"Not the preserved copy," Laura said. "The reservation notes can be updated, but the incident file will show what was recorded here."
Maya nodded. "That's all I wanted."
Laura hesitated before leaving. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry this happened."
Maya looked at her. "Then make sure the record stays accurate."
Laura accepted the answer and returned to the front. Grace waited until she was gone.
"You could have made this much louder."
"I know."
"You could have refused to move."
"I know."
Grace studied her. "But you didn't."
"No."
"Why?"
Maya kept her voice low. "Because the moment they can honestly say we disrupted the flight, Mercer gets something he doesn't have right now."
Grace understood. "A reason."
"Exactly."
At the front of the cabin, Cole sat in seat 2C while Mercer held his phone low near his lap. Cole glanced at the screen. "Are you messaging Holloway?"
Mercer locked the phone. "No."
"Then who?"
"Does it matter?"
Cole looked toward the rear cabin. "It might."
Mercer turned to him. "You're getting nervous over nothing."
"I'm getting nervous because there's now an incident file attached to two seats we weren't assigned. We were reassigned after you asked."
Mercer's expression tightened. "Drop it."
Cole leaned back. "You told me at the gate they had moved us."
"They did."
"You left out the part where you asked them to."
Mercer looked toward the aisle to make sure Laura was not nearby. "I asked if they could help us. Holloway made the decision."
"And now two passengers have a written objection."
"So?"
"So maybe this isn't as clean as you thought."
Mercer lowered his voice. "We are off duty, not stripped of our profession. Airlines make accommodations for law enforcement all the time."
Cole looked at him. "Were we given those seats because of an operational need?"
Mercer did not answer directly. "We were given the seats because Holloway decided to give them to us."
"That's not what I asked." Mercer stared at him until Cole looked away.
Laura returned to first class and checked both men's seat belts. "Captain Shaw has reviewed the cabin report," she said.
Mercer looked up. "And?"
"The flight will depart as scheduled once boarding is complete."
"So this is over."
Laura did not agree. "The seating issue has been documented."
"That means it's over."
"It means it's documented."
Mercer's jaw tightened. Cole watched the exchange without speaking.
A few minutes later, the last passengers boarded. The aisle cleared, overhead bins were secured, and Laura completed the final cabin check.
Grace looked out toward the jet bridge as the aircraft door prepared to close. "We could still get off," she said.
Maya looked at her. "Do you want to?"
Grace considered it. "No."
"Then we stay."
Grace unfolded her boarding pass again. "I don't know why I keep looking at this."
"Because it says where you were supposed to be."
Grace gave a tired smile. "It feels ridiculous that a piece of paper matters this much."
"It matters because it was issued before any of this started." Grace folded it again and placed it in the front pocket of her purse.
At the front, Mercer watched Laura secure the cabin door. He waited until she moved toward the galley before turning to Cole. "When we land, this will be handled properly."
Cole looked at him. "What does that mean?"
"It means people who understand security procedure will take over."
Cole frowned. "There wasn't a security incident."
Mercer looked toward the rear cabin. "Not yet."
Cole stared at him. "Dan, don't do that."
"Do what?"
"Turn this into something it wasn't."
Mercer's voice became colder. "I'm making sure we're protected."
"Protected from two women who gave up their seats and followed every instruction?"
Mercer leaned closer. "Protected from what they decide to say after we land."
Cole did not answer. The aircraft began moving away from the gate. Grace felt the motion and placed one hand on the armrest. Maya remained still.
In first class, Mercer unlocked his phone again and opened the draft he had started earlier. He read what he had written, deleted one sentence, and replaced it with language that sounded more official.
Cole saw enough to recognize the words: Confrontational behavior. Mercer kept typing.
"Put the phone away."
Mercer ignored him.
Cole lowered his voice. "Nothing happened."
Mercer finally looked over. "That depends on who writes it down first."
The aircraft continued toward the runway while the cabin remained quiet. Grace kept her purse on her lap with the folded boarding pass inside the front pocket. Maya sat beside her and watched the flight attendants complete their final checks.
In first class, Cole looked at Mercer's phone again. "You need to stop writing until you know exactly what happened is being reported."
Mercer locked the screen. "I know what happened."
"No, you know what you wanted to happen."
Mercer turned toward him. "I asked for two seats. Holloway approved the change. They challenged it, and now they're building a complaint."
"They challenged a change they never agreed to."
"They made it confrontational."
Cole shook his head. "Maya Williams asked questions. That is not the same thing."
Mercer looked toward the rear cabin. "She knew exactly what she was doing."
Cole followed his gaze. "That still doesn't make her a security concern."
Mercer did not answer. The aircraft reached the runway and took off.