The tailored suit.
The polished shoes.
He hadn’t been told he smelled like a gutter.
He hadn’t been accused of sitting where he didn’t belong.
He’d been offered champagne before the aircraft finished boarding.
Across the aisle, the woman with the phone leaned closer.
“My name’s Rebecca Lin,” she whispered. “I recorded most of that.”
Elena nodded.
“Thank you.”
“Do you want me to stop?”
“That’s your decision. But please preserve what you’ve already recorded.”
Rebecca looked toward the galley.
“Are you going to be okay?”
Elena considered the question.
She could have opened her purse, taken out her company identification, and ended the confrontation immediately.
But she wanted to understand whether another employee would intervene.
Not because she was conducting a secret test.
Because an ordinary passenger in her position wouldn’t have a company badge to reveal.
“I expect so,” she said.
A younger flight attendant emerged from the galley.
He wore a neatly pressed uniform and a name badge identifying him as Marcus Reed.
“Ma’am, I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “Is there something I can help you with?”
Before Elena could respond, Dana appeared behind him.
“She refuses to cooperate with cabin seating instructions.”
Marcus glanced at Elena’s boarding pass in Dana’s hand.
“What’s wrong with the assignment?”
Dana hesitated.
“I believe she may have been incorrectly upgraded.”
Marcus looked at the seat number.
“Two Alpha is a valid First Class assignment.”
