"I left the Corps because I couldn't handle losing anyone else. Convinced myself I was a liability, that people died when I was responsible for them." He turned back to her. "But it wasn't my fault. It was corporate greed."
Yvette stood and went to him. "It was never your fault."
"Those bastards killed my team and let me think it was my failure." His arms came around her, holding her tight. "How many other soldiers are carrying that guilt? How many commanders blame themselves for equipment failures they couldn't have prevented?"
"Too many." She looked up at him, seeing the pain and anger warring in his expression. "But we can stop it. We can make sure everyone knows the truth."
"What else is in those files?"
She led him back to the workstation, pulling up more data. "Congressional connections. Three senators and two representatives have been taking RareCore money for years. Campaign contributions, consulting fees, speaking engagements."
"Keeping oversight committees from investigating equipment failures," he said, understanding immediately.
"Exactly. Every time military investigators tried to look into casualty patterns, political pressure shut them down." She highlighted the financial flows. "Senator Morrison alone took half a million in RareCore money over the past five years."
Vincent's expression hardened further. "While soldiers died using equipment he helped approve."
"It gets worse." Yvette pulled up more files. "They've been targeting family members of KIA soldiers who asked too many questions. Legal harassment, financial pressure, even threatening their benefits."
"They silenced the families too."
"Until now." She turned to face him fully. "This evidence will destroy them. Not just RareCore, but everyone who helped cover this up."
Vincent cupped her face in his hands. "You realize what this means? You're not just exposing fraud anymore. You're taking down an entire network of corruption that's been killing soldiers for over a decade."
"We're taking them down," she corrected. "Your knowledge of military operations, my ability to trace the financial networks—we make each other stronger."
He kissed her then. "I love you," he said against her lips. "I love your brilliant mind, your courage, the way you fight for what's right."
"I love you too." The words came easily, feeling as natural as breathing. "And we're going to make them pay for what they did to your Marines."
"And now they're desperate enough to authorize murder rather than risk exposure."
"Which brings us to tonight." She highlighted the latest intercepted communications. "Executive One is coming personally. Full security detail, authorization for lethal force. They're done with capture attempts."
Vincent studied the intelligence with tactical focus. "How many?"
"At least a dozen. Professional operators, military-grade equipment." She looked up at him. "They want to eliminate everyone here and destroy all the evidence."
"Can you maintain intelligence access during an active assault?"
"As long as the power and internet hold up." She was already implementing backup protocols. "I can track their approach, monitor their communications, maybe even disrupt their coordination."
"And if they succeed in destroying this place?"
"Dead man's switch." She brought up her automated systems. "If our biometrics go dark, everything gets transmitted to fifty different recipients—news outlets, congressional committees, military prosecutors, international media."
Vincent's smile was fierce with approval. "So even if they eliminate us..."
"They lose anyway. The truth comes out, the conspiracy gets exposed, and everyone responsible goes to federal prison." Her voice carried grim satisfaction. "Their only option now is to back down, and corporate executives don't back down when they're facing life sentences."
"Perfect." He leaned down and kissed her forehead, the gentle gesture at odds with the violence surrounding them. "You've turned their desperation into a trap."
Something shifted in the air between them. The adrenaline from the successful cyber warfare operation, the way they'd worked together to outmaneuver a sophisticated enemy, the knowledge that her analytical mind and his tactical skills had proven unstoppable when combined—it all crystallized into something electric and urgent.
"Vincent," she said softly, her voice carrying a different kind of intensity.
"Yeah?" His hands moved from her shoulders to frame her face, thumb tracing along her jawline.
