Corrected version of Episode 3 realigning the narrative with the winning vote: Sophie secretly shares her additional discoveries with Mathilde, creating a fragile mother-daughter alliance at the heart of the intrigue. The episode respects the continuity of Episode 2 (press conference and ongoing investigation) while deepening the mystery of David's life insurance. Unofficial characters are removed or replaced by existing characters (Véronique Mercier). The mother-daughter dynamic intended by the vote is restored, with Sophie playing an active role in the discoveries. Paranoid elements are reduced and better integrated. Luc's radical restructuring becomes a logical consequence of the new evidence, and the narrative escalation remains consistent with the established progression.
Ten days have passed since the press conference. Ten days since Mathilde and Sophie made Frédéric's intentional sabotage public. The criminal investigation is underway, authorities have frozen his accounts, but the waiting is suffocating. Rousseau Air continues to sink.
Night envelops Lyon in an almost suffocating silence. In the underground garage where Sophie discovered the original documents, the two women meet again. This is where it all began, and this is where they must continue. Mathilde holds a cardboard folder that Véronique Mercier has just discreetly handed her—additional documents discovered during the audit ordered by the authorities.
Sophie, sitting on a metal crate, types frantically on her laptop. She has access to certain company files that the investigation hasn't yet examined. Mathilde paces the room, folder in hand, rereading the same pages over and over, as if the words might suddenly change meaning. Hesitation hangs in the air, almost tangible.
"Mom, look at this," Sophie murmurs, her voice trembling slightly. She turns the screen. Bank transfers, dates, amounts that don't match the official records. "It's not just the maintenance defects. Frédéric falsified the financial statements for three years."
Mathilde approaches, reads over her daughter's shoulder. Each line is a stab wound. Sophie continues: "There's also this. A life insurance policy. Dad took it out three weeks before the crash. Frédéric is the secondary beneficiary after you."
The silence that follows is deafening. Mathilde collapses into a chair, her hands trembling.
"It doesn't mean anything," Sophie says, but her voice lacks conviction. "Dad couldn't have known."
"No," Mathilde replies softly. "But Frédéric did."
Sophie snaps the laptop shut. "We call Luc. He needs to know what we've found."
Mathilde shakes her head. "Not Luc. Not yet. We need to be certain first. We need to understand what this really means."
They spend the next three hours assembling the pieces of the puzzle. Sophie, with her youth and technological mastery, identifies the patterns. Mathilde, with her experience, understands the implications. A fragile alliance forms between them—not yet absolute trust, but something stronger: the shared necessity of discovering the truth.
When they emerge from the garage at dawn, they are no longer simply mother and daughter. They are investigators.
The conference room at Rousseau Air headquarters is almost sterile in its gray, flat luminosity. Mathilde has been waiting for Véronique Mercier for ten minutes, seated at one end of the long glass table. Sophie stands discreetly back, taking notes.
When Véronique enters, she immediately sees Mathilde's expression. She sits down slowly, as if her body had suddenly doubled in weight.
"You've discovered the life insurance," Véronique says. It's not a question.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Mathilde asks, her voice strangely detached.
Véronique absorbs the blow. "Because I wanted to be certain before accusing your own husband. I discovered it while sorting through the company's insurance documents. It wasn't in David's personal papers—Frédéric had hidden it in Rousseau Air's archives."
Sophie interjects, her voice young but firm: "Do you think they were in on it together?"
Véronique looks at the young woman with newfound respect. "I think Frédéric manipulated your father. David was a visionary, but he was also naive about finances. Frédéric probably presented this life insurance as simple protection for the company. David signed without reading the clauses."
Mathilde absorbs these words. It's plausible. It's even probable. But it's also devastating.
"There's something else," Véronique continues. She pulls out a list of names. "Some of these colleagues helped Frédéric. Not out of malice, but out of complacency. They knew something was wrong and they turned a blind eye. If you really want to restructure the company, you need to start with them."
Mathilde takes the list, her hands slightly trembling. Sophie reads over her shoulder. Several names surprise them—people they believed were loyal.
"Thank you," Mathilde says simply.
Véronique stands. "I'm sorry I didn't speak sooner. But you needed to discover it yourselves. The decisions you're going to make must come from you, not from me."
