She Saved Herself for Her Foster Brother, Not Me Chapter 02

She Saved Herself for Her Foster Brother, Not Me Chapter 02 The Call That Changed Everything
I was heading back to Oakridge Military Housing when the big screen on the base flashed a news report. Zach Price stood there, a shiny new Medal of Honor pinned to his chest, grinning for the cameras. The reporter gushed over him. “Major Price is a true hero. In a single operation, he cracked vital enemy intelligence and smashed a smuggling ring that had plagued the border for years. Remarkable!” I froze. My blood went cold. That smuggling op… I was the one who planned it. I led the team undercover for a year. I almost died at the border getting that intel. And they gave it to him? Rage burned through me. How could Stella sink this low? Handing over everything my team and I had bled for, just to boost Zach’s career? Then my phone rang. I hit accept on the video call. What I saw made my stomach drop. Zach had Stella bent over her desk, pounding into her without a hint of shame. He was breathing hard, a smug grin on his face. “Stella, what do you think your husband would say if he knew this medal came from something he nearly died for? You think he’d be pissed?” “Oh, and we’re out of rubbers. What if you end up pregnant?” Stella’s eyes were glazed over, lost in the moment. “Ethan? What’s there to be scared of? That guy would walk through fire for me. He’d never leave.” “And if I get knocked up? Perfect. He can raise another man’s kid. He’d probably thank me for it.” I felt sick. Through the screen, I could see our bedroom. The one I’d fixed up for us. Our wedding photo still hung on the wall. And they were using it as their playground. I forced down the bile rising in my throat and spoke, my voice ice-cold. “Stella. That border operation? I spent a year on it with my guys. And you just handed the credit to Zach?” She froze. Shoved him off in a panic. She grabbed the phone, her face still flushed, but her voice already snapping. “It’s just a name on a report. What’s the big deal? I didn’t know you were so obsessed with getting credit.” “And Ethan, you dared to spy on a superior officer? You think I can’t have you demoted?” I tried to laugh. Nothing came out. “Spy on you? I’m not that twisted. Your precious adopted brother is the one who called me.” She turned to Zach. He put on that wounded, long-suffering face he did so well. And just like that, she turned back on me. “Enough, Ethan! What’s with the sarcasm?” “You’re the one who wouldn’t let him put his name on the report yesterday. What was he supposed to do?” “And for the record, being married to you doesn’t give you a say in who I sleep with. Got it?” I gave a hollow smile. “You’re right. Your body, your choice.” “But my life is mine too. Divorce papers will be on your desk tomorrow.” Her face went white. Then she recovered, chin up, that familiar sneer creeping back. “Ethan, don’t forget who you are. Your rank, your promotions—you owe all of that to me.” “Without me, you’d be scrubbing pots in the mess hall by tomorrow.” I said nothing. She softened her voice, trying a different approach. “Ethan, be reasonable. Stop making things hard for Zach, and I’ll let today slide.” That was when it hit me. She genuinely thought she was doing me a favor. All those years of loving her, protecting her—she’d turned it into a weapon against me. I looked at her face on the screen. So familiar, yet so foreign now. I said it calmly. “Stella. We’re done.”