Passenger List · Passenger List and Radiotopia

2.2 Pay Day

May 10, 2021·35 min·3 clips

A psychic tells Rory that just before she left Flight 702, the entertainment screens rebooted and showed only numbers — and Caitlin's brother Connor saw it too and called someone to say 'something might be going down.'

The episode opens mid-assessment: FBI agent James Dennison is being evaluated by psychiatrist Dr. Savannah Morley at a secure facility. Dennison recites a polished narrative of recovery, saying he now accepts his 702 cover-up beliefs were grief-induced delusions. Morley produces evidence that contradicts him — a recording of a call Dennison made to Max Thoreau, a fellow agent, just two days prior. News coverage establishes the backstory: wreckage from Flight 702 has been found in the North Atlantic, with signs of explosive decompression but no human remains. A woman named Mia Rizal, identified as a psychic who got off the plane before takeoff, appears on a podcast discussing her decision to leave. War crimes convict Slobodan Begovic is reported to have poisoned himself following his conviction. A Radiotopia ad for Suburban Paradise interrupts. Rory Murray meets Hassan Aziz in person, who hands over a small device hidden in a coffee jar in his kitchen. He believes Caitlin hid it there during her visit, trusting him to pass it along. The drive contains all of Caitlin's recorded interviews. Aziz hints that the passenger manifest included an unusual number of suspicious individuals. In a legal meeting with Petra McKenzie representing Atlantic Airlines, Rory rejects the settlement offer, accusing the airline of using the terrorism narrative to avoid admitting negligence. He implies he has new information and asks for time to speak with his clients before any decision. Rory then meets Mia Rizal, pretending to be a lawyer named Philip Ripley before revealing his true identity. Mia initially refuses to cooperate but relents when Rory appeals to the families' need for truth. She describes meeting Slobodan Begovic before the flight — he warned her to keep her eyes and ears open when flying. She also notes she sensed something wrong with a couple she observed on the plane: the man she believed was Dr. Aziz the immunologist, and a woman who was clearly not his wife. Most critically, she describes the entertainment screen going dark and rebooting with nothing but numbers displayed. A young man — later identified from news photographs as Connor Lay — noticed the same thing and immediately called someone to warn them before the plane took off. Rory also receives information about James Dennison, the suspended FBI agent. Dennison's wife reveals he was found living in a storage locker in a hypomanic state after the wreckage was discovered and was involuntarily committed. At the facility, Rory uses the pretext of arranging a settlement to get ten minutes with Dennison. Dennison begins by performing his recovery narrative but breaks under Rory's questioning. As Rory shows him airport security stills, Dennison suddenly recognizes a man in a beanie hat and a woman behind him. Before he can identify them, the psychiatrist returns to end the visit. Rory is managing a parallel personal crisis: his daughter Zara is in a rehab clinic with a large overdue bill, and a man claiming to be her brother — likely a drug dealer — has turned up at the facility. As the episode closes, Petra calls to say her clients are now willing to offer 30 million — a $12 million increase — confirming their desperation. At that moment, Caitlin Lay calls Rory directly for the first time.

As heard by us

A grief-soaked 702 chapter where every answer sounds negotiated.

Passenger List tightens the focus here, and the choice works. Mr. Dennison's psychiatric assessment is less about explaining him than watching grief keep slipping through the story he is trying to hold together.

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Why you'd press play

Press play for a Flight 702 mystery where grief, denial, and pressure keep the answers moving.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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