I had seen worse.
But the comments were different.
Thousands of strangers were debating what they had witnessed.
Some defended me.
Some criticized the airline.
Some accused Evelyn of discrimination.
Others claimed the video didn't show enough context.
That last group was correct.
A fifteen-second clip could never tell the whole story.
I handed the tablet back.
“Don't interfere with it.”
Daniel looked surprised.
“You don't want the company to contact her?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because the public shouldn't decide the investigation.”
He nodded.
“Understood.”
Across the aisle, Evelyn was staring at me.
She had clearly noticed the video.
Then her phone rang.
She answered.
“Yes?”
A pause.
“What?”
Another pause.
“No.”
She looked at me.
“I said no.”
She ended the call.
Five minutes later, another call came.
This time, she whispered.
“I know what happened.”
She listened.
Her expression changed.
Then she looked toward the cockpit.
“Are you sure?”
She ended the call.
I knew then that something bigger was happening.
It wasn't just about the seat.
Someone had contacted her.
And they were worried.
I pressed the call button.
Sarah approached.
“Yes?”
“I need the purser.”
Daniel came over.
I lowered my voice.
“Pull the complete reservation history for 1A.”
Daniel's eyes narrowed.
“Why?”
“Because I want to know whether Ms. Harrington actually had 1A at any point.”
He hesitated.
Then nodded.
Twenty minutes later, he returned.
His expression was serious.
“Mr. Carter.”
“What did you find?”
“Your reservation was made three weeks ago.”
“Yes.”
“1A was assigned to you from the beginning.”
“And Ms. Harrington?”
“1C.”
I waited.
“Anything else?”
Daniel looked at the tablet.
“There was a seat change request.”
“When?”
“Yesterday afternoon.”
“Requested by whom?”
Daniel hesitated.
“The request originated from an internal employee account.”
My eyes narrowed.
“Whose?”
Daniel looked around.
Then he leaned closer.
“That's the problem.”
“What problem?”
“The employee account belongs to someone who wasn't scheduled to work today.”
The aircraft seemed suddenly colder.
“Who?”
Daniel gave me a name.
Grant Holloway.
I knew it immediately.
Grant Holloway was the airline's regional customer-experience director.
And he was supposed to be one of the executives helping me during the acquisition.