“No.”
Hale stepped closer.
“You have no idea what you're dealing with.”
Malcolm whispered:
“I think I finally do.”
Then he placed a document on the table.
Hale looked down.
His face changed.
It was a bank transfer.
Millions of dollars.
Payments from a shell company.
To an account controlled by Richard Vale.
And the authorization code belonged to Victor Hale.
Steven stared.
Hale took one step backward.
Then another.
Security officers entered the room.
Hale suddenly ran.
Steven watched him disappear through the door.
Malcolm sighed.
“Now we know who to ask.”
The Flight That Never Took Off
Victor Hale was arrested before sunset.
But the investigation did not end.
Because Hale refused to speak.
And the evidence against him was incomplete.
Malcolm spent the night inside a secure conference room reviewing documents.
Steven remained there too.
At three in the morning, Steven placed a cup of coffee beside Malcolm.
“You haven't slept.”
“Neither have you.”
“I’m the captain.”
“You're not flying.”
Steven smiled.
“Fair point.”
For several minutes they sat silently.
Then Steven said:
“I was wrong about you.”
Malcolm looked at him.
“You've said that.”
“I mean more than that.”
“What do you mean?”
“I judged you because of your position.”
Malcolm looked down.
“People do that often.”
Steven nodded.
“You know what surprised me?”
“What?”
“You didn't use your position to punish me.”
Malcolm smiled faintly.
“I've learned that power is most dangerous when you're angry.”
Steven stared at him.
“Who taught you that?”
“My father.”
“What did he do?”
“He was a mechanic.”
Steven smiled.
“Your father was a mechanic?”
“Yes.”
“Then how did you become CEO?”
“Long story.”
“I've got time.”
Malcolm looked through the window.
“My father worked for Northstar when it was a small company.”
“He believed in it.”
“Yes.”
“He died while working?”
Malcolm nodded.
“Aircraft accident?”
“Yes.”
Steven's expression softened.
“I’m sorry.”
Malcolm took a breath.
“His aircraft was supposed to be safe.”
Steven understood.
“And you spent your life making sure it was.”
“Yes.”
The room became quiet.
Then an investigator entered.
“Mr. Reed.”
Malcolm stood.
“What happened?”
“We found Ethan Brooks.”
Steven stood too.
“Alive?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“A motel outside the city.”
Malcolm's face changed.
“Is he injured?”
“Badly.”
Steven asked:
“What did he say?”
The investigator hesitated.
“He said there was another person involved.”
“Who?”
The investigator placed a photograph on the table.
Steven looked at it.
His face froze.
“No.”
Malcolm looked at him.
“Who?”
Steven swallowed.
“My first officer.”
Daniel Hayes.
Malcolm immediately shook his head.
“That doesn't make sense.”
“Why?”
“Because Daniel warned us.”
Steven stared.
“Or he wanted us to think he did.”
Malcolm looked at the photograph.
There was another image.
Daniel meeting Richard Vale.
Three days earlier.
Steven felt sick.
“I trusted him.”
Malcolm placed a hand on his shoulder.
“Then we find out the truth.”
The next morning Daniel disappeared.
His apartment was empty.
His phone was destroyed.
His car was abandoned near the airport.
But he left one thing behind.
A handwritten note.
It contained only six words:
Captain, don't trust the CEO.
Steven read it twice.
Then looked at Malcolm.
Malcolm said nothing.
Because he knew the message could mean two things.
Don't trust Malcolm.
Or:
Don't trust the person claiming to be CEO.
The Man Behind the Badge
The answer came from an unexpected source.
Mina Cho.
The youngest member of Steven's crew.
She walked into the conference room carrying the black folder.
“I think I know something.”
Steven looked at her.
“What?”
“I saw Captain Hayes talking to someone before boarding.”
“Who?”
“I couldn't see his face.”
Malcolm asked:
“Where?”
“Near the maintenance entrance.”
“When?”
“Two hours before departure.”
Steven looked at the security footage.
“Can you identify the person?”
Mina hesitated.
“Yes.”
She pointed.
The image was enlarged.
The man wore a maintenance uniform.
But this time his face was visible.
Steven stared.
Malcolm's eyes narrowed.
“That isn't Richard Vale.”
“No,” Mina whispered.
“Who is it?”
Steven's voice was barely audible.
“Jonathan Reed.”
Malcolm froze.
“Reed?”
“My brother.”
Silence.
Steven looked at Malcolm.
“You have a brother?”
Malcolm nodded slowly.
“I haven't spoken to him in fourteen years.”
“Why?”
“He disappeared after my father's death.”
Malcolm stared at the image.
“Why would he be involved?”
Steven said nothing.
Mina stepped closer.
“There is something else.”
She opened the folder.
Inside was a photograph.
Malcolm took it.
It showed two men.