Chapter 10 - THE COMPANY BEHIND THE COMPANY
The supplier’s name was Westbridge Technical Holdings.
Daniel Cross recognized it.
“A shell company.”
“For who?” Susan asked.
Daniel looked at the old corporate filings.
Then his face changed.
“For AeroDyne’s battery subcontractor.”
The electrical isolation unit had not been built entirely by AeroDyne.
A small subcontractor manufactured the internal thermal fuse.
Rachel’s original testing had shown the fuse could fail.
Preston Hale had downgraded the warning.
Jonathan Mercer had canceled the grounding notice.
Harold Pierce had hidden evidence.
But someone else had manufactured a part they already knew was defective.
That someone had paid Pierce after the crash.
Within hours, federal investigators reopened portions of the old Flight 417 case.
The memorial ceremony was delayed.
Naomi didn’t mind.
She had stopped caring about speeches.
She wanted the truth.
Hale gave investigators everything.
Emails.
Private notes.
Names.
He admitted he had allowed Pierce to shape AeroDyne’s public response.
He admitted threatening Daniel with litigation.
He admitted putting jobs, reputation, and money above Rachel’s warning.
But he denied knowing anyone paid Pierce.
Susan believed him.
Naomi wasn’t sure.
Adults kept being partly guilty and partly deceived.
It would have been easier if everyone were simply good or bad.
Life apparently refused.
The supplier’s former president was dead.
But his son still ran Westbridge.
Andrew Voss.
A billionaire aviation investor.
Naomi had heard the name before.
“Dad.”
Ethan looked at her.
“Isn’t Mr. Voss sponsoring the memorial?”
Nobody answered.
That was answer enough.
Andrew Voss had donated fifteen million dollars to aviation safety causes after Flight 417.
His company logo appeared on the Reynolds Foundation website.
He had personally funded the restoration of the memorial garden in Seattle.
And he was scheduled to introduce Naomi at the evening event.
Naomi stared at the program.
“That’s weird.”
Susan’s expression hardened.
“It’s camouflage.”
Daniel nodded.
“If the company connected to the failure becomes the biggest safety donor afterward, people stop looking at them as part of the problem.”
Naomi thought about Hale taking Seat 2A.
People saw what they expected to see.
Rich man in First Class.
Little girl who must belong in the back.
Generous donor.
Safety champion.
Maybe labels were just another kind of seat assignment people stopped questioning.
An investigator rushed into the conference room.
“Voss just canceled his appearance.”
Susan stood.
“When?”
“Five minutes ago.”
“Where is he?”
“His jet filed a flight plan for Vancouver.”
Ethan swore.
The investigator continued.
“Airport authorities have been notified.”
Naomi looked at the window.
A private jet was taxiing in the distance.
“Is that his?”
Nobody knew.
Then Susan’s phone buzzed.
She stared at the message.
“What?”
“Voss isn’t going to Vancouver.”
“Where?”
“He changed the destination after filing.”
Susan looked at Ethan.
“Boise.”
Daniel’s face went pale.
Naomi noticed.
“What’s in Boise?”
Daniel whispered:
“The original AeroDyne testing laboratory.”
The facility had been closed for six years.
But Daniel knew one thing investigators apparently didn’t.
May you like
Rachel’s handwritten notebooks had never been recovered.
And if Voss was going there now, they were probably still inside.
