The vehicle remained in service.
Captain Robert Harlan signed the paperwork and later became involved in reviewing the accident.
During the recovery operation, the vehicle lost control.
Carter became trapped beneath the rear frame.
Everyone else was ordered away because the ground was unstable and the vehicle could shift again.
Michael Brooks went back.
He knew the risk.
He went anyway.
Carter remembered Michael crawling beneath the damaged vehicle and working to free him while fuel leaked nearby.
Michael managed to get Carter out.
Then the ground shifted.
Michael pushed Carter clear.
He did not survive.
The official report later described his decision to return as a violation of procedure.
The mechanical failure was buried beneath the investigation.
Carter had known the truth.
He had simply been too young and too frightened to tell it.
Chapter Four — The Letter
Lena asked whether Carter had written the anonymous letter.
He said yes.
The admission hurt more than she expected.
For twenty years, her family had believed the letter came from an unknown witness. Her mother had kept it because it was the only thing that challenged the official story.