Wings of Payback

Zachary glanced at me. Instead of getting mad, he scrutinized me apathetically.

Wynnie, who was beside him, suddenly said, "Mr. Lowe, Yas has shown talent as a pilot since she was young. She got her license when she was 18. At 22, she has already outperformed many experienced pilots. She's made it this far through her own efforts."

Wynnie's voice was as gentle as her smile in the photo from 20 years ago.

"Ms. Sullivan, I wasn't assessing her talent. I was reviewing her record."

"Tell me, what's wrong with her record?"

"The review comments will be delivered to you through a written statement."

"I want to know it now."

Zachary raised his hand, and Wynnie held her tongue.

He took out an envelope from his pocket and slid it over.

"This is the offer letter from Zach Airways. We'd like to hire you to be the chief pilot. The annual pay is three million dollars, and you'll also be given stock options."

He leaned against the chair.

"It's too tiring for you to be in this position. You're still young, and you shouldn't limit yourself."

I pushed the envelope back to him.

"Mr. Zachary Lowe, I'm Ethan Lowe," I said.

His finger paused on the desk for a moment. "I know your name."

The corners of his lips twitched. "And I know who you are."

Zachary rose to his feet and buttoned his coat.

"Ethan, if you refuse to help, I'll opt for another way out."

With that, he left the meeting room.

The sound of footsteps gradually faded away in the corridor.

When Wynnie walked past me, she paused and whispered, "Young man, you should leave yourself a way out."

After they left, I opened up the envelope.

It wasn't sealed, and there was a banker's acceptance from Zach Airways under the offer letter.

It was for three million dollars.

I kept the envelope in a transparent bag, sealed it, and wrote the date and number on it.

Then, I raised my head and looked at the surveillance camera at the top-left corner of the meeting room. The indicator light was blinking.

…

On the third day, I saw my name on the Federal Aviation Administration website.

It was an internal notice that stated, "The chief examiner, Ethan Lowe, is suspected of violating the policy during a captain upgrade assessment. He will be suspended from his position and placed under investigation by the disciplinary inspection team."

On the same day, three airlines posted an article through the media that read, "The youngest chief examiner has been exposed for abusing his authority due to a personal grudge. A talented female pilot's upgrade to captain was unjustly denied."

There wasn't a single mention of Zachary's name in the article.

The article only mentioned that the talented female pilot had performed well, but the chief examiner denied her upgrade for no reason. It was believed that his actions stemmed from a personal grudge.

A photo of Yasmin flying a plane was attached. She was in her uniform, flashing a bright smile.

Most of the comments were similar.

"I'm siding with Yasmin! Exceptional women shouldn't be held back by those in power!"

"If it's confirmed that he holds a personal grudge against her, this matter should be properly handled!"

In the afternoon, Uncle Peter called. "Ethan, I saw online that you did a young woman wrong."

"Don't read those things."

"It wasn't me who saw them, but your aunt. She asked me if you offended someone you couldn't afford to cross."

"Uncle Peter, I did. But he deserved it."

He fell silent for a moment before he said, "As long as you know what you're doing."

But he didn't probe further.

It had been 20 years, and he had never questioned me.

He had carried Mom from the emergency room to the morgue and finally to the cemetery, without once cursing at Dad.

On the day she was buried, he squatted in front of the grave and smoked half a pack of cigarettes.

Then, he got up and promised, "Lily, don't worry. I'll raise Ethan."