That much is fact. Molina and Kleppen, though, dispute Kovic's depictions of what happened before and during the time he was hit.
Kovic claimed that fellow Marines ran away from the fight, leaving him and one other Marine — Molina? — under heavy enemy fire.
From Page 213 of the book:
"I looked to my left flank and all the men were gone," Kovic wrote. "They had run away, all run away to the trees near the river, and I yelled and cursed at them to come back but nobody came.
"I kept emptying everything I had into the village, blasting holes through the pagoda and ripping bullets into the tree line. There was someone to my right lying on the ground still firing."
No, Molina said, the other Marines didn't flee, and he's angry Kovic would even suggest it. With the group running out of ammo, Kleppen, a master gunnery sergeant, and another Marine dodged bullets as they went back for more. Then they returned to fight.
"They never ran away," Molina said.
Moments later, Kovic was hit by enemy fire and paralyzed. Hence, Molina's second correction request. In the book, Kovic claimed he was carried to safety by a black Marine.
"There were no blacks in our outfit," Molina said. "I was the only Hispanic."
In fact, Molina maintains he is the one who rescued Kovic.
