Chapter 2 - The Blacklisted Engineer
Henderson let out a loud, theatrical sigh of disbelief. ""Oh, brilliant! Now we're taking technical directives from a disgruntled whistleblower with a sob story. Mr. Reed, I suggest we escort her out before she compromises our testing protocols.""
Mason ignored Henderson completely. He stepped closer to Tessa, noting the fine callus patterns on her hands—the exact hands of someone who spent decades working with micro-torques and hydraulic manifolds, not cotton mop heads.
""What's your full name?"" Mason asked quietly.
""Tessa Vance,"" she replied, raising her chin.
The name hit Mason like a physical blow. Tessa Vance. Two years ago, Tessa Vance had been the lead propulsion systems architect at Apex AeroCorp—one of the largest defense and aviation contractors in the country. She had published ground-breaking papers on high-altitude fuel vaporization and turbine efficiency.
And then, overnight, she had vanished from the industry. Her engineering license had been suspended under a cloud of messy litigation involving a catastrophic engine failure on an experimental military drone—an accident Apex had aggressively blamed entirely on her design negligence, blacklisting her from every licensed hangar in North America.
""Tessa Vance,"" Mason repeated, realization dawning in his eyes. ""You designed the Vanguard-7 fuel matrix.""
Tessa's shoulders stiffened. ""I did. Until Apex claimed my mathematical model caused a drone crash in Nevada, stripped my credentials, and ruined my life.""
""And now she's mopping floors in my hangar,"" Grant muttered under his breath, crossing his arms. ""Mason, we cannot involve a disgraced engineer in a federal safety audit. If the FAA finds out we let an uncredentialed janitor touch our diagnostic logs, they'll pull our operating certificate by sundown.""
Mason turned sharply on his heel, facing his director of operations. ""Grant, my airline goes bankrupt in seventy-two hours. Six point eight million dollars has yielded zero answers from these expensive gentlemen."" He gestured toward Henderson and his consulting team. ""So forgive me if I'm slightly more interested in what a disgraced propulsion architect has to say than another round of useless billing hours.""
Mason looked back at Tessa. ""You said the engine isn't broken. You said it's being starved. Explain that to me.""
Tessa looked around the hangar, her analytical mind visibly clicking into gear. She pointed a grease-stained finger toward the aircraft's underbelly, specifically near the central fuel transfer line.
""When your team replaced the fuel pumps, did they inspect the primary sub-assembly housing inside the port wing root?"" Tessa asked.
Henderson scoffed. ""Of course we did! We replaced the entire sub-assembly with OEM-certified parts straight from the manufacturer!""
""Did you check the internal mesh filters inside the sealed housing, or did you just swap the unit?"" Tessa challenged, her eyes narrowing.
Henderson opened his mouth to retort, but stopped. He glanced sideways at his junior engineer, Paul, who suddenly looked pale.
""Well?"" Mason demanded, sensing the shift in the room. ""Paul? Did you open the sealed housing?""
Paul swallowed hard, rubbing the back of his neck. ""We... we didn't open the housing unit itself. The manufacturer's seal was intact, and the maintenance manual says factory-sealed sub-assemblies shouldn't be tampered with in the field to avoid voiding the warranty.""
Tessa let out a short, cold laugh. ""Factory sealed. Right. That's exactly where the saboteur wants you to look.""
The hangar went dead silent. Henderson stepped forward, his face flushing dark red. ""Saboteur? Now you're accusing the manufacturer of sabotage? That is a federal slander offense!""
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""It's not slander if it's engineered into the hardware,"" Tessa said, stepping past Henderson toward the aircraft. She grabbed a heavy steel flashlight from a nearby maintenance cart. ""Mr. Reed, do you mind if I look under the port wing root? If I'm wrong, you can have security throw me out the front gate. But if I'm right, you'll find out why your engines keep dying—and who has been profiting off your desperation.""
Mason didn't hesitate a second longer. ""Do it.""
