Chapter 2 The Shameless Man
"James! Get out! Right now! This instant!"
Josephine pointed at the private room door, her face twisted with rage.
James had to pick this exact moment to show up — not too early, not too late — just in time to ruin everything she'd worked for.
Right as Sophia was about to respond, someone near the door suddenly gasped.
Then came a knock, and the door swung open.
A sharp, unified rhythm of footsteps filled the room. Everyone turned to look.
Ten men in deep navy dress uniforms stepped into view. Medals gleamed on their chests. They marched in perfect formation and came to a halt just outside the doorway, lining up in a straight row.
In one crisp motion, they raised their hands in salute — so perfectly in sync it looked like a single person moving.
The officer at the front was a middle-aged man in white gloves. He held a tray with both hands, draped in velvet printed with the Novarian flag. His expression was solemn as he read aloud in a clear, commanding voice.
"By unanimous decree of the Presidential Office and the Special Congressional Committee — in recognition of extraordinary contributions to defending Novaria's highest interests during a classified overseas operation — we hereby present the Congressional Cross of Honor!"
The weight of those words, and the gravity of the ceremony, hit everyone in the room like a wave.
The entire space went dead silent.
The Wilson family stood there frozen. Even Richard, just recently retired, had his mouth hanging open, barely holding onto his wine glass.
The Congressional Cross of Honor.
Novaria's highest military decoration.
Only a handful of people in the country's entire history had ever received it.
The silence stretched long enough that the officer holding the tray started to sweat.
His orders had been clear — the Reaper General preferred to keep a low profile, and his identity was not to be revealed.
The plan had been to handle this quietly. But the Congressional Cross of Honor still required some kind of formal ceremony, and it had somehow turned into this.
So standing here now, watching James say nothing, the officer was barely holding it together. If this man were displeased, that would be a serious problem.
Everyone else looked around at each other, stunned.
This was clearly the highest military honor there was. And in this room, only two people had ever served. So who was it for?
Every eye in the room moved back and forth between James and Richard.
Richard swallowed, straightened his tie, and let a look of quiet anticipation cross his face.
"Oh my God — who is this for? This is incredible!"
"Who else could it be? Obviously, Mr. Black."
Josephine said it casually, and just like that, everyone shifted their attention to Richard. It seemed obvious. Of course, it was him.
"Right. Richard's the only one here who could deserve something like this."
While everyone held their breath waiting, James spoke, his voice calm and flat.
"Take it back. Leave it with my mentor."
"Yes, sir."
The soldiers turned and marched out, just as precisely as they'd come in.
The room fell completely still. You could have heard a pin drop.
The Wilson family didn't fully grasp the weight of that medal, but the ceremony alone made one thing clear — this was no ordinary honor.
"Nice try, James."
Tommy's voice cut through the silence, dry and mocking. Heads turned.
"Did none of you catch that? James kept watching Mr. Black the whole time. The moment Mr. Black waved his hand, James said what he said. I think you all know what that means."
What?
The Wilson family was stunned. Could someone really be that shameless?
The looks they shot James turned to pure contempt.
He tried to claim Novaria's highest military honor as his own?
The nerve.
"Well, I won't hold it against him. For Sophia's sake."
Richard stepped in at just the right moment, smiling with easy grace. "The Congressional Cross of Honor — I actually turned it down once before, back in the service. Didn't expect them to follow up. The reason I'm declining again is simple: I don't think I've earned that yet. That kind of honor belongs to a real hero."
The room filled with quiet admiration.
Josephine was quick to follow. "Richard, you come from one of the finest families, and you're everything a man should be. A few years in the military and you've already earned the highest honor they can give — and you're humble enough to turn it down."
She sighed. "If James had even a fraction of your character, he wouldn't be where he is today. He wouldn't have let my daughter down like this."
"Exactly. If Tommy hadn't spotted that, James might have actually pulled it off. James, you should be thanking Mr. Black. If anyone pushes this further, falsely claiming a Novarian military honor could land you in a Novarian prison. That's not a small thing."
Richard was genuinely puzzled, though. He had no memory of any Congressional Cross of Honor. When he'd waved his hand earlier, it was just a reflex — he hadn't meant anything by it. He hadn't expected it to play out like this.
As for the medal being James's?
That couldn't be right.
The man the Rockefeller family threw out like trash?
Just as the others were gearing up to pile on, Sophia snapped.
"Enough."
She turned to Richard, her voice steady. "Richard, I made a vow before God — for richer or poorer, in sickness or in health. I am James's wife. I am now, and I will be. As long as he doesn't betray me, I won't betray him. So you and I — that's never going to happen."
With that, Sophia did something no one had ever seen from her before. She pulled Stella into her arms and walked out without looking back.
James followed, a quiet smile on his lips.
That kind of loyalty — it was something he would spend the rest of his life trying to be worthy of.
After Sophia left, Richard's face went stiff. He walked out without a word.
Tommy watched them go, a cold smirk spreading across his face. "Well, Josephine, Robert — so much for that dream marriage into a powerful family. I hope that's the end of it."
He shook his head. "Such a waste of flattery on our part. Do yourselves a favor and know your place."
Since the Black family connection was off the table, that other plan could move forward again.
Sophia. That's all you're really good for now anyway.
Outside the restaurant, Sophia stopped and turned to face James. Her eyes — green as jade — were full of disappointment.
"James. It's okay to be ordinary. But don't make promises you can't keep. What you did today — it let me down. You're not coming home tonight. We'll talk tomorrow."
There was nothing James could say.
But Stella reached out and tugged his hand, her voice small and hurt. "Daddy, please come home soon. They all said Stella doesn't have a dad. That I'm an adopted daughter. But I have a dad now."
Adopted daughter?
Rage hit James like a wall. He opened his mouth — but Sophia was already in a cab, pulling away.
He watched the taillights disappear around the corner. His fists tightened at his sides.
"Stella," he said quietly, "no one will ever say that again. Because your dad is home."
His real identity was too sensitive to expose. If it came out, the people who wanted him dead would go after his family without hesitation.
He'd have to do this slowly — quietly improve Sophia's life, and protect them both from the shadows.
