“Yes?”
“May I speak with you privately?”
I nodded.
We stepped toward the galley.
Daniel lowered his voice.
“I've been instructed to expect you.”
I looked at him.
“By whom?”
He hesitated.
“Corporate.”
That was interesting.
“Does the captain know?”
“Yes.”
“Does the crew?”
“Only the flight deck and senior cabin staff.”
I nodded slowly.
“Then let's keep it that way.”
Daniel looked relieved.
“Understood.”
I returned to 1A.
Evelyn was now in 1C.
She was typing furiously on her phone.
She looked up when I passed.
Her expression carried a new emotion.
Suspicion.
She no longer saw a man who had accidentally wandered into First Class.
She had begun to wonder who I actually was.
That was exactly what I wanted.
Because the truth was something she could never have guessed from my clothes.
My name was Marcus Carter.
And the reason I was sitting in Seat 1A had nothing to do with an ordinary commercial trip.
The Man in the Gray Hoodie
I had deliberately dressed down.
There was a reason.
Three days earlier, I had received a confidential report from the airline's board.
The report contained complaints from passengers.
Not about delayed flights.
Not about lost luggage.
Something more complicated.
Passengers had reported discriminatory treatment by certain employees.
Complaints were repeatedly closed without meaningful investigation.
Some disappeared.
Some were reclassified.
Some passengers were offered vouchers and told not to escalate.
The pattern bothered me.
Because I was not simply a passenger.
I was Marcus Carter.
Chairman of Carter Meridian Holdings.
And through a chain of investment companies, I had recently acquired a controlling interest in the airline.
Only seven people knew.
The public announcement wasn't scheduled for another forty-eight hours.
The board wanted me to inspect the operation anonymously before the acquisition became public.
I had agreed.
No suit.
No assistant.
No security detail.
No company insignia.
Just an ordinary passenger.
I wanted to see what happened when nobody knew who I was.
The answer had arrived before takeoff.
A woman had judged me within seconds.
A flight attendant had done the same.
And neither had thought twice about it.
That was more valuable than any board presentation.
I sat quietly while passengers settled into their seats.
Daniel approached me again.
“Mr. Carter.”
I looked up.
“Everything okay?”
“Yes.”
He leaned closer.
“Corporate has asked that I make sure you have whatever you need.”
“I don't need anything.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
He glanced toward my jeans.
“The coffee?”
“I'll survive.”
Daniel smiled.
“I'll have someone bring a medical kit.”
“Thank you.”
He walked away.
I looked out the window.
The runway was visible beyond the glass.
But my attention returned to Evelyn.
She was whispering to another passenger.