mother," Rachel said calmly. Her voice didn't waver. "And you have sixty seconds to leave this base before security removes you for trespassing."
Richard looked around desperately. He saw the cold stares of the officers, the stone-faced MPs moving in from the gate, and the camera capturing his humiliation. His arrogant posture collapsed.
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"Hannah, please," he pleaded, his voice dropping into a humiliating whine. "You don't understand the whole story. We didn't come here just to see you."
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