Chapter 5 - The Phone Call That Changed the Company
Adrian stepped toward the window and called Howard Bell, a retired operations executive who had worked with his father for more than twenty years.
Howard had left Whitmore Infrastructure after several disagreements with Russell Vance.
At the time, Adrian had never asked why.
Now he did.
“Howard, I need you to help me reopen an old project file.”
“Which one?”
“Harbor Point. Derek Keane.”
Silence.
Then Howard said something Adrian would never forget.
“So somebody finally opened that file.”
Adrian turned toward Russell.
“You knew?”
Howard continued.
“I knew Derek raised concerns. I also knew people were under enormous pressure to keep that project on schedule. After I questioned how the matter was handled, I was told to stop creating problems.”
Adrian felt his stomach turn.
“I want an independent review of everything. Equipment orders, internal emails, complaints, settlements, all of it.”
Russell stepped forward.
“Think carefully about what you’re doing.”
Adrian looked at him.
“That’s exactly what I’m doing for the first time.”
Celeste shook her head.
“Your father spent forty years building this company.”
Adrian looked around Marissa’s apartment.
At the old heater.
At the carefully counted diapers.
May you like
At Derek’s papers preserved inside plastic because his wife could not afford to lose the only evidence she had.
“Then I need to know what it was built on.”
