Chapter 19 - THE LAST MISSION OF IRON TENClaire refused to rebuild Iron Team as a covert unit.
That era was over.
Instead, they did something Voss never expected.
They brought everything into daylight.
Congressional testimony.
Federal court filings.
Family statements.
Declassified Ridge Kilo records.
Rebecca spoke publicly about Thomas.
Daniel testified for the Marines whose careers had been damaged by the falsified report.
Adrian cleared Evelyn's name.
Mason sat in the gallery.
Quiet.
For once.
The investigation eventually led to indictments across multiple agencies and contracting firms.
Not everyone was caught.
Claire knew they never would be.
But Ridge Kilo was officially rewritten.
Thomas Vale received a posthumous valor citation based on the complete record.
Evelyn Shaw's conviction was vacated.
Everett Reed's role in preserving evidence was acknowledged.
Daniel's Marines were formally cleared.
And Claire?
She rejected every medal offered.
Instead, she requested one thing.
Thomas's name restored to the Iron archive.
At the ceremony, Rebecca stood beside her.
“You know Dad would hate all this attention.”
Claire smiled.
“He'd complain for three hours.”
“Four.”
They laughed.
Then Rebecca handed Claire Thomas's Iron Three patch.
“I think you should keep it.”
Claire shook her head.
“No.”
She placed it back in Rebecca's palm.
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“He already came home.”
For the first time in fourteen years, Claire believed that.
