“I have been living with incomplete answers for eight years.”
“I know.”
“Perhaps I can manage a few more.”
The formal review began several weeks later.
It was not a public investigation. There were no cameras, no dramatic announcements, and no suggestion that the original inquiry had been dishonest.
A small review team was assigned to examine the communications record and determine whether the newly provided material justified a broader examination of the Carver's emergency timeline.
Elise was asked to provide a statement.
She did so under the direction of the review officer, Captain Laura Bennett, who had not served aboard the ship.
The interview took place in a secure conference room.
Captain Bennett reviewed the available documents before asking questions.
“Commander Navarro, do you remember receiving an incomplete transmission from the lower engineering section?”
“Yes.”
“Do you remember the words used?”
“Not exactly. I remember a report that the team's status was unconfirmed. I also remember a possible reference to an access door, but I cannot say whether that was part of the original transmission or a later interpretation.”
“Did Chief Mercer hear the transmission?”
“Yes.”
“Did he respond?”
“He asked whether the team had been accounted for.”
“Did you provide an answer?”
“I told him we had not received confirmation.”
“Did he request another transmission?”
“Yes.”
“Did you repeat the request?”
“I believe so.”
“Did he leave the coordination station afterward?”
“I saw him move toward the command compartment. I cannot establish that he went into the lower engineering section.”
“Did he tell you he was going there?”
“No.”
“Did you order him to remain at his post?”
“I told him to wait for the next status report. He did.”
“Was there a later order directing him to return to the lower section?”
“Not one that I recall.”
Captain Bennett made a note.
“Did you ever believe that Chief Mercer had acted outside his assigned responsibilities?”
“No.”
“Did you believe he had disobeyed an order?”
“No.”
“Did you believe he had knowingly placed himself in danger?”
Elise paused.
“I believed he understood the risks of the emergency. I cannot say what he knew at every moment.”
Captain Bennett looked up.
“Is there anything in the official report that you believe is inaccurate?”
Elise considered the question.
“Not based on the information I have reviewed.”
“Do you believe the report is incomplete?”
“It may not include every detail of every transmission. That is different from being inaccurate.”
Captain Bennett nodded.
“Thank you. That distinction is important.”
She closed the folder.
“One more question. Are you requesting this review on behalf of the Mercer family?”
“No. I am providing information from a former crew member. The family has not asked me to intervene.”
“Are you requesting any change to the official finding?”
“No. I am asking that the new material be assessed.”
Captain Bennett nodded.
“Understood.”
The interview ended.
As Elise left the room, she felt an old tension in her shoulders.
She had been careful with every answer. She had not filled gaps with memory or emotion. She had not allowed Daniel's fear to become a factual conclusion.
But she also knew that the review might uncover something.
And once the questions began, she could not decide where they would end.
The first update came six weeks later.
Captain Bennett called to explain that the review team had located the original communications archive.
The record confirmed that a transmission had been received from the lower engineering section. It also confirmed that the transmission had been incomplete.
However, the review team had found no evidence that a crew member was trapped.
The status of the engineering team had been reported through a separate channel shortly afterward.
That information had not appeared in Daniel's personal notes because he had been assigned to another task by then.
Elise listened carefully.
“So the team was accounted for before Andrew's final transmission?”
“Yes.”
“Can you establish the exact timing?”
“We have a reliable sequence, though there is a short gap caused by the communications failure.”
“And the reference to the door?”
“The original transmission includes a partial word that could be interpreted as a door-related term. It could also be part of another word. We cannot establish the meaning.”
Elise looked at the table.
“Did Andrew receive the later confirmation?”
“The record suggests that the confirmation was transmitted to the coordination channel.”
“Does it establish that he heard it?”
“No.”
Elise closed her eyes.
Captain Bennett continued.
“We have not found evidence that Chief Mercer returned to the lower engineering section. The records show him moving toward the command compartment after the initial report. His later actions are consistent with the official account.”
“So there is no basis to change the finding.”
“Not at this stage.”
Elise nodded.
“Thank you.”
“Commander, I want to emphasize that the review has not found evidence of misconduct or a failure to account for the crew. It has clarified a communication sequence that was incomplete in the personal records.”
“I understand.”
“Would you like a written summary for the family?”
“I would need to discuss that with the appropriate office.”
“Of course.”
After the call, Elise sat for a long time.
She had hoped the new information might answer something.
Instead, it had narrowed the possibilities without eliminating them.
Andrew had heard the incomplete transmission.
He had asked for confirmation.
The engineering team had eventually been accounted for.
But no record established exactly what Andrew knew when he moved toward the command compartment.
She called Mark.
He came home early.
When she told him, he listened with his hands clasped in front of him.
“So there wasn't anyone trapped?”
“There's no evidence of that.”
“But the transmission happened.”
“Yes.”
“And Andrew heard it.”
“Yes.”
“Then he wanted to know what happened.”
“Yes.”
Mark looked toward the photograph.
“That sounds like him.”
Elise nodded.
“It does.”
He sat beside her.
“Does this change anything?”
“Not about the official finding.”
“Does it change how you remember him?”