Chapter 2 The Entangled Hopes

Elias stood atop the roof of his childhood home, Las Vegas sprawled below him, the brightly colored lights reflecting off of the marble of their neighbors homes like a sea of hedonism. The neon buzzed through him, a reminder of the world that was dragging him back in, one he had fought tooth and nail to escape after his last god-forsaken operation overseas. Here, surrounded by the trappings of the Strip, he had felt smothered by his task as a soldier, shackled by the ceaseless specters of his past.

The wind tousled his dark hair, stirring for him a dozen whispers of memories long lost his mother's laughter, the weight of his father's expectations. Elias had been a soldier, a guardian, an alpha in every meaning of the word. Now, he was a shadow of himself, standing at the edge of an emotional cliff, not knowing what to do next.

He turned away from the view and unbidden, he shuddered as he thought back to earlier in the evening. A name that brought to mind disdain and bitterness: John Deere. Their previous meeting did not end amicably; an old grudge born of a terrible expenditure where military practice had run contrary with police order. Both had emerged scarred, their enmity residing just below a boiling point.

The odour of home reacquainting itself with him as he trudged in. Clara was seated in the cozy den, arms crossed, eyes shining with worry. Her warmth melted away some of the fraying at his edges. She could always read him like a book. "You okay?" she asked softly.

"Just tired," he answered, trying to force a grin he didn't really feel.

Their reunion was a moment of respite, but it was overshadowed by the specter of the sudden military trumpeting shrieking in the background. As they started to drift back into the shared memories, Elias's phone buzzed with urgency. He looked at the screen-a message from his command officer. His stomach turned; it was a gateway into an inexorable reality.

"Elias, this is your superior," Clara said, her tone changing from concern to caution. "What does it say?"

"Looks like I'm being called up for a critical mission," he said, his voice sinking in gravity. "Diplomacy with extremely high stakes and covert operations." Words had an air of loaded gun in his hands, ready cocked to fire.

She frowned, her arms pressed more tightly against her chest. "Can't you just say no?"

He met her gaze. "It's not that simple, Clara. We both know it never is."

For an instant, silence hung between them, heavy and unyielding. He could feel the tension clamping down on the room, "What about your father?" Clara asked, her voice lifting the weight. The image of William David his father hung in his mind as a sable ghost.

"Dad's been the anchor always," Elias said, his voice trailing. He was aware that his father would have to carry heavy burdens around the choices Elias made, especially related to the military. William David had an unshaken faith in family, a faith Elias longed to embrace but fought against the current of duty.

After a brief pensive silence, the front door creaked open a few moments later and William, the light walking with him, came in. "Elia," he said, his voice comforting like authority. "We need to talk." William sat at the old living room table, its surface covered with newspapers and family photographs and there was little time for pleasantries.

William's look said it all to Elias; he knew the gravity of the impending mission. "Son," he said, urgency creeping into his voice. "I understand the military has its calls, but don't forget what we built together." He had always acted as a compass for Elias, always latching on to him in his times of turbulence. "Your mental health is far more important than any obligation, real or perceived, that you think you owe."

Elias listened closely, and another buzz shimmered through, this time Clara's phone just buzzing across the table, urgent.

She glanced at it, eyes narrowing in reading. Something suppressed around the edges of her lips, and Elias felt a change in himself. "Elias," she paused. "I've found something. My investigation... there appears to be a secret about your family that I might need to disclose."

Cardio time, weaving threads of uncertainty intertwined with hope: it was never only about him. He, Clara, and his father were all united by something stronger than the ghosts of his past. But still the path ahead was unclear, winding around intersecting hopes and the reverberations of decisions he hadn't made yet.