“I’ll do that now.”
Rebecca was still staring at Elena.
“You’re really the CEO?”
Elena smiled faintly.
“I am.”
Rebecca looked at her phone.
“Then why didn’t you just tell that woman?”
Elena considered the question.
“Because I shouldn’t have needed to.”
Seven months earlier, Elena had become CEO of Meridian Airways after its previous chief executive retired.
She hadn’t inherited the airline.
She hadn’t married into ownership.
She’d spent decades working her way through aviation operations, finance, safety planning, and executive management.
She’d supervised route expansions, negotiated airport agreements, and helped stabilize the company during an expensive fleet renewal.
The board had appointed her after a lengthy search.
She was the first Black woman to lead Meridian.
There had been headlines.
Interviews.
A photograph in the company’s employee newsletter.
But Elena had spent most of her time since the appointment dealing with budgets, operations, and negotiations.
She wasn’t a celebrity.
And she didn’t expect every flight attendant to memorize her face.
That afternoon, she was traveling to Chicago for a regional management meeting.
She’d booked her ticket through the ordinary reservation system.
Her executive assistant offered to arrange a company escort.
Elena declined.
She preferred traveling without special treatment when her schedule allowed.
She wanted to see what passengers experienced when nobody believed the CEO might be watching.
She had not expected the first serious problem of the trip to begin with a glass of water.
Thomas returned after several minutes.
