PART 1 — THE WOMAN IN SEAT 2A
The moment Cassandra ripped the blanket away, the entire First-Class cabin fell silent.
Passengers woke instantly.
Phones appeared.
Eyes widened.
The gray blanket landed in the aisle.
Eleanor Vance slowly sat upright.
She looked at the blanket.
Then at the flight attendant standing over her.
Cassandra crossed her arms.
"I told you. Those blankets are for premium passengers."
A murmur spread through the cabin.
Several passengers had witnessed everything.
They had seen Cassandra refuse service.
They had watched her single Eleanor out all evening.
And now they had seen her publicly humiliate a sleeping passenger.
Eleanor remained calm.
Dangerously calm.
Then a man stood up from the row behind her.
Agent Reynolds.
A Federal Air Marshal.
He displayed his badge.
The confidence vanished from Cassandra's face.
"I was only following airline policy," she stammered.
"No," Reynolds replied coldly.
"You were abusing a passenger."
The cabin grew even quieter.
Then Eleanor carefully folded the blanket and placed it on her lap.
Finally she spoke.
"My name is Eleanor Vance."
Nobody reacted at first.
Then a businessman across the aisle suddenly froze.
His eyes widened.
"Judge Vance?"
Several passengers turned.
The name was familiar.
Very familiar.
Eleanor nodded once.
"Yes."
The atmosphere changed immediately.
Because Judge Eleanor Vance wasn't just any passenger.
She was the federal judge overseeing one of the largest legal cases in the airline industry's history.
And Oceanic Airlines was one of the companies involved.
Cassandra felt the blood drain from her face.
May you like
Because she suddenly realized she hadn't humiliated an ordinary traveler.
She had humiliated the one person who could expose everything.
