Renata turned to a new page. "Thank you. We will need your notebook, or a copy of it, and your agreement to preserve any relevant communications. We will also interview Mr. Miller separately. You will not be asked to confront him."
"Can he still write my review?"
"Not while he is under investigation. An independent manager will complete it."
Chloe swallowed. The practical danger had not disappeared; an unfavorable review could still change her future. But the person who had threatened her would no longer be the only one describing her performance. For a young woman who had lived with the possibility of sudden unemployment for months, even that limited protection felt enormous.
On the opposite side of the operations center, Miller sat with a company representative and insisted he had acted in good faith. He described a vague instinct that Margaret might not respond quickly enough during an evacuation. He admitted Richard Taylor had requested the adjacent seat be kept empty, but maintained that the timing of the safety reassignment was coincidental. He also claimed the service restriction was intended to reduce "unnecessary crew distraction" during a difficult flight.
"Did you tell Miss Anderson not to answer a call button?" the investigator asked.
"I told her to prioritize."
"Did you specify row thirty-eight?"
"Yes, but not as a punishment."
"Why that row?"
Miller hesitated. His lawyer, who had joined the interview by telephone, asked for a short pause so they could review the wording of the question. The pause was granted. When the interview resumed, Miller said that Margaret's presence in that row had created what he called "an elevated potential for service conflict." He could not identify any conduct by Margaret that supported the phrase.
The investigator placed a copy of the call-button log on the table. Northridge's cabin system recorded service requests and response intervals for operational purposes, even though it did not make an audio or video recording of the cabin. The log showed a call from 38A and a delayed response, followed by a service entry under Chloe's identification. Miller said he did not recall the delay. The investigator made a note and moved to the next question.
At the far end of the terminal, Richard Taylor was waiting for his driver when Wilson approached and requested a short account of the seating incident. Taylor was initially impatient, explaining that he had a meeting that afternoon and had already spent enough time flying. Wilson said he would accept a written statement later if Taylor preferred. The mention of a formal record made Richard stop scrolling through his phone.
"What is this about?" Taylor demanded. "I simply asked for an empty seat. Premium members make requests all the time."
"Did you understand that the seat next to you was occupied by a ticketed passenger?"
"I could see her sitting there. Yes."
"Did you ask the crew to move her?"
"I asked if they could make arrangements. They chose to move her."