Chapter 3 - The Audit in the SkyRyan tried to stand up, his seatbelt catching him across his waist and jerking him back down into his leather seat.
"You spied on me?!" he growled, his eyes wild with a mixture of terror and fury. "This is private corporate data! It's illegal for you to have this! I'll have you fired! I'll call the airline executives!"
"You can certainly try," I said, my smile unwavering. "Except the airline executives aren't the ones you should be worried about right now."
I leaned in a fraction closer, my gold lead wings gleaming under the cabin lights.
"At 9:30 this morning, thirty minutes before we pushed back from Gate D22, a certified copy of those exact ledgers was delivered directly to the desk of Arthur Pendelton—your Chief Executive Officer at Vanguard Construction," I murmured softly. "Along with a complete digital folder containing hotel receipts, flight bookings, and jewelry purchases made using the company's corporate American Express card."
Ryan dropped the papers onto his lap as if they had burned his skin. "Arthur? You sent this to Arthur?!"
"Arthur was my father's college roommate, Ryan," I replied, letting the quiet truth sink in. "Who do you think recommended you for the Vice President position four years ago? You thought you landed that job on your charm and talent. My father put your resume on Arthur’s desk because I asked him to support my husband."
Ashley sat paralyzed in seat 1B, her eyes wide as she looked at Ryan as if seeing him for the first time.
"You... you stole money from your own company?" Ashley gasped, her hands clutching her designer bag. "And you used my home address to register a fake company?!"
"Ashley, keep your mouth shut!" Ryan shouted, completely losing his composure.
"Sir, I must ask you to keep your voice down," I said firmly, my tone shifting instantly from polite wife to authoritative flight crew. "You are causing a disruption in the First Class cabin. If you raise your voice again, I will have the Captain issue a formal Passenger Misconduct Warning, and federal authorities will meet this aircraft at the gate in Cancun."
The passenger in 2A, a senior partner at a Dallas law firm who recognized Ryan from corporate charity dinners, leaned over the aisle and looked directly at Ryan with absolute disdain.
"Keep it down, Carter," the attorney said coldly. "Some of us are trying to work. And frankly, your wife is handling this with far more class than you deserve."
Ryan looked around the cabin. The wall of prestige he had spent ten years building—the executive image, the expensive clothes, the confident swagger—was crumbling into dust in front of twelve wealthy peers and his mistress.
"Valerie..." Ryan whimpered, his voice cracking as he reached out to touch the hem of my apron. "Please. We can fix this. I'll break up with Ashley right now. We'll go home to Dallas. I'll transfer all the money back! Just call Arthur and tell him it was a mistake!"
May you like
I looked down at his hand on my uniform, then stepped smoothly out of his reach.
"Drink your champagne, Ryan," I said softly. "It's going to be a very long flight."
Related Stories
