5:32 p.m. EST

Allie arrives at the gate for BA 238 with time to spare, burdened by the knowledge that one passenger—Horation Matthews, a violent extremist marked for death—must fly so the plane will be spared by King Sorrow. Too anxious to face the crowd, she retreats to an airport pub across from the jetway and orders wine.

As she drinks, Allie imagines implausible ways to delay Horation, acknowledging both his hateful beliefs and her own limits. A stranger, Frank Heck, joins her with easy banter and outsized charm. He orders drinks, flirts, and draws out personal details, including Allie’s late brother and her still-worn engagement ring.

Despite resolving to limit herself, Allie accepts more wine, buoyed and loosened by Heck’s patter. When preboarding begins and Heck glimpses the gin in her bag, he offers to pay, but Allie slips away. She notices he hasn’t touched his own drink and catches a hard, clinical watchfulness in his eyes beneath the jovial act.

Passing the bar’s piano, Allie taps a few notes in parting. The instrument then plays a fragment of "Puff the Magic Dragon" on its own, a private joke only she perceives. The sign confirms King Sorrow is watching and underscores the stakes as boarding approaches.