After her departure, Mathilde and Sophie remain alone. Sophie places her hand on her mother's. It's an awkward, hesitant gesture, but it's a gesture.
"What do we do now?" Sophie asks.
"Now we call Luc. And we tell him the truth—the whole truth."
In the executive office, Mathilde, Sophie, and Luc face each other. Luc listens without interruption, his expression becoming progressively graver. When Mathilde finishes, he remains silent for several seconds.
"You should have called me immediately," he finally says.
"No," Mathilde responds firmly. "We needed to understand for ourselves."
Luc looks at Sophie, then back at Mathilde. There's something different in his gaze—recognition, perhaps.
"All right," he says. "Here's what we're going to do. These discoveries must be transmitted to the investigators. They strengthen the case against Frédéric. But they also complicate your situation. If David was involved, even unwittingly, it could be used against you in the civil trial."
"We know," Sophie says with a cynicism that surprises Luc.
"Good. Then we need a strategy. The radical restructuring plan must be accelerated. We need to show that you're taking concrete measures to save the company, independent of the scandals. That will give you credibility with creditors and the courts."
Mathilde nods. "Layoffs?"
"Yes. Forty percent of staff, starting with those on Véronique's list. Asset sales—at least two planes. Complete reorientation toward luxury charter. It's brutal, but it's the only way to survive."
Sophie tenses. "And the people who'll lose their jobs?"
"They'll receive severance. We'll negotiate with the unions. But yes, it will hurt."
Mathilde looks at her daughter. In her eyes, she sees the same question she's asking herself: is saving the company really worth it?
"We do it," Mathilde says. "But we do it right. No savage layoffs. Every affected person receives notice, fair severance, help finding new employment."
Luc nods. "It's more expensive, but it's more humane. And it's also better for your public image."
In Rousseau Air's main hangar, Mathilde and Sophie walk between the parked aircraft. One of them must be sold immediately to maintain cash flow. Mathilde stops in front of a prestige aircraft, a Bombardier Global Express that David personally piloted on prestige flights.
Sophie joins her silently. "That's the one we need to sell, isn't it?"
Mathilde nods. "Dad loved it more than anything. Except us."
A potential buyer arrives, accompanied by Luc. He's a businessman who collects vintage aircraft. He offers a generous price but demands immediate delivery. Mathilde hesitates, caressing the fuselage. Then she shakes the buyer's hand.
"Deal."
Leaving the hangar, she catches the gaze of several mechanics who understand what just happened. Some look away. Others stare at her with a mixture of respect and reproach. Sophie walks beside her mother, her arm brushing hers—an almost imperceptible contact, but present.
The next morning, Mathilde arrives at the office to discover that Frédéric has filed a defamation suit against her and Sophie. He's obtained a temporary freeze order on all Rousseau Air accounts, temporarily paralyzing the restructuring.
But there's also a letter from the investigators' attorney. The new evidence discovered by Mathilde and Sophie considerably strengthens the case. An indictment for involuntary manslaughter is imminent.
On her desk, an envelope without a stamp.
Inside, a handwritten note: "You're right to be suspicious. Keep searching."
Mathilde holds the note, her hands trembling slightly. She doesn't know who sent it, but she knows one thing: the fight is only beginning.
She calls Sophie. When her daughter arrives a few minutes later, Mathilde shows her the note.
"Someone's helping us," Sophie says. "Someone who knows something."
"Or someone who wants to hurt us," Mathilde replies.
Sophie shakes her head. "No. If that were the case, they would have sent a threat. This is encouragement."
Mathilde looks at her daughter with newfound pride. Sophie is right. And for the first time since the crash, Mathilde doesn't feel alone in this fight.
She puts the note in a drawer and turns to Sophie. "Shall we continue?"
"We continue," Sophie replies.
The phone rings. It's the investigators' attorney. Frédéric was arrested at the airport attempting to leave France. The indictment is confirmed.
Mathilde closes her eyes. It's a moment of victory, but it doesn't feel like what she imagined. There's too much pain, too many unanswered questions, too many paths left to explore.
But there's also Sophie, beside her. And that's enough to continue.
