Chapter 3 - The Woman in the Cream Coat
Olivia’s public grief had once moved Megan. She had watched the woman speak beside Sarah’s photograph and believed every tear. That memory now made the encounter more dangerous, not less. A practiced liar could be dismissed; a grieving sister could believe her own distortions and still cause ruin. Megan wondered whether Olivia had boarded to expose Marcus, rescue Clara, recover the sheep, or complete a task she did not fully understand. The uncertainty made her more frightening than a simple enemy.
The woman appeared thirty minutes before landing.
Until then she had remained near the front, mostly hidden by the angle of the seats. She was elegant in a severe way, with pale hair swept behind one ear and a cream coat far too expensive for casual travel. When she walked down the aisle, several passengers recognized her and began whispering.
Olivia Dane.
Television advocate. Founder of Families for Truth. The woman who had spent the past year accusing government agencies of hiding crimes behind classified investigations.
Megan had seen her interviews. Olivia spoke with practiced compassion and perfect anger. She could turn any uncertainty into a conspiracy and any camera into a courtroom.
She stopped beside Marcus.
“Commander Reed,” she said loudly enough for three rows to hear. “I didn’t expect to find you here.”
Marcus’s jaw tightened. “Ms. Dane.”
Olivia looked at Megan and Clara, then at the way Megan’s shoulder still touched Marcus’s arm. “You move on quickly.”
Megan frowned. “Excuse me?”
Olivia ignored her. “Does your companion know about Lieutenant Sarah Dane?”
Marcus said nothing.
Olivia’s eyes glistened. “My sister served under him. She died during the Northstar response.”
The surrounding phones rose again.
“She died because a locator beacon failed,” Marcus said.
“She died because you changed the rescue route.”
“I changed it to follow the flare.”
“And left Sarah’s boat outside the search grid.”
Marcus’s voice remained controlled. “Your sister’s boat had already been ordered back to port by Admiral Vale.”
Olivia’s expression flickered.
It was brief, but Megan saw it.
“You have no right to say her name,” Olivia whispered.
She turned her attention to Clara. The sorrow on her face transformed into something more complicated.
“How old is she?”
Megan shifted the baby away. “That is none of your business.”
Olivia looked at the sheep. Her pupils widened.
Then she smiled.
“Elena made one just like that,” she said.
The air seemed to leave the cabin.
Megan stood halfway before Marcus caught her forearm.
“How did you know Elena?” Megan demanded.
Olivia stepped back, inviting the cameras to capture Megan’s aggression. “I tried to help your sister.”
“You knew her?”
“She came to Families for Truth because she was afraid of Commander Reed.”
Marcus released Megan and raised both hands. “That is a lie.”
Olivia’s voice broke beautifully. “Elena believed you were using her to bury evidence. She told me you threatened to take her baby if she talked.”
Megan looked at Marcus.
He did not deny knowing Elena. He did not look away. But in the instant before he answered, doubt entered the space between them.
“Ask Olivia why her foundation received two million dollars from Meridian Maritime,” he said.
The woman’s grief vanished.
Only for a second.
Then it returned, stronger. “This is what he does. He attacks women who challenge him.”
The man in 16C emerged from the restroom and took his seat.
Megan saw him slide something into the seat pocket ahead of him.
Marcus saw it too.
The captain announced their descent. Passengers were ordered to sit. Olivia returned to the front, but not before bending near Megan.
“When the doors open,” she whispered, “do not let him make you his shield.”
Then she was gone.
Megan sat rigidly.
“Did you threaten Elena?” she asked.
“No.”
“Did you ever tell her Clara could be taken?”
Marcus looked toward the window. Clouds broke beneath them, revealing a river and the gray geometry of the city.
“I told her that if the people behind Meridian learned she was collecting evidence, they might target her family. I offered protective custody.”
“That is not what I asked.”
“No. I never threatened her.”
“Did she trust you?”
“At first.”
“And later?”
Marcus’s silence answered.
“What happened?”
“She sent one final message. She said someone had shown her proof that I was working for Vale.”
“Were you?”
“I was pretending to.”
Megan stared at him.
“I needed access to Vale’s logistics network,” Marcus said. “Elena did not know the operation was authorized by a judge and two investigators. Someone gave her fragments that made me look guilty.”
“Someone like Olivia.”
“Possibly.”
“Possibly?”
“I cannot prove it.”
The plane descended lower.
Clara woke and blinked at Marcus. For a moment she studied him with solemn curiosity. Then she lifted the stuffed sheep and pushed its nose against his arm.
Marcus’s expression softened.
“Hello,” he said.
Clara smiled.
It was the first unguarded thing Megan had seen from him.
Then the intercom crackled.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please remain seated after landing. Law enforcement will be boarding the aircraft.”
A murmur spread through the cabin.
Olivia turned in her seat and looked back at them.
She did not appear surprised.
Marcus fastened his jacket.
“Remember,” he said. “Blue harbor.”
May you like
The wheels struck the runway.
And somewhere inside the stuffed sheep, something clicked awake.
