Chapter 18 - The Hearing
The suspension lasted twelve hours.
That was how long Captain Ward needed to move the evidence outside the local chain of command.
By sunrise, a formal Inspector General review had been opened.
By noon, an independent legal team arrived.
Briggs entered in uniform.
Vance sat with counsel.
Lena Price sat separately.
Commander Hayes testified first.
Captain Mason testified next.
Then Owen Reed.
His voice shook at the beginning.
It did not shake at the end.
“I saw people get hurt,” he said. “I told myself it wasn’t my responsibility because I wasn’t the one giving the orders.”
He looked toward Briggs.
Briggs stared straight ahead.
He described his shoulder injury.
The pressure.
The missing complaint.
Then they called me.
Counsel asked about Virginia.
About the inspection failure.
About my assignment.
About the tournament.
Finally, Briggs’ attorney stood.
“Petty Officer Mitchell, you are highly trained in hand-to-hand combat, correct?”
“Yes.”
“You knew Sergeant Briggs disliked you.”
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
“And you still chose to face him.”
“Yes.”
“So you voluntarily entered a situation where conflict was likely.”
I looked at him.
“Knowing he might lose control.”
“That was his responsibility.”
The attorney paused.
“You could have walked away.”
“Yes.”
“But you did not.”
“No.”
“Why?”
The room was silent.
The attorney frowned.
“That is speculation.”
“No.”
I looked toward Carter’s video screen.
Then Reed.
Then the incident reports.
“It is a pattern.”
The attorney sat down.
An hour later, the panel recessed.
I walked outside.
Owen joined me.
“You think they’ll do anything?”
“I don’t know.”
He nodded.
Then the door opened.
Captain Ward stepped out.
Her face revealed nothing.
“They’ve reached findings.”
Owen whispered, “Already?”
Ward looked at me.
May you like
“Yes.”
Then she added, “And one of them concerns Commander Hayes.”
