"If you had to make an approximate guess, Ralph, how long ago would you estimate Simon Bennett's death occurred?"
"I don't know, maybe a month, maybe two. I really have no idea."
"What happened to Simon's body after he was killed?"
"It happened right on the shore of the beachfront. His body was washed up by the tide."
"You didn't make any attempt to keep his body from drifting off?"
"I was in shock. I still couldn't remember how to move."
"Were you the only onr who wasn't carrying around a hunting stick that night, Ralph?"
"No, Piggy didn't either. Or, Pieter I mean."
"Are you referring to Pieter Kingston? The other boy who was killed on the island?"
"Yes."
"What was it the other boys were doing prior to Simon's death; specifically the last few minutes that led up to it?"
"They lit a fire, and had a feast. They hunted a pig earlier that day. They were singing songs and playing games around the fire."
"That all occurred before they saw Simon approaching with the glowstick and presumed he was a monster of some sort?"
"Yes. Everyone went to bed after... it happened."
"Do you know what would've led the other boys to think Simon was the monster?"
"Everyone was on edge after one of the boys in Jack's camp said he was attacked by the monster. Some of the kids in my camp were scared too, and kept telling me we had to do something about it, to protect ourselves. It put people at odds, and maybe 'em scared almost everything."
"They were scared. But you weren't?"
"Like I said, I don't believe in monsters."
"If you didn't believe in the monster, why didn't you try and stop the others from doing what they did?"
"I don't know... I wasn't thinking straight, I guess."
"Okay, that's all the detail we need from you for now. We just have one last question regarding Simon Bennett before we move on, okay?"
"Okay."
"Having been present when he was killed, would you describe the circumstances surrounding Simon's death to have been accidental or intentional?"
"Accidental."
"Thank you, Ralph. That's as far as we need to go with that. Let's switch gears now, shall we? Tell me about your squadron."
"What about them?"
"What was your relationship like with each of them? And what were their relationships like with one another? Anything you think is important."
"Well we all had been training together at Bainbridge for three years. So I knew most of them pretty well. I wasn't as close or super familiar with all of the younger boys, but I did mentor each of them at least a little bit before the island. Just like in any large group, not everybody gets along perfectly with everybody, but there was nothing significantly alarming. We were just ordinary, stupid kids."
"You never noticed any repeated incidents of conflict or bullying? Nothing like that among your squad?"
"Well, there were sometimes when some of the older boys would mess with the younger ones. People argued sometimes. We didn't all always see eye to eye but we tended to work things out."
"Anyone in particular you noticed tended to consistently be involved in some of these minor incidents you're describing?"
"I guess sometimes they same people would butt heads."
"Any names come to mind?"
"I suppose Roger was involved more than once. He doesn't always know when to quit."
"And this is Roger Conroy you're referring to?"
"Yes."
"Anyone else?"
"Not especially."
"Was there anyone you didn't get along with all that well back at the military school?"
"No. I respected my squad and in turn, they respected me."
"What about on the island?"
"Pardon?"
"Did you run into any major conflict with anybody on the island?"
"Not at first. But we didn't all share the same values anymore by the end of it."
"Was it yours or their values that changed?"
"Theirs, I'd say. I was focused on trying to do whatever we could to get rescued, and survive in the meantime. Some of the others let the slack go and started messing around when they could've been helping with food and shelter and the fire watch."
"What about Simon Bennett and Pieter Kingston? Were they part of the group that started slacking off, as you put it?"
"No. The three of us were always focused on getting rescued and such. Neither one of them ever lost sight of that before they... um, died."
"Was it only the three of you who stayed loyal to the goal of getting rescued?"
"By the end, yes."
"Going back to my initial question; was there anyone whose values especially conflicted with yours? Anyone you might've butt heads with a lot while you were on the island?"
"I guess Jack. And Roger. Eventually, they all had let go of the values we held when we first crashed."
"Jack is Jack Merridew? Your lieutenant colonel?"
