At 7:10 p.m., Marcus Reed entered the private office of Major Thomas Whitaker.
The major was seated behind a large wooden desk, reviewing a stack of operational reports.
He looked up when Reed entered.
"You shouldn't be here."
Reed closed the door.
"We have a serious problem."
Whitaker removed his glasses.
"I know."
"Then you know Carter is going through everything."
"Lower your voice."
Reed stepped closer.
"She's already found aircraft 611. She knows about the inspection amendments."
Whitaker placed his glasses on the desk.
"How?"
"Someone gave her the original records."
"Who?"
"I don't know."
Whitaker rubbed his forehead.
"Marcus, I told you not to draw attention to yourself."
"I didn't invite her into my hangar."
"You ordered her arrested."
Reed looked away.
"That was a mistake."
"A mistake?"
Whitaker stood.
"You attempted to handcuff the woman who now has authority over your entire command structure. Do you understand how serious that is?"
"I didn't know who she was."
"That's exactly the point. You didn't even bother to verify her identity."
Reed's expression tightened.
"Are you going to lecture me, or are you going to help?"
Whitaker stared at him.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he walked toward the window.
"How much does she know about Bennett?"
"She knows he was involved in the maintenance process."
"Does she know about the other aircraft?"
"Probably."
Whitaker closed the blinds.
"Then we need to be careful."
Reed lowered his voice.
"There's something else. Brooks."
"What about him?"
"He's helping her."
Whitaker turned.
"The young officer?"
"Yes."
"Can you trust him?"
"No. He's been documenting everything."
Whitaker sighed.
"Then leave him alone."
Reed looked surprised.
"What?"
"Do not approach him. Do not threaten him. Do not contact him. Every additional confrontation creates another record that can be used against us."
Reed clenched his jaw.
"He's a junior officer."
"And you're a sergeant under investigation."
The words silenced him.
Whitaker returned to his desk.
"Let the review team do its work. We need to understand exactly what they have."
Reed nodded reluctantly.
But as he left the office, his expression suggested that he had no intention of following the advice.
At 8:30 p.m., Colonel Carter was still working.
Her desk was covered with maintenance reports, personnel records, and printed electronic access histories.
She had just completed a preliminary timeline when her secure office phone rang.
"Colonel Carter."
A familiar voice answered.
"Good evening, Evelyn."
She recognized it immediately.
General Richard Lawson.
He had been one of the senior officers involved in her appointment.
"Good evening, General."
"I understand your first day has been eventful."
"That's one way to describe it."
He chuckled briefly.
"I've received a report about the incident in Hangar 17."
Evelyn glanced at the folder.
"Then you've probably heard that Sergeant Reed attempted to arrest me."
"I have."
"Has he provided an explanation?"
"He claims he was responding to a security violation."
"Then his explanation should be easy to verify."
There was a pause.
"Evelyn, I want you to be aware of something."
She straightened.
"Go ahead, General."
"That installation has had several unusual readiness reports over the past two months. I requested a review before your appointment was finalized."
Evelyn looked at the documents.
"How extensive was the review?"
"Preliminary. We identified inconsistencies, but we didn't have enough evidence to establish responsibility."
"Was Major Whitaker involved?"
"His department submitted several of the reports."
Evelyn felt her suspicions growing.
"Did you know that?"
"Yes."
"Then why was he not removed from the reporting process?"
"Because we needed to understand whether the discrepancies were administrative or deliberate."
Evelyn paused.
"General, I believe they may be deliberate."
"How certain are you?"
"Not certain enough to make a final determination. But the evidence justifies a formal investigation."
"Then proceed carefully."
"I intend to."
General Lawson's voice became more serious.
"One more thing. Don't assume that everyone who appears helpful is on your side."
Evelyn looked toward the door.
"Is there someone I should be concerned about?"
"I can't give you a name yet."
"Understood."
"Keep your documentation secure. Use independent review personnel. And do not allow anyone involved in the original approvals to control the investigation."
"I won't."
The call ended.
Evelyn remained seated for several moments.
Then she opened a new file and wrote a heading:
FORMAL INVESTIGATION β AIRCRAFT SAFETY CERTIFICATION DISCREPANCIES.
She listed the known aircraft, the relevant dates, and the personnel associated with each approval.
At the bottom of the page, she wrote three names.
Marcus Reed.
Chief Warrant Officer Bennett.
Major Thomas Whitaker.
She looked at the list.
Three men.
Three different responsibilities.
One increasingly suspicious pattern.
At that exact moment, her office computer displayed a new notification.
An encrypted message had arrived from an unidentified sender.
There was no introduction.
No explanation.
Only one sentence.
Colonel Carter, if you want to know what really happened to aircraft 611, look at the flight schedule from six weeks ago.
Below it was an attached photograph.
Evelyn opened the image.
It showed the fighter jet in Hangar 17, surrounded by maintenance personnel.
The timestamp indicated that the photograph had been taken six weeks earlier.
But what caught her attention was not the aircraft.
It was the person standing beside the maintenance station.
Major Thomas Whitaker.
And he was holding a document that appeared to be the original inspection certificate.
Evelyn enlarged the photograph.
Then she noticed something else.
A second person was standing behind him.
Sergeant Marcus Reed.
Both men were looking directly toward the camera.
As if they knew someone was watching.
Evelyn slowly closed the image.
For several seconds, she remained completely still.
Then she reached for her secure phone.
"Officer Brooks?"
Daniel answered immediately.
"Yes, ma'am."
"I need you in my office. Now."
"Is everything all right, Colonel?"
"No."
She looked again at the photograph.
"We've just discovered that this investigation may be much bigger than we thought."
And somewhere across the installation, Marcus Reed's phone began ringing.
This time, the person calling him was not Major Whitaker.
It was someone from outside the base.