I glanced at the JAG officer again as Chief Jones sat in stunned silence.
My lawyer nodded and walked to the defense table where he pulled the classified folder from his briefcase.
He took a deep breath. He was risking his career by bringing TOP SECRET information to the court without approval.
"I have here a copy of the OP order for Operation Afghan Sunset. I request that this be entered into classified evidence. The highlighted sections clearly show that this mission was authorized at the highest levels, and that normal electronic record keeping was suspended."
The judge turned a bright shade of red momentarily.
He reached out and took the folder from LCDR Meyers. "This is highly irregular." He glanced at the folder. "And TOP SECRET."
Meyers nodded. "Captain," he replied, "It is our intent to prove that the team was sent into a firefight with flawed intelligence and non standard equipment in order to cover the tracks of a secondary covert operation which resulted in the child fatalities."
The judge flipped through the file before looking back towards the two SEALs whose fate rested in his hands during this Article 32 Hearing.
He took a moment, before closing the file and responding. "So far, this is all circumstantial. What other evidence do you have to support your claims that this crime was committed by other than Lieutenant Pike's team?"
"Yes, sir." He replied, pausing.
"This evidence is only hours old, but NCIS found an eyewitness to the events. A young boy. I have a transcript of his testimony. I will read one segment and offer the statement for inclusion into the official case file."
He cleared his throat. "They were Americans," he began, carefully reading the young boy's testimony. "But they were dressed like Afghan citizens."
He read from the report slowly, purposefully. "They were wearing the traditional local clothing, and were heavily armed. They came in the middle of the night. They pulled the boys from their beds and lined them up in the center of the schoolyard. They shot them all."
LCDR Meyers paused again. Resuming the report
"I was hiding. I was crying but they didn't hear me. Then I ran for the outside. To the hills. I waited there all night. Afraid to move. Hours later, the airplanes came."
The judge nodded. "Again, circumstantial. The men were speaking English. That points to the SEAL Team."
My lawyer nodded. "I have here the medical examiner's report from the six SEALs killed that night. All of their uniforms were covered in residue of cordite and gunpowder."
The judge nodded.
He realized now what we had earlier.
"If the men had been wearing the disguises, they wouldn't have been covered in explosive residue."
My attorney nodded.
"This is all very disconcerting, the judge stated after a few moments.
"Between the report that you have highlighted and this child's testimony, it is starting to look more and more like the SEALs were set up to fail."
He shook his head.
The prosecuting attorney stood and paced towards the bench.
His face was a mask of calm. Every inch the Marine Officer, he stood tall. "Sir, I request a recess to review this new evidence and recommend disposition of this case."
The judge nodded. "I think that is an excellent idea. We will reconvene tomorrow morning."
I sighed and stood, walking towards my attorney. I nodded as the MP took up position beside me and began to escort me back out the door to the waiting government vehicle outside.
Chapter 23:
Dinner at the Brig was brown mush.
It tasted like gravy. They called it Salisbury steak.
"You going to eat that?" Pete Rogers asked as I peered around the room.
I shook my head and he turned hungrily to the tray of half eaten mush.
"How can you eat that stuff, Pete?" I asked as I tried to look non-chalant and relaxed in the dining hall.
He just shrugged.
I hadn't seen the chubby guard since the night before. That brought some relief to my anxiety.
Although telling the truth at my Article 32 hearing had been liberating and the right thing to do, it was nerve wracking.
I knew that at some point the powers that be would be seeking retribution.
The powers that be.
I pondered that phrase. A phrase I don't think I'd understood until the last few days.
There were powers that could dictate the timing and equipment of TOP SECRET SEAL missions.
Powers that could have you attacked and killed inside a military prison.
Powers that commanded the very structure of the military prison facility; that could access you anywhere, find your family anywhere.
A shiver ran down my spine as Pete Rogers slurped down what remained of my brown mush.
"What's wrong, LT?" Pete asked as he took a last drink from his carton of milk and pushed the tray back towards my side of the table.
"Who are these people?" I asked, cradling my head in my hands for a moment before looking across the small steel table to Pete's lean and hard face.
He nodded and leaned in towards me. "The ones pulling the strings?" He asked.
I nodded.
"The same men who have been pulling the strings for time immemorial, I would assume." He responded finally. "The ones with the most to lose."
He smiled sadly and leaned back.
I nodded. "Pete," I said a second later, " I never asked, but why are you in here?"
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, his hands still as they rested on the cold steel of the small table.
"The same reason you are, Lieutenant. Men with the most to lose decided that my team and I made convenient fall guys."
"Well, I don't think they've found me to be a very convenient fall guy at this point." I said, pausing. "It looks like the charges might be dismissed."
Pete shook his head and whistled softly.
"Be careful, Lieutenant. These men, they don't function within the law. They don't answer to any power higher than themselves. They only respect money and power."
"I can't let them get away with this." I said to no one in particular, only half convinced that I believed it.
Pete leaned forward, intent now. "If you never listen to a word I say, listen to me on this point. If you are fortunate enough to have your charges dropped in the Article 32 Hearing, let it go. Digging any deeper will only get you killed… Get your family killed."
The skin around my eyes tightened as I squinted with rage.
"And they get away with it. With killing those children. With killing my men. With dragging the entire SEAL organization through the mud." My hands made fists on the metal table as I peered around the room.
"That's right, Lieutenant. And you and your family live."
He stood slowly across the table. His trident tattoo was exposed momentarily as the material pulled away from his arm while he reached out for his tray.
He caught me looking and smiled sadly.
"I wish I'd had your courage, Lieutenant." He walked slowly away, his head sweeping slowly side to side, his stride slow but athletic. Still every inch the SEAL despite his years in confinement.
I shook my head before standing and walking towards the scullery behind him.
Wondering what Pete had been convicted of.
He was too in the know. Too familiar with whatever organization had been pulling the strings this whole time.
I quickened my step and caught up to him moments later just after he'd set his tray on the counter.
I stepped in front of him.
"I need to know what you know about these men." I said quietly as I set my tray on the counter next to Pete's.
He smiled sadly and shrugged.
"I've been here for ten years. Convicted of a crime that my team and I did not commit. Since then, I've watched the same thing happen to other men. Those pulling the string are almost invisible. They act with boldness and impunity."