The War Secret

By Ivanka White

Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead.

Harvey Traynor is the family's golden child, but he is nothing quite like his family. His path is that which many fear to tread, but he decides to live for more than himself and takes the boldest step of his life joining the army.

He takes this decision for himself, as he is eager to prove himself and still to live in his parent's shadow. He understands the value of human life and is keen on dedicating his life to protecting his fellow men.

He is loving every minute of his experience and is getting used to the highs and lows of paramilitary training.  He shortly meets a friend in the person of Vijay, and the two develop a friendship, bond, and trust so true, the whole camp is aware.

Harvey sees Vijay, nicknamed 'Brother' as the confidante and trustworthy companion he never had, and the two go amazing lengths for one another, forging ahead in their loyalty and allegiance to one another.

 A while later and the worst tragedy has struck, and try as he may, he can't hide the truth forever. Knowing the kind of family and background, he comes from, he is anxious to know their verdict. Ad all things now hang on the decision they make. Harvey must now come to terms with the brutal reality of what he has to face; his legacy or his family.

What will he decide to do? And what is it going to cost?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ivanka White
• Release date: Dec 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393198598

Book preview

Chapter One: THE RICH ALSO CRY

IT WAS 2:15 A.M. WHEN Harvey woke up on the hospital bed, he was in the military Hospital Ward, and for a second, he wondered what he was doing there. This was a nightmare. Was this really happening?

Even after the landmines eхploded with blood, dust, and debris splattered everywhere, Harvey Traynor didn't imagine that the worst tragedy would happen before his very eyes.

The upper part of Brother's body, I just landed two feet away from where Harvey had crafted to cover his head.

Harvey ran to the site where his brother was lying to view what he had just witnessed. Brothers’ body was so lifelessly lying on the ground.

‘Noooo’ Harvey screamed.

‘Nooooo’ he cried out. He would rather have been the one to die but not brother. Brother did not deserve this kind of eхit. Harvey cried bitterly. He cried and wept and wailed. He wished him and brother never left each other's sides. He blamed himself for allowing a brother to move forward closer to the enemy lines. He wishes he had gone ahead and let Brother stay back. At least he would have died, and brother would still have the chance to be alive and go back home a hero to his family, his beautiful wife, and his three children. While Harvey was still brooding over the loss of a brother, he remembered how the brother was not anything but a nickname that the two best friends had given each other.

To Harvey, brother was Vijay Malik, an Indian soldier who had also enlisted in the army after immigrating to the United States 10 years ago. To Vijay, Harvey Traynor was Brother, and they loved each other dearly to the point where they knew of each other's childhoods. Harvey had shared this in confidence with Vijay soon after their friendship took flight. He was born, the only child to Jim and Mariah Traynor.

JIM AND MARIAH HAD met in The Fall of 1982. Mariah worked as a waitress at the neighborhood Diner, and everyone seemed to love going there more whenever it was her shift. Mariah had a beauty that could turn heads, and whether it was her fun personality or her flirty appeal, she always had attention. It's little wonder that's when Jim Traynor walked in one fine Saturday afternoon; the moment she set eyes on him, she could easily size him up to not be from around there. A lot of the guys in Kentucky didn't necessarily dress so fancy, she thought, and even though he wore only a shirt a leather jacket and some denim pants, she could tell the overall outfit was reaching $500. 

This one wasn't going to get away, she thought to herself. As soon as she sent the slightest hint of interest from Jim, who couldn't keep his eyes off her as he ate his pancakes and scrambled eggs, she decided to take full advantage of the opportunity and approach him to ask if she could refill his glass of iced tea. Needless to say,