Heartstone - Chapter 1: Chapter 1
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The two weeks ago, he was a decorated intelligence officer. Trusted. Respected. He had believed in the mission, in the ideals he thought the U.S. military stood for. But when he stumbled across classified documents revealing covert operations targeting innocent civilians, he couldn’t look the other way. He made the mistake of asking questions.rain lashed against the tarmac as the engines of the old cargo plane rumbled to life. Mark Breknac clutched his five-month-old daughter tighter to his chest, her small body wrapped in a blanket far too thin for the night’s chill. He dared not speak, dared not breathe too loudly. Every second brought the risk of discovery.
Just two weeks ago, he was a decorated intelligence officer. Trusted. Respected. He had believed in the mission, in the ideals he thought the U.S. military stood for. But when he stumbled across classified documents revealing covert operations targeting innocent civilians, he couldn’t look the other way. He made the mistake of asking questions.
That’s when everything changed.
Branded a traitor, hunted by the very people he once called comrades, Mark had barely escaped the secure facility in Kandahar. His only thought was of his daughter, Avera. Her mother had died giving birth—he wouldn’t let her be taken, not by the same system that tried to silence him.
Now, aboard a smuggler’s plane bound for eastern Europe, he was running. No passport. No plan. Only the baby and the flash drive hidden in the lining of her diaper bag—the last shred of proof that what he knew was real.
Now the plane rose into the clouds, Mark stared into the darkness, his jaw clenched. He would disappear, for now. But this wasn’t over.
Someday, they would hear his voice again. And the truth would follow.
Just two weeks ago, he was a decorated intelligence officer. Trusted. Respected. He had believed in the mission, in the ideals he thought the U.S. military stood for. But when he stumbled across classified documents revealing covert operations targeting innocent civilians, he couldn’t look the other way. He made the mistake of asking questions.
That’s when everything changed.
Branded a traitor, hunted by the very people he once called comrades, Mark had barely escaped the secure facility in Kandahar. His only thought was of his daughter, Avera. Her mother had died giving birth—he wouldn’t let her be taken, not by the same system that tried to silence him.
Now, aboard a smuggler’s plane bound for eastern Europe, he was running. No passport. No plan. Only the baby and the flash drive hidden in the lining of her diaper bag—the last shred of proof that what he knew was real.
Now the plane rose into the clouds, Mark stared into the darkness, his jaw clenched. He would disappear, for now. But this wasn’t over.
Someday, they would hear his voice again. And the truth would follow.
End of Heartstone Chapter 1. Continue reading Chapter 2 or return to Heartstone book page.