INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you tell him to prepare the audio system?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "I told him to ensure that the ceremony could continue if an unexpected interruption occurred."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Were you aware that Mr. Vaughn intended to approach the stage?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "I knew he wanted to speak to her."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you know that he intended to confront her about the procurement review?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "Yes."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you know he was angry with her?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "Everyone in the company knew that."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you believe he might become physically aggressive?"
Olivia hesitated.
OLIVIA GRANT: "I didn't expect that."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Why did you instruct Mr. Mercer to obtain the recording?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "The company needed to understand what had happened."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Why did you request a version without the venue's security watermark?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "For internal review."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Why did you ask him to delete his access records?"
Olivia looked toward her representative.
OLIVIA GRANT: "I didn't ask him to delete evidence."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "We have a message from you instructing him to remove the access request from his local records."
OLIVIA GRANT: "I wanted him to remove an unnecessary administrative file. I didn't want him to become involved in a dispute that was not his responsibility."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did Richard Vaughn instruct you to obtain the footage?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "Yes."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did he tell you what he intended to do with it?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "He said he needed to review the incident."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did he say he wanted to challenge Colonel Carter's account?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "He said he believed she had acted aggressively."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you know that he had grabbed her uniform first?"
Olivia was silent.
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Ms. Grant?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "I saw part of the incident."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "You were at the ceremony?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "Yes."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "What did you see?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "I saw Mr. Vaughn approach the stage. I saw him speaking to Colonel Carter. Then I saw them struggle."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you see him grab her?"
Olivia looked down.
OLIVIA GRANT: "Yes."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you tell Mr. Vaughn's attorney that?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "No."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Why not?"
Olivia's expression changed.
OLIVIA GRANT: "Because I was afraid of what would happen if I contradicted him."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Were you instructed to provide a particular version of events?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "No one gave me a written instruction. But I was told that the company needed to present a consistent position."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Who told you that?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "Mr. Vaughn."
The investigator paused.
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "What did he say?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "He said that if the incident became public, everyone needed to understand that he had approached the stage to raise a legitimate concern. He said the company could not allow a military officer to use her position to damage its reputation."
EVELYN CARTER: "Did he say anything about the recording?"
Olivia turned toward Evelyn.
OLIVIA GRANT: "He said the recording had to be reviewed before anyone else saw it."
EVELYN CARTER: "Why?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "He believed the audio might contain something that could help him."
EVELYN CARTER: "Did he know the microphone had been disabled?"
Olivia hesitated.
OLIVIA GRANT: "I don't know whether he knew before the ceremony. But after the incident, he called me and asked whether the audio had captured everything."
GENERAL MARCUS HALE: "What did you tell him?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "I told him I would find out."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "Did you know that the microphone had been deliberately switched off?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "I knew there had been an instruction to prepare for a disruption. I didn't operate the system."
Evelyn looked at her.
EVELYN CARTER: "Who decided that the microphone should be placed on standby?"
Olivia looked toward her representative.
Then she answered.
OLIVIA GRANT: "Mr. Vaughn asked me to make sure there would be no public recording of the argument."
The room became silent.
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "When did he ask you?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "The morning of the ceremony."
GENERAL MARCUS HALE: "Did he know he was going to confront Colonel Carter?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "He said he wanted to speak to her in front of the people who had supported the project. He believed she would be less likely to dismiss him if other officials were watching."
Evelyn remained still.
EVELYN CARTER: "Did he tell you to arrange the microphone interruption?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "He told me to make sure the conversation would not be broadcast through the venue's audio system."
INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTOR: "And you passed that instruction to Richard Cole?"
OLIVIA GRANT: "Yes."
The investigator wrote down the answer.
For the first time, the sequence of events was becoming clear.
Richard had intended to confront Evelyn publicly.
He had expected the presence of senior officials to put pressure on her.
His office had instructed event administration to prepare for a disruption and prevent the conversation from being broadcast.