Chapter 15 - ACROSS FROM HIS DESK
Curtis summoned me to North Ridge at nine the next morning through the company's outside counsel.
Maya came with me.
I wore the same blue work jacket I had worn during the ice storm.
I had considered a suit, but I was not ashamed of being a technician.
The reception area smelled of burnt coffee and fresh carpet cleaner.
Employees avoided my eyes as we passed.
Curtis's door was open.
He stood behind his desk with a folder of performance charts laid out like weapons.
"Caleb," he said, smiling too broadly.
"I'm glad you've decided to be reasonable."
Then he noticed Maya.
His smile tightened.
"Counsel wasn't necessary."
"It's necessary for me," I said.
A man sat in the chair facing Curtis's desk.
I recognized him before he turned.
Daniel Whitcomb.
He wore a dark coat and held no visible entourage.
But something in the room had changed.
Curtis glanced between us.
"Mr. Whitcomb is here to discuss regional performance."
Daniel stood and shook my hand.
"Good to see you again, Caleb."
Curtis's eyes widened.
"You've met?"
"On an interstate during an ice storm," Daniel said.
"Caleb helped my family when our vehicle broke down."
Curtis blinked.
"That was your family?"
"My wife and our two children."
Curtis reached for the back of his chair.
"I wasn't aware."
"That is precisely the point," Daniel replied.
He asked Curtis to describe why I had received a warning.
Curtis began with the seventy-two minutes.
He repeated the response target.
He described company discipline and the importance of avoiding unauthorized stops.
Daniel listened.
Then he asked whether the refrigeration system had failed.
"There was a significant exposure," Curtis said.
"Was the backup operational?"
"According to preliminary reports."
"Was inventory lost?"
"A loss claim is being reviewed."
Daniel opened a thin folder.
"The warehouse confirms there was no spoilage. Your invoice claims otherwise."
Curtis's mouth opened and closed.
"That information may be outdated."
"Your own dispatch record shows Caleb reported the delay. You changed that record the next morning."
Curtis looked toward Maya as if she had spoken out of turn, though she had not said a word.
"I need to consult with our legal team."
"You should," Daniel said.
"Because this is no longer a conversation about seventy-two minutes."
Curtis's face had gone gray.
Daniel laid down the photograph of his wife and children standing beside the damaged SUV.
"You said your employees shouldn't stop to play hero."
He paused.
"I want you to look at the people you decided were not worth those minutes."
Curtis stared at the photograph.
Then the door behind us opened.
Graham Voss walked in with two attorneys.
May you like
And he said, "Daniel, you need to stop this meeting before you expose yourself."
