Chapter 3 - Panic at 35,000 FeetThe seatbelt sign chimed, and the plane surged forward down the runway, lifting into the stormy skies.
Arthur Sterling stepped back toward First Class, but not before whispering to Clara, "My crew is at your disposal, Mrs. Vance. Your late husband was a dear friend of mine. Julian Vance will not leave this plane the same man he boarded."
As the aircraft reached cruising altitude, the tension in Row 12 was thick enough to cut with a knife. Passengers nearby were listening intently, pretending to read magazines while straining to catch every word.
Julian reached into his leather briefcase, pulling out a sleek silver laptop. "Look, Clara," he hissed, opening a encrypted document. "I don't know what game you're playing, but at 9:00 AM tomorrow, the board votes to liquidate Thomas's remaining trust. Once that vote passes, you and that bastard child get nothing."
Clara didn't flinch. "He's not a bastard, Julian. His name is Leo. And he holds the key to everything you stole."
Julian scoffed. "He's a baby! What key could he possibly hold?"
Clara reached down into Leo’s blanket and pulled out a small, metallic silver drive shaped like a teddy bear—a customized hardware wallet containing Thomas’s private encryption keys.
May you like
Julian’s eyes went wild. "Where did you get that?! Thomas took that key to his grave!"
"He left it with me," Clara whispered. "And it doesn't just contain his shares, Julian. It contains the audio recordings from the night of his accident."
