None of that existed on Derek's spreadsheet. After the meeting, Derek stopped Ethan near the door. "Walker." Ethan turned. "Yes, sir."
"Your position is one of those under review." There it was. No ceremony, no compassion, just a sentence delivered beneath buzzing fluorescent lights. Ethan nodded once. "When will I know?"
"Executive review should be completed today." Derek glanced at Ethan's worn uniform. "Look, do not take it personally. Jobs like yours are becoming easier to replace." Marcus, standing several feet away, froze.
Ethan did not raise his voice. "I understand." Derek seemed almost disappointed by the lack of argument. "That is all." "You told me my position is under review.
Until somebody tells me otherwise, I still have a job to do." "You always this calm?" Ethan picked up his toolbox. "No point making noise when there is work waiting." He walked away before Derek could answer.
In the mechanical room, Ethan opened his maintenance schedule and began checking the building's backup systems. His hands moved with familiar precision, but his thoughts drifted towards Sophie. Rent, groceries, health insurance, new shoes, one thing at a time, Rachel had always said. So Ethan did the next thing. He worked 40 floors above him.
Clare Hawthorne sat across from Margaret Ellis with Ethan's personnel file open on the conference table. 12 years, Clare said. Three perfect safety evaluations. No disciplinary actions. Margaret nodded.
Correct. Clare turned another page. What are these maintenance recommendations? There are nine of them. Apparently, Ethan submitted concerns about the automated safety controls in the West production building.
Clare looked up. "Apparently?" Margaret shifted in her chair. "None reached executive review." Clare's voice became quieter. ""Why?"" "Derek Collins marked them non-essential."
Clare studied the dates. Ethan had submitted the first warning 8 months earlier. Then another, then another. He had not complained. He had documented.
He had followed procedure. He had kept trying. Clare closed the file. "Bring Derek to my office." Margaret stood and Ethan.
Clare looked toward the paper star beside her tablet. "Not yet." Downstairs, Ethan tightened a loose electrical panel and moved to his next assignment, believing the most important question was whether he would still have a paycheck tomorrow. Upstairs, Clare had begun asking a different question. Why had the company been preparing to remove a man whose warnings it had never bothered to hear?
By 10:20 that morning, the paper star was still resting beside Clare Hawthorne's tablet when Derek Collins entered her office. You wanted to see me?" He asked. Clare gestured toward the chair across from her desk. ""Sit down, Derek."" He obeyed, though his eyes briefly moved toward the personnel files arranged neatly beside her. Margaret Ellis remained near the window with a notebook in her hands.
"I reviewed the facility's restructuring," Clare said. ""Good. Then you saw the savings." "I saw the numbers."" Derek smiled. Nearly $900,000 annually once the automation plan is fully implemented. Clare opened Ethan's file.