"Captain, the woman grabbed him and hit his coffee. I've got video."
Avery looked toward the man.
"Thank you, sir. Please preserve the original recording. Ground personnel can arrange to obtain your contact information."
The passenger nodded.
Caroline became irritated.
"Are we really going to waste more time over a little spilled coffee?"
The captain turned toward her.
"Ma'am, a passenger reports being physically shoved and exposed to hot liquid. We need to establish what happened before departure."
She scoffed.
"I barely touched him."
I looked toward the floor.
My paper cup still rested beneath the seat.
Then I looked up.
"She grabbed my clothing and struck the cup while I was holding it."
Caroline stared.
"You're exaggerating."
The captain raised one hand.
"Ma'am, you'll have an opportunity to provide your account. Right now, please stop addressing the other passenger."
For the first time, Caroline obeyed.
The gate supervisor arrived three minutes later.
His name was Paul Keating.
He was forty-nine, broad-shouldered, with short brown hair and the practiced smile of someone accustomed to resolving expensive customer complaints quickly.
He stepped into the cabin carrying a tablet.
"Captain, what's the problem?"
Avery turned.
"We have conflicting seat assignments and a reported physical altercation. I need the complete reservation history for Seat 2A."
Keating looked toward Caroline.
His expression tightened.
Then he glanced at me.
For a brief moment, I saw recognition flicker across his face.
Not recognition of who I was.
Recognition of the customer he'd decided could be moved.
He looked toward the captain.
"Sir, the premium customer was reassigned at the gate."
Avery frowned.
"Which customer?"
Keating gestured toward Caroline.
"Mrs. Prescott."
The captain looked toward me.
"And Mr. Monroe?"
Keating hesitated.
"He was moved."
I took a breath.
"Moved to which seat?"
The supervisor looked toward his tablet.
For several seconds, he didn't answer.
Then he said, "Nineteen E."
I stared.
"Economy middle seat?"
He nodded.
I looked toward Captain Avery.
"My boarding pass was scanned for Seat 2A. Nobody informed me of a change, and I didn't consent to a downgrade."
The captain turned toward Keating.
"When was the change made?"
The supervisor examined the screen.
"Ten fourteen."
Avery looked at his watch.
Then toward the clock visible on the galley device.
The flight was scheduled to depart shortly after ten.
My boarding pass had been scanned before the reassignment.
I'd already entered the aircraft.
The captain asked for the original ticket record.
Keating hesitated.
Then began scrolling.
For a moment, I could see his fingers moving too quickly, as though he hoped the next screen would make the problem easier to explain.