Chapter 10 - I Had Changed My Own Score Downward
For three seconds, I thought Walter had finally handed me proof that I was worse than everyone said.
Then Mason laughed.
Not happily.
“You make everything sound dirty.”
Walter looked at him.
“She changed a score.”
Mason turned toward me.
“Down.”
I stared.
“What?”
“You lowered yourself.”
Walter said nothing.
That omission was deliberate.
“Why?” I asked.
Mason's anger softened slightly.
“Because you realized Walter was using the board.”
“That doesn't explain lowering mine.”
“You wanted to see whether your formal recommendations changed.”
A test.
Not approved.
Still clever.
“What happened?”
Dana answered from the door.
“Your recommendation did change.”
I looked at her.
“How?”
“Walter removed you from an advanced instructor shortlist within a week.”
Walter said:
“Correlation.”
Nia laughed.
Price, who had remained for all of this, looked at him.
“Colonel.”
He stopped.
I stared at Walter.
“You saw my lower score.”
“Yes.”
“And changed your recommendation.”
“I had multiple reasons.”
“Did the Circle influence it?”
Walter took a long time.
“Yes.”
So I had proved it.
“How did I react?”
Mason said:
“You wanted the whole thing exposed immediately.”
“Then why strip the roster?”
“Because Luis asked what would happen to everyone else's names if command seized the file.”
Right.
No names, no retaliation.
But there was still another problem.
“If my self-score was proof, removing the roster removed that too.”
“Yes.”
“Did I know?”
“Yes.”
“Why agree?”
Mason looked at me.
“Because you chose protecting the group over proving Walter used your score.”
That sounded better than I deserved.
Nia corrected it.
“After she spent three months protecting the program.”
I nodded.
“Right.”
No clean rescue.
General Price sat on the edge of the front chair.
“You all created a private system.”
Mason nodded.
“Yes, ma'am.”
“Colonel Hayes used it in formal decisions without telling participants.”
Walter nodded reluctantly.
“Yes.”
“Captain Carter learned that, delayed action, then attempted to prove it by manipulating her own rating.”
“Yes.”
“Sergeant Reed altered at least one other participant's rating because he believed the original was unfair.”
“Yes.”
“Then Captain Carter organized a public gesture to expose the scope.”
“Yes.”
“After which the participant names were removed to prevent retaliation.”
“Yes.”
“And that removal also made it easier for Colonel Hayes to deny the scope.”
Nobody answered.
Price looked tired.
Reasonable.
“Why did the investigation fail to produce this sentence two years ago?”
Walter said:
“Because events were less clear then.”
Nia almost laughed.
Price looked at her.
“What would you say?”
“Because everybody told the part that made them easiest to live with.”
The room stayed quiet.
That one belonged to Nia.
No need to improve it.
Price looked at me.
“Captain Carter, do you remember changing your own rating?”
I closed my eyes.
The whiteboard returned.
My name near the top.
Marker in my hand.
I drew a line through something.
Moved my name downward.
Mason standing beside me.
His voice:
If this works, we're both screwed.
Me:
Then we'll know.
My eyes opened.
“Yes.”
Mason stared.
“You remember?”
“Enough.”
His face changed.
For the first time since I returned, he looked relieved.
Not because it helped him.
Because I had one memory nobody gave me.
Then another fragment surfaced.
After the score change.
Walter in the doorway.
He had seen us.
Not later.
That night.
“You were there,” I said.
Walter froze.
“What?”
“When I changed my rating.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
The image sharpened.
His reflection in the dark window beside the board.
Arms folded.
Watching.
“You saw me do it.”
Walter's jaw tightened.
Price stood.
“Colonel?”
Walter stared at me.
Then:
“Yes.”
Mason swore.
Dana looked away.
I felt sick.
“So you knew it was a test.”
Walter said nothing.
“And you changed my recommendation anyway.”
“I wanted the Circle ended.”
“That was your method?”
“You had lost control of it.”
“You were using it.”
“And you were turning it into an accusation.”
Price cut in:
“Enough.”
Walter stopped.
She looked at me.
“One recovered memory does not establish every detail.”
“I know.”
Good.
She turned toward Walter.
“But your admission establishes enough to continue this without a ceremony.”
Walter looked toward the podium.
The commendation folder still sat there.
His final public day in command was dissolving around him.
Then Mason said:
“Rachel.”
I turned.
His face had gone pale again.
“What?”
“If you remember Walter in the doorway…”
He swallowed.
“You might remember what happened after.”
“What happened?”
Mason looked toward the mat.
“You told me you couldn't stay in this unit.”
I frowned.
“Because of Walter?”
Mason shook his head.
“No.”
May you like
He looked at me.
“Because of what the salute did to you.”
