Richard Hayes's face had gone carefully blank. I want to be clear, Henry said to the room now, not just to Richard. The Caldwell group does not operate this way. We do not investigate private individuals because they make us uncomfortable. We do not construct false narratives to protect internal hierarchies, and we do not use company resources to conduct personal campaigns.
He looked back at Richard. Your employment status will be reviewed by HR and legal over the next week. In the meantime, your access to company systems will be suspended pending that review. Richard stood up. For a moment, Marcus thought he was going to argue.
He could see it on the man's face, the reflex of someone who had always been able to talk his way through a room, recalibrating, searching for the angle. There wasn't one. "You're making a mistake," Richard said. "No," Henry said simply. "I made one 11 years ago.
I'm correcting it now." Richard straightened his jacket. He looked at Marcus once directly briefly. A look that contained something Marcus couldn't entirely name. Not hatred. Something more complicated.
Something that might in another life in a different version of events have been respect. Then he walked out of the room. The door closed behind him. No one spoke for 5 seconds. Then Gerald Marsh, who had been silent since Henry walked in, cleared his throat.
Henry, he said carefully. I want to apologize. I was given information and I acted on it before I verified it. That was wrong. Henry looked at him.
It was, he said. But you came when I called Gerald. And you stayed quiet when you could have made it worse. I'm not going to forget either of those things. Gerald nodded.
He looked like a man who had just realized how close he'd come to the edge of something and was grateful for the solid ground under his feet. Henry turned to Marcus. The whole room turned to Marcus and Marcus Williams, standing in his work jacket and his work boots against the wall of a 14th floor conference room in Atlanta felt every set of eyes in the room and did not move, did not adjust, did not try to fill the space with anything other than what he was. Marcus, Henry said. Sir, Marcus said.
Henry held his gaze. I owe you an apology. Marcus shook his head. You don't. I do, Henry said firmly.