"Then don't destroy it," she said. "Make it better if it can be made better. Walk away if it won't let you. But don't let anyone tell you that protecting workers means protecting the people who abused their authority. Those are two different things."
Her clarity steadied him. For all his contracts and financial models, Marilyn could still name the moral problem in a room faster than any lawyer he employed. "I have a meeting this afternoon," he said. "I'll call you after."
"You'd better," she replied. "And eat something. Being right on an empty stomach never made anybody smarter."
A black Lincoln waited at arrivals. The driver, Aaron Bell, was a man in his late fifties with silver at his temples and hands large enough to make the steering wheel look delicate. He recognized Ethan from the pickup instructions but also from the video already circulating on his phone. When he opened the door, he hesitated before speaking.
"Mr. Brooks, I hope you don't mind me saying I saw what happened. My brother went through something like that in Dallas. They searched his bag in front of everyone, found nothing, and never told the people watching they'd made a mistake."
Ethan paused with one hand on the door frame. "How is your brother now?"
"He flies when he absolutely has to. He hasn't taken a vacation that requires an airport in six years." Aaron looked embarrassed by his own honesty. "I guess he doesn't want that feeling again."
Ethan climbed into the car. "That's what worries me," he said as Aaron closed the door. "The part people carry away after the airport forgets them."
Traffic moved slowly out of the terminal, sunlight flashing across windshields and the metal wings of departing aircraft. Ethan called Maya again and asked her to preserve the public accounts being shared by other passengers, recording only what people had chosen to make public unless they reached out directly. He did not want strangers' personal histories gathered indiscriminately. He wanted an independent team to have a way to hear from those who had tried to complain before and found that the company wasn't listening.
Maya gave him the first verified update. The twenty-five million in restricted funds remained available for designated payroll and essential maintenance payments. James had identified provisions permitting Summit Ridge to suspend future disbursements while Northstar's governance representations were reviewed, although formal notice and an investment committee decision were still required. Northstar's lenders had begun asking questions, and some were already pressing for reassurance that the rescue plan would not collapse.
"You still have time to make a decision," Maya said. "Don't let the internet make it for you."
Ethan watched the runway fall behind them. "I won't," he replied. "And I won't let Nathan make it for us either."