“I know exactly how that door works, young lady.”
Lily tried not to smile.
“Required question, ma’am.”
“Then yes.”
Across the aisle, Mr. Lane settled into 31D.
He stretched his legs as far as the standard seat allowed.
Mrs. Ashcroft looked at him.
“Comfortable?”
“Perfectly.”
“Good.”
The aircraft pushed back.
Captain Reyes’s voice came over the speakers.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. This is Captain Reyes. We’ll be cruising at thirty-six thousand feet today...”
Mrs. Ashcroft looked toward Lily.
Lily counted silently.
His pacing was slower.
Mrs. Ashcroft nodded in approval.
During the flight, she asked for tea.
Lily brought it without consulting anyone.
The older woman took the cup.
“Progress.”
“Revolutionary.”
They both smiled.
Later, a nervous child across the aisle asked about the wing movement.
Before Lily could answer, Mrs. Ashcroft leaned toward him.
“The wings are built to bend.”
Lily finished the sentence from the aisle.
“That’s how they keep us safe.”
The child looked between them.
“How do you both know that?”
Mrs. Ashcroft pointed at Lily.
“She knows because she works here.”
Then she pointed to herself.
“I’m old.”
Lily nearly spilled the water she was carrying.
The flight landed on time.
Passengers stood.
Mr. Lane waited until Mrs. Ashcroft stepped into the aisle.
He gestured gallantly.
“After you.”
She passed him, then stopped.
For one moment Lily saw the memory of Flight 218 move between all three of them.
The wrong seat.
The false report.
The galley pen.
The station office.
Everything that followed.
Mrs. Ashcroft looked at Mr. Lane’s cramped standard-row position and smiled.
“Enjoy the legroom, Mr. Lane.”
He laughed.
“I deserved that.”
Mrs. Ashcroft turned toward Lily.
At the aircraft door, she paused.
“You still helping the frightened ones?”
“Every flight.”
“Still asking questions?”
“More than management prefers.”
“Good.”