"Yes."
"Would you say he was the first or one of the firsts to let go of those values you upheld?"
"He was."
"What was your relationship with Jack like prior to your time on the island?"
"We were friends. Close friends, actually. He spent part of the past summer at my house. We hardly ever had any trouble getting along before the island."
"What about on the island? When, as you stated, he let go of the values that resembled yours."
"We were still friends at first, but eventually started not getting along so well. We didn't agree on what was important."
"What did you believe was important?"
"Keeping the fire going, building and maintaining shelters, working as a team."
"And Jack?"
"He was focused on getting food. Hunting, to be specific. For pigs in the forest."
"Did you believe hunting for pigs was important?"
"I wasn't opposed to it, but I felt there were more important things to worry about first. Jack didn't."
"How would you describe your relationship with Jack after these disagreements started to occur?"
"We argued a lot, I guess. I got really mad at him for letting the fire on the hill go out while he was out hunting. He thought I was being uptight."
"Did he say that to you? Call you uptight?"
"Not in those words. He was tired of me trying to control everything, he said."
"Did Jack want to control everything?"
"I don't think he wanted there to be any control."
"Did the other boys agree with Jack?"
"Some did. Eventually, the rest of them changed sides over time too."
"Are you saying you and Jack were on opposing sides?"
"By the end, we were living on different sides of the island. We weren't friends anymore."
"Why do you think the other boys decided to follow Jack instead of you?"
"I don't know. There's strength in numbers, I guess. They wanted to be with the others."
"What about Pieter Kingston? He didn't show any interest in joining them?"
"Not really. He and I thought a lot alike. Some of the other boys weren't all that nice to him."
"In what ways were they unkind to him?"
"They called him Piggy because they didn't know his real name. It was a crack at his weight. I admit I didn't know his real name either."
"But you two were close friends, no?"
"We were. But not before the island. Not before most of the others separated themselves from me. By then, I was too embarrassed to ask; too embarrassed that I didn't already know his real name."
"Were you present when Pieter was killed?"
"Yes."
"Can you describe what led up to and caused his death for the record?"
"He and I went over to where we knew the other boys were living and sleeping. We wanted to talk to them about becoming a group again. We were starting to feel really isolated, I guess. Jack was on the path of rocks leading up to the top of the rock wall. Tony was with him. Some others were too, but I don't remember who. Roger, Will, and one of the younger kids were up on top of the wall, looking over and down at us. Pigg-Pieter tried to talk them all into acting more like adults. That's when the giant bolder came down from the top of the wall and hit him on the head. I think he died pretty instantly. I checked his pulse to see if he was breathing a couple seconds after it happened but there was nothing."
"Where were you when the bolder came down?"
"I was standing a few feet away from him."
"Did you see the bolder fall from the top of the rock wall?"
"Yes."
"Did you know it was going to hit Pieter?"
"Yes. I started yelling, but it was too late. It rolled off the top in what felt like slow motion but it was already over before I could comprehended that it was really happening."
"Were the other boys standing in the pathway, or yourself close enough to where Pieter was to potentially have been hit as well?"
"I suppose so. It was hard to tell exactly where it was gonna land. I knew it would hit Pieter, but I didn't even think about protecting myself. I froze. Again."
"Did you see what caused the bolder to become lose and drop down the side of the rock wall?"
"Yes."
"Can you tell us what you saw?"
"Roger pushed it. He rolled it off the ledge."
"To the best of your knowledge, is there any reason Roger might have done so intentionally?"
"They were all annoyed with Piggy. They were all taunting him while he tried to talk, yelling at him to shut up. There was nothing significant that happened between Roger and Piggy, though. Other than them being on opposite sides and the difference in values and such."
"How long before the rescue, if you had to make an educated guess, would you say Pieter's death occurred?"
"It was much more recent than Simon's. A week? Maybe longer."
"And lastly, would you describe the circumstances surrounding Pieter's death to have been accidental or intentional?"
"Intentional."