Ava stopped.
The employee was white, late thirties perhaps, blonde hair pulled tightly into a bun.
Her badge read:
ELISE GRANT
SENIOR GUEST SERVICES
“Yes?”
“You can’t go out there.”
Ava glanced toward the aircraft.
“I was cleared through reception.”
Elise’s eyes moved slowly over Ava.
The dress.
The coat.
The boots.
The handbag.
Then back to her face.
“Which aircraft?”
“N941SC.”
Elise’s expression changed.
Not confusion.
Disbelief.
“That aircraft is private.”
Ava almost smiled.
Most aircraft parked at a private terminal tended to be private.
“I’m aware.”
“You need to return inside.”
“I’m boarding it.”
Elise gave a short laugh.
Not loud.
That somehow made it worse.
“Ma’am, no.”
Ava looked at her.
“No?”
“That jet is not available for walk-up passengers.”
“I did not walk up requesting a ticket.”
“Then who are you meeting?”
“No one.”
Elise folded her arms.
“You’re not understanding me.”
Ava’s patience shifted.
“I understand you perfectly.”
The woman’s gaze narrowed.
“Then step back inside.”
Ava reached for her passport wallet.
“I have my flight documents.”
Elise lifted one hand.
“I don’t need to see them.”
That was the first real problem.
Not the assumption.
People made mistakes.
Not even the tone.
Tone could be corrected.
Refusing evidence was different.
Ava lowered the passport wallet slightly.
“You don’t want to verify the manifest?”
“I know who is using that aircraft.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
“Then this should take about ten seconds.”
Elise stared.
A ground employee in a reflective vest had started watching from near the aircraft stairs.
Two men in business suits stood near another jet farther down the ramp.
Ava could feel attention forming around them.
She hated public scenes.
She especially hated scenes she had not chosen.
Elise stepped slightly closer.
“This isn’t an airline gate.”
“I know.”
“You can’t simply show up dressed for social media and decide you want pictures beside somebody’s aircraft.”
For one second Ava wondered whether she had misunderstood.
Then she realized she had not.
A strange calm came over her.
It had happened before.
The calmer she became, the angrier other people sometimes became because composure denied them the confrontation they expected.
Ava looked at the aircraft.
Then back at Elise.
“You think I came out here for photographs.”
“I think you need to return to the terminal.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
Elise’s mouth tightened.
“I’m trying to save you embarrassment.”
Ava almost laughed.
“That’s generous.”
“Ma’am.”
“My documents are in my hand.”
“I said I don’t need them.”
“And I’m asking why.”
“Because you’re not on that flight.”
Ava nodded once.
“Have you looked?”
Silence.
That was answer enough.
Ava adjusted the leather coat at her shoulders.
Then said:
“Interesting.”
“What?”
“You inspected my clothes before checking the passenger list.”
Elise’s face hardened.
“Do not make this about something it isn’t.”
Ava said nothing.
That sentence had always fascinated her.
People usually said it after realizing exactly what something looked like.
Elise pointed toward the terminal.
“Go back inside.”
Ava’s phone vibrated.
She ignored it.
“Check the manifest.”
“No.”
“Check with the captain.”
“No.”
“Call Sterling Crest operations.”
Elise laughed again.