The Betrayal at West Point

The Betrayal at West Point

Fritz Heaney

5.0
Comment(s)
188
View
11
Chapters

The suffocating darkness of the barracks was my constant companion, a heavy blanket of dread thick with the smell of sweat and fear. Every whispered threat, every sneer from Caleb Blakely, my squad leader, was a reminder of the impossible secret I carried. I wasn't "Matthew Johns," a plebe at West Point; I was Molly, a woman masquerading as my injured brother, desperately clinging to his scholarship to save my family from financial ruin. Then came the night in the communal showers. A broken water main meant no privacy, nowhere to hide my true identity from fifty other men. Caleb had me cornered, his cruel smile promising public humiliation and the end of my impossible dream. I pictured the headlines, the disgrace, my family' s hope shattering before my eyes. My heart hammered against my ribs, each beat a frantic plea for an escape that didn't exist. Just as panic threatened to overwhelm me, a defiant spark ignited. I couldn't let him win. I couldn't let him break me. My voice, surprisingly steady, cut through the night: "I have a proposal for you, Sir. A bet." I challenged him to West Point's most brutal endurance course, the "Recondo," wagering my entire future on a desperate gamble. Either I finished, and he' d keep my secret, or I' d publicly expose myself and surrender everything. This was my last stand, my only shot to reclaim control and prove that even a scrawny plebe could fight back.

Introduction

The suffocating darkness of the barracks was my constant companion, a heavy blanket of dread thick with the smell of sweat and fear.

Every whispered threat, every sneer from Caleb Blakely, my squad leader, was a reminder of the impossible secret I carried.

I wasn't "Matthew Johns," a plebe at West Point; I was Molly, a woman masquerading as my injured brother, desperately clinging to his scholarship to save my family from financial ruin.

Then came the night in the communal showers. A broken water main meant no privacy, nowhere to hide my true identity from fifty other men. Caleb had me cornered, his cruel smile promising public humiliation and the end of my impossible dream.

I pictured the headlines, the disgrace, my family' s hope shattering before my eyes. My heart hammered against my ribs, each beat a frantic plea for an escape that didn't exist.

Just as panic threatened to overwhelm me, a defiant spark ignited. I couldn't let him win. I couldn't let him break me. My voice, surprisingly steady, cut through the night: "I have a proposal for you, Sir. A bet."

I challenged him to West Point's most brutal endurance course, the "Recondo," wagering my entire future on a desperate gamble.

Either I finished, and he' d keep my secret, or I' d publicly expose myself and surrender everything.

This was my last stand, my only shot to reclaim control and prove that even a scrawny plebe could fight back.

Continue Reading

Other books by Fritz Heaney

More
Ex-Wife, Please Have Some Self-Respect

Ex-Wife, Please Have Some Self-Respect

Modern

5.0

I was driving through a rainstorm in upstate New York, pushing my old Volvo to the limit just to pick up a Dior gown for my wife, Catarina. She needed it for a gala tonight, where she planned to spend the evening standing next to the man she actually loved, Atticus Deleon. The truck hit me head-on, crossing the center line and sending my car rolling down an embankment in a shriek of twisted metal and shattered glass. As the steering column crushed my chest, my brain didn't see a white light; it was pried open by a digital tsunami, flooding my mind with the "Quantum Archive"-billions of data points on surgery, high-frequency trading, and combat. I woke up in the ICU with three broken ribs and a concussion, but the only thing waiting for me was a screaming voicemail from my wife's assistant. "Jorden, where the hell are you? Catarina has been waiting for thirty minutes! You are so incompetent it's actually impressive." There was no "Are you okay?" or "Are you alive?"-only fury over a ruined dress and a missing tie. While I was being resuscitated, my wife was on Instagram, singing "Endless Love" with Atticus and laughing at my "tantrum." She even called the family lawyer to freeze my credit cards, wanting to make sure I couldn't even buy a coffee without her permission. For three years, I had been the "useful husband," the doormat who apologized whenever she stepped on my toes. But the accident had overwritten my desperation with cold, hard logic, and I realized I had almost died for a woman who viewed me as a liability with a negative return on investment. When Catarina finally stormed into my hospital room to demand an apology for ruining her night, I didn't look at her with the usual puppy-dog eyes. I looked at her with ice in my veins and handed her a manila envelope I had drafted myself. "Sign the divorce papers, Ms. Evans. I'm done being your canary."

