He heard her exhale. "Good," she said quietly. "Good, Dad." Thursday morning came. Victoria Sterling arrived at the private airfield at 6:45 a.m. in a black SUV with her assistant and two executives. The aircraft had been towed out of the hangar the evening before.
It sat on the tarmac looking immaculate. Every surface polished, every system restored, the sunrise bouncing off its white fuselage like a promise. Captain Daniel Mercer arrived at 710. How was 56 years old with 31 years in commercial and private aviation. He had flown for three different corporate clients before coming to Sterling Crown.
And he had turned down more money than most people earned in a year to stay with Charles Sterling and then with Victoria because he trusted the aircraft he flew and the people who maintained them. He walked up the air stairs. He sat in the left seat. He opened the maintenance log book. He found the last entry dated two days ago.
He found the discrepancy flag that Malcolm had filed three weeks ago and never had resolved. He found the line where an airworthiness signature should have been empty. Daniel Mercer sat in that cockpit for about 4 minutes. Then he stood up, collected his flight bag, walked back down the air stairs, and crossed the tarmac toward Victoria Sterling, who was standing with her coffee and her phone and the efficient expression of a woman who had a schedule to keep. "Captain," she said without looking up.
"We're wheels up at 8:15. We're not flying this morning, Ms. Sterling," Daniel said. She looked up from her phone. "Excuse me, Malcolm Hayes's signature is not in the maintenance log.
There is an unresolved discrepancy in the directional flight control assembly. I'm not flying it. Her expression went very still. Daniel, I need to be in New York. I understand that.
This aircraft was completely restored. The work was finished. The work may be finished. Daniel said the certification isn't. And I don't fly uncertified aircraft.
Malcolm Hayes is in a dispute with this company over his invoice. With respect, Daniel said that has nothing to do with the maintenance log. His flag is in writing. The discrepancy is unresolved and there's no signature on the airworthiness certificate. Those are facts independent of any financial dispute.
Victoria stared at him. Are you seriously going to let a mechanic's business argument ground my aircraft? I'm going to let an unresolved safety discrepancy ground your aircraft, Daniel said. The mechanic's business argument is your problem, not mine. He picked up his flight bag.
I'm sorry, he said, and he meant it. I'll be at the terminal when this gets resolved. He walked away. Victoria stood on the tarmac. She called her co-pilot.