Part 7
There was a sudden, sharp intake of breath on the other end of the line.
Julian Sterling went from half-asleep to completely alert in a fraction of a second.
“Marcus? Is that you? What’s happened? Where are you?”
“I’m at the downtown flagship branch,” Marcus said, his voice entirely devoid of emotion.
“And I just found out that the culture we built is being burned to the ground by the people we pay to protect it.”
Julian didn't ask questions. He knew Marcus well enough to know that if Marcus was calling at 2:00 AM, the situation was already critical.
“Give me the details,” Julian said, the sound of clothes rustling indicating he was already getting out of bed.
“I’ve initiated a regional audit,” Marcus explained, looking back out at the city skyline.
“The front desk staff here has been using manual overrides to racially profile and discriminate against guests.”
“They have a shadow forum. Your night manager, Arthur Vance, is complicit by silence.”
“I want a full executive board meeting in the conference room of this hotel at precisely 8:00 AM.”
“Every regional director, every head of HR, and the entire legal team needs to be in those seats.”
Julian sighed, the weight of the situation hitting him. “Marcus, a full board meeting in six hours? Some of them are across the country.”
“Then they better buy a faster plane,” Marcus said coldly.
“If anyone is missing from that room when the clock strikes eight, their resignation should be on my desk by eight-零-one.”
“And Julian?”
“Yes, Marcus?”
“Bring the termination paperwork for the entire management tier of this branch.”
“We are cleaning house.”
Marcus hung up the phone before Julian could reply.
He walked back over to Zoe’s bed, sitting on the edge, watching her chest rise and fall.
He felt a deep sense of guilt.
He had created a multi-billion dollar company, but in his pursuit of growth, he had lost sight of the ground floor.
May you like
He had allowed monsters to wear his company’s uniform.
He swore to himself, right then, that by the time Zoe woke up, the world would be just a little bit better.