The Discarded Heir: A Self-Made Empire

The Discarded Heir: A Self-Made Empire

Billionaires

5.0

Prologue: Echoes of a Shattered Past, Seeds of a New Beginning Ethan Miller dedicated his life to his beloved wife, Isabelle, and the Montgomery industrial empire, believing he was building a shared future. Then, in his sixties, his world crumbled: Isabelle, with cold eyes, confessed their Ivy League son wasn't his, but his rival Liam' s. Decades of unwavering loyalty and sacrifice were shattered, the betrayal so crushing it literally killed him. But death was not the end. He woke up younger, back on the very day his arranged future with Isabelle was about to be sealed. The cold animosity in her eyes confirmed his worst fear: she remembered their past life too. Refusing to relive the heartbreak, Ethan chose a different path, pulling out of the Montgomery family entirely. His choice only fueled Liam' s malicious glee, who orchestrated a public spectacle. Stripped of every possession, Ethan was forced to cycle away from the mansion on a rusty old bike, his humiliation broadcast to the entire city. How could such profound devotion lead to such public disgrace, twice? Was he destined to suffer under Isabelle's shadow forever? Just as despair threatened to consume him, a sleek black Maybach materialized, offering an unexpected lifeline from a New York titan of industry. This time, Ethan Miller vowed to reclaim his destiny and build an empire of his own, leaving the specter of his past firmly behind him. Ethan Miller had dedicated his life to two things: Isabelle Montgomery and Montgomery Industries. He was the protégé, the one they said was brilliant, the one who would carry the family name forward even though he wasn't born with it. He married Isabelle, the love of his life, or so he thought. He poured his soul into the business, transforming it, making it a powerhouse in their Midwest city. Decades passed, filled with work, with a quiet devotion Isabelle rarely seemed to notice. Then, in their sixties, the world shattered. Isabelle stood before him, her eyes cold, a stranger. She wanted Liam Walker's name added to the Montgomery family foundation's main charter. Liam, the other protégé, the one who vanished years ago after a scandal, now "posthumously rehabilitated" in her mind. She wanted Liam's name to replace Ethan's. Then came the final blow. "Alex isn't your son, Ethan," she said, her voice flat. Their Ivy League son, the boy Ethan raised, was Liam's. Conceived before their marriage, a secret kept for a lifetime. Decades of lies, of a stolen life. The betrayal was a physical force, crushing his chest. Ethan Miller clutched his heart and fell. Darkness. Then, light. Confusion. He was younger. Much younger. He knew this day. The day the Montgomerys would formally announce Isabelle' s chosen husband. The day his first life truly began, and also, the day it was all a lie.

You'll also like

THE SPITEFUL BRIDE: MARRY TO RIVAL'S SON

THE SPITEFUL BRIDE: MARRY TO RIVAL'S SON

Ray Nhedicta
4.6

"Let's get married," Mia declares, her voice trembling despite her defiant gaze into Stefan's guarded brown eyes. She needs this, even if he seems untouchable. Stefan raises a skeptical brow. "And why would I do that?" His voice was low, like a warning, and it made her shiver even though she tried not to show it. "We both have one thing in common," Mia continues, her gaze unwavering. "Shitty fathers. They want to take what's ours and give it to who they think deserves it." A pointed pause hangs in the air. "The only difference between us is that you're an illegitimate child, and I'm not." Stefan studies her, the heiress in her designer armor, the fire in her eyes that matches the burn of his own rage. "That's your solution? A wedding band as a weapon?" He said ignoring the part where she just referred to him as an illegitimate child. "The only weapon they won't see coming." She steps closer, close enough for him to catch the scent of her perfume, gunpowder and jasmine. "Our fathers stole our birthrights. The sole reason they betrayed us. We join forces, create our own empire that'll bring down theirs." A beat of silence. Then, Stefan's mouth curves into something sharp. "One condition," he murmurs, closing the distance. "No divorces. No surrenders. If we're doing this, it's for life" "Deal" Mia said without missing a beat. Her father wants to destroy her life. She wouldn't give him the pleasure, she would destroy her life as she seems fit. ................ Two shattered heirs. One deadly vow. A marriage built on revenge. Mia Meyers was born to rule her father's empire (so she thought), until he named his bastard son heir instead. Stefan Sterling knows the sting of betrayal too. His father discarded him like trash. Now the rivals' disgraced children have a poisonous proposal: Marry for vengeance. Crush their fathers' legacies. Never speak of divorce. Whoever cracks first loses everything. Can these two rivals, united by their vengeful hearts, pull off a marriage of convenience to reclaim what they believe is rightfully theirs? Or will their fathers' animosity, and their own complicated pasts tear their fragile alliance apart?

Chapters
Read Now
Download Book