Chapter 8 - The Second Captain
Laura felt a cold pressure building behind her ribs.
"What other captain?"
Amy looked toward the front of the airplane.
"The man who boarded wearing a captain's uniform."
Elena frowned.
"We only have two operating pilots and the scheduled relief crew."
Amy nodded quickly.
"I know."
"Then explain."
"He came through the jet bridge just before departure."
"He had a pilot's case."
"He told me he was deadheading to Madrid."
Laura studied her.
"Did you check his credentials?"
"No."
"He spoke to the gate supervisor."
"She waved him through."
Elena's face tightened.
"Why wasn't he on the crew list?"
"I thought he was."
Laura looked toward the cockpit.
"Did you see his face?"
Amy nodded.
"Gray hair."
"Blue eyes."
"About sixty."
"Anything else?"
"He had a scar near his left ear."
Laura felt the blood drain from her face.
She knew that scar.
She had seen it at Nathan's funeral.
General Richard Halden had received it during a training accident decades earlier.
He wore his hair slightly longer to conceal it.
Laura stared at Amy.
"Did he give you a name?"
"Captain Robert Ellis."
Laura shook her head.
"That's not his name."
Elena stepped closer.
"Who is he?"
Laura's voice came out flat.
"The man who signed the report blaming my husband for his own death."
Amy covered her mouth.
Laura turned toward the rear of the aircraft.
"Where did he go?"
Amy pointed.
"Through the service curtain."
Laura moved immediately.
Elena followed.
At the rear galley, they found an access door standing slightly open.
Inside was a narrow service compartment.
A woman sat on the floor with her wrists bound.
Her mouth was covered with tape.
Laura rushed forward.
The woman's eyes widened.
Laura removed the tape.
"Who are you?"
The woman gasped.
"Emily Hart."
"Why were you using my sister's identity?"
Emily began crying.
"They made me."
"Who?"
"Halden."
"Where is he?"
Emily shook her head.
"I don't know."
Laura crouched.
"Listen carefully."
"Nearly three hundred people are in danger."
"I need you to tell me everything."
Emily swallowed.
"I'm a software engineer."
"I worked for a contractor called Meridian Aeronautics."
Laura remembered Cole's explanation.
"Nightglass?"
Emily nodded.
"We developed parts of it."
"Why are you here?"
"Because I found out what happened in Afghanistan."
Laura leaned forward.
"What happened?"
Emily began trembling.
"The mission wasn't compromised by enemy forces."
"Someone deliberately manipulated the information sent to your husband's team."
Laura closed her eyes.
She had suspected it for years.
Hearing it confirmed was worse.
"Who gave the order?"
Emily looked at her.
"I have the recording."
Laura's heart pounded.
"Where?"
Emily swallowed.
"In the evidence package."
"Where is that?"
Emily looked toward the floor.
"Thomas Mercer gave it to someone he trusted."
"Who?"
Emily hesitated.
May you like
Then she whispered.
"Your daughter."
