Elise immediately called Daniel to audit Northstar's service logs for Flight 247. Minutes later, Daniel returned with horrifying news. "Elise, Northstar signed off on a last-minute maintenance exception three hours before departure. The technician's signature on the hydraulic pressure control inspection was falsified."
A recording sent by an informant played Peter Vale’s voice: "If Morgan is on 247, let it depart. We can deal with everything after Seattle."
The plane had been scheduled to fly with 186 passengers on a compromised hydraulic system.
Chapter 6: The Voice Inside Meridian
As the audio file continued to play, a third voice spoke on the recording—one that made Elise’s blood run cold.
"If the inspection comes into question," the voice said, "we issue a press statement citing vendor oversight. Meridian handles the public fallout, Skyline absorbs the audit, and the acquisition proceeds."
It was Richard Vance, Chief Risk Officer at Meridian Capital and Elise’s trusted mentor for six years.
The initials RM in Cynthia’s notebook stood for Richard Vance / Meridian. Richard had been working with Peter Vale from the inside, siphoning off funds through Northstar Aviation while using his position at Meridian to cover up safety violations and financial discrepancies.
They had intentionally allowed Flight 247 to fly with faulty hydraulics, knowing a catastrophic failure would eliminate Elise or create enough chaos to halt her investigation.