Chapter 14 - The Reprimand
Mara's conduct review concluded before the larger investigations did. Pike called her into the office with a written reprimand for poor judgment in speaking with a reporter during a sensitive inquiry. The file also noted that Mara had disclosed her actions voluntarily and had not been found to have improperly downloaded the restricted packet.
She read every sentence. She wanted to argue that without the public story, the military might have buried the matter again. But she could not forget Reyes's children appearing on strangers' social-media accounts.
“I'll acknowledge it,” Mara said.
Pike set a pen on the desk. “You don't have to agree with every assessment to accept responsibility.”
“Will I still be allowed to serve?”
“That decision belongs to the people who evaluate your whole record. For now, you're here, and I expect you to do your job.”
Mara returned to acquisitions and spent the afternoon checking an ordinary bid matrix. The work was not glamorous. It was also the kind of careful process that, handled honestly, could keep a contractor from buying influence. She found herself paying closer attention to each field than ever before.
HonorLine announced it would suspend its paid application service while outside counsel reviewed complaints. Its website continued collecting donations. Bell insisted he had personally helped hundreds of veterans. Some of those testimonials were genuine; Helen Price knew several beneficiaries. That made the alleged deception harder, not easier, to untangle.
Aaron asked Mara to drive him to a meeting with a veterans service officer. He held the paperwork in his lap without speaking until the highway opened into flat winter fields.
“Mom says you got written up,” he said.
“Yes.”
“You going to blame me?”
“No. I chose the call.”
He rubbed his knee. “I used to think the worst part was Bell getting the medal. But it was everyone telling me to be grateful I got home.”
“You didn't have to be grateful to the people who lied.”
“I know that now.”
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At the meeting, Aaron signed a request to reconsider the disputed narrative in his military record. He wrote a separate statement asking that the Afghan driver's death be acknowledged in any corrected account.
Mara looked at him with quiet astonishment. He was asking for more than his own name.
