Samuel studied the attachment quietly.
He recognized the names of people who had warned him not to trust Pike with unrestricted control.
“I thought I could keep him honest by making the agreement clear,” he said.
Robert replied that written rules mattered only when someone was prepared to enforce them.
I looked at the disputed paper and thought of my mother asking questions at meetings while people with greater resources became impatient.
Her objections had survived in a forgotten attachment because someone decided they were inconvenient rather than irrelevant.
That distinction was now changing the course of the case.
Chapter 28: The Kitchen Before Sunrise
I returned to the Meridian before sunrise for the first time since my dismissal.
The visit was arranged by the employee committee, which wanted to show Naomi and Robert the physical condition of the working areas.
I wore ordinary clothes and entered through the service door with Luis.
The kitchen smelled of onions, sanitizer, and bread beginning to rise.
Amira Collins was checking the pastry ovens while George Beck examined a refrigerator that had been leaking for weeks.
He showed us a maintenance log containing repeated reports of the same problem.
The regional office had delayed replacement because the equipment still met minimum operating standards.
George explained that repeated repairs cost more than a reliable replacement and placed extra strain on morning workers.
Robert listened without commenting until George finished.
Then he asked for the complete maintenance budget and the reasons behind the delays.
Amira showed us a narrow aisle where employees had to pass each other carrying trays.
A proposed renovation would have widened the aisle, but the work had been postponed to prioritize new dining-room lighting.
I remembered Preston praising the lighting while employees carried heavy dishes through the crowded passage.
Luis opened a storage room where the old green door had once stood.
A newer wall covered most of the original entrance, but a narrow strip of green paint remained beneath the trim.
Samuel touched the wood with his fingertips.
He said the old room had been used for worker meetings, medical reserve appointments, and staff meals.
The wall had been erected during a renovation after he lost access to the building.
We did not remove it or attempt to explore behind it.
George explained that any work would require proper permits and examination for utilities.
Samuel smiled at his caution.
“That’s how a building survives people who think every problem can be solved with a hammer,” he said.
