“I knew it was wrong.”
“Why didn’t you step forward immediately?”
He glanced toward the curtain separating First Class from the forward galley.
“Dana’s more experienced than I am. She’s criticized me in front of passengers before. I was afraid she’d make trouble for me.”
Elena listened.
“Did you report that behavior?”
“Once. I told a supervisor she kept snapping at newer crew members.”
“What happened?”
“I was told that learning to work with different personalities was part of the job.”
Elena held his gaze.
“Who told you that?”
He gave her the supervisor’s name.
She wrote it down.
Marcus looked alarmed.
“Am I going to get someone in trouble?”
“I’m going to ask why an employee felt he couldn’t safely raise a concern. That’s different from assuming your supervisor did something wrong without hearing their account.”
He nodded.
Elena closed her notebook.
“You were right to verify the seat assignment and insist on following procedure. Next time, don’t wait for an executive to be in the cabin before you speak up.”
Marcus looked at her.
“I won’t.”
He turned to leave.
Then Elena called him back.
“Marcus?”
“Yes?”
“Could I finally have that glass of water?”
He blinked.
Then he laughed softly.
“Of course, Ms. Carter.”
A moment later, he returned with a glass and a napkin.
