Evelyn said some of its executives had forgotten.
Lucy looked up from Saturn.
She asked whether the man from the diner owned a spaceship company.
Evelyn laughed.
She said he owned warehouses