Chapter 6 - The Color Drains
The entire first-class cabin had fallen into a breathless, pin-drop silence. Every eye was locked on Marcus Bennett as he stood beside row two, holding the small slip of paper in his hand.
The silver-haired man’s hand remained suspended in mid-air for a second before he slowly pulled it back, a nervous twitch appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"Marcus," the man said, his voice losing its booming confidence and taking on a sharp edge of unease. "What is the meaning of this? Why are you holding that piece of paper? And why has this flight been grounded?"
Marcus turned his head slowly, his gaze locking onto the man with the intensity of a predator sizing up its prey. The executive’s face was devoid of warmth, carved from pure corporate fury.
"You asked what the meaning of this is, Mr. Sterling," Marcus said, his voice carrying clearly across the entire quiet cabin. "Let me enlighten you."
At the sound of his last name, the color began to rapidly drain from the man's face. The ruddy, healthy glow of a wealthy executive vanished, leaving his skin a sickly, ash-grey tone. He swallowed hard, his throat bobbing visibly as fear finally pierced his armor of arrogance.
"I—I don't know what you're talking about," Sterling stammered, taking a half-step backward. "I am a Tier-One corporate partner—"
"You were a Tier-One corporate partner," Marcus corrected him coldly, cutting him off mid-sentence.
Behind Marcus, one of the flight attendants stepped forward. Her expression was rigid, her hands trembling slightly as she clutched a crisp, newly printed corporate document bearing the official red stamp of Carter Aviation Group. Her eyes flicked toward Sterling as she approached row two.
"Sir," the flight attendant said, her voice sharp and formal, completely stripped of its usual customer-service warmth. "This document was transmitted directly from corporate headquarters to the flight deck two minutes ago."
May you like
Sterling reached out a shaking hand, his fingers trembling as he tried to grab the paper from her grip. But the flight attendant pulled the document back just enough to keep it out of his reach, holding it firmly as she began to read the first line aloud for the entire cabin to hear.
"Effective immediately," she recited clearly, "by order of majority owner and Chief Executive Officer Daniel Carter..."
