Chapter 2: The Document on the Armrest
Part 2 ⬇️
Derek did not move.
He set his boarding pass flat on the armrest where every nearby passenger could see it and folded his hands on top of his briefcase.
"Call security," he said quietly.
"I'll wait."
Lauren's face went pale.
She had expected him to argue, to plead, to stand and shuffle toward 3C the way this was supposed to go.
She had not expected calm.
Bradley leaned in.
"You're holding up a full flight over a seat number?"
"You're holding up a full flight," Derek said, "because you can't accept the seat number on your ticket."
A sharp sound came from across the aisle.
Helen Parker had closed her paperback completely.
Then Derek reached into his briefcase.
He placed a single document on the armrest beside his boarding pass.
A contract cover page.
Blue Ridge Airways letterhead at the top.
His company name printed below it.
Lauren's eyes dropped to the page before she could stop them.
Bradley saw it too.
His winter tan seemed to drain slightly.
"What is that?" Bradley said.
Derek said nothing.
At that exact moment, Lauren's earpiece crackled.
A voice from the gate desk, sharp and urgent.
She pressed one finger to her ear.
Her expression changed completely.
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What Derek said next made Lauren step back — and forced Blue Ridge into a crisis no one on that plane saw coming.
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