At 08:15 on Monday morning, Colonel Mercer received a phone call from an officer who had recently transferred out of the unit.
His name was Staff Sergeant Michael Reed.
He had requested a confidential meeting concerning an administrative complaint he had submitted nearly a year earlier.
Mercer immediately contacted Victoria.
"Lieutenant Colonel, we have another witness."
Victoria looked up from her computer.
"Who?"
"Staff Sergeant Reed. He says his original complaint involved the same operations office."
Victoria closed her notebook.
"Has he preserved the documents?"
"Apparently, yes."
"Then we should schedule an interview and preserve the original submission."
Mercer nodded.
The meeting was arranged for that afternoon.
At 14:00, Reed entered the conference room.
He was a broad-shouldered man in his early forties. His expression was cautious, and he held a thick envelope in both hands.
"Thank you for meeting with us," Victoria said.
Reed nodded.
"I've been waiting a long time for someone to ask."
Colonel Mercer explained the review process.
Reed then began describing what had happened.
He had submitted a report after discovering that an important equipment inspection had been recorded as completed before the inspection actually took place.
He had questioned the entry because the date appeared inconsistent with the unit's operational schedule.
According to Reed, his supervisor had instructed him to stop asking questions.
When he refused, the disagreement escalated.
He submitted a complaint.
It was closed three days later.
"Who closed it?" Victoria asked.
Reed handed her a printed copy.
"Major Smarx's office."
Victoria examined the record.
The closure date matched one of the entries already under investigation.
"Did you receive an explanation?"
"No, ma'am."
"Did anyone interview you?"
"No."
"Did you receive any instructions after the complaint was closed?"
Reed hesitated.
"Yes."
"What instructions?"
"I was told not to bring the issue up again."
"Who told you?"
Reed looked at Mercer.
Then he answered.
"Captain Harold Collins."
Mercer wrote down the name.
"Was Collins involved in the original inspection?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Do you have any evidence of the conversation?"
"I have a message."
Reed removed his phone and showed them a saved communication.
The message instructed him to stop questioning the inspection record and warned that continued complaints could affect his future assignments.
Victoria read it carefully.
"Was this sent before or after the report was closed?"
"After."
She looked toward Mercer.
The information was significant.
It suggested that at least one person involved in the original matter might have attempted to discourage further reporting.
But it still needed verification.
"Staff Sergeant," Victoria said, "we'll preserve this communication and include it in the review. We cannot promise a particular outcome, but we can promise that the information will be examined."
Reed nodded.
"That's all I've wanted."
He stood to leave.
Then he paused.
"Can I ask something?"
"Of course."
"Did Major Smarx really tell you to leave his office?"
Victoria nodded.
"He did."
Reed shook his head.
"Then I suppose he didn't know who you were."
Victoria looked at him.
"He knew my rank. He had my assignment notice."
Reed lowered his eyes.
"That makes it worse."
After Reed departed, Mercer reviewed the evidence.
"This may be the connection we needed."
Victoria remained cautious.
"Possibly. But we need to verify the message and establish the complete timeline."
Mercer nodded.
"Agreed."
At 16:30, Colonel Bennett called an urgent meeting.
The audit team had located additional electronic records connected to the disputed inspection entry.
The records showed that several people had accessed the file.
One account belonged to Major Smarx.
Another belonged to Captain Collins.
A third belonged to an administrative supervisor who had not yet been interviewed.
Bennett looked at the documents.
"We need to determine whether these were routine corrections or unauthorized changes."
Victoria pointed to the timestamps.
"The access sequence matters. If the record was altered after the inspection was questioned, we need to know exactly what changed."
Mercer nodded.
"Request the original version and every subsequent version."
Bennett agreed.
Then he looked toward Victoria.
"There's something else. Captain Collins has requested a meeting with command."
"Has he explained why?"
"No."
Bennett closed the folder.
"He says he wants to provide information about the handling of the reports."
Victoria looked at Mercer.
The investigation had just reached another turning point.
Because Captain Collins was not merely a name appearing in a complaint.
He was one of the people who had been directly involved in the decisions now under examination.
And he might be ready to tell them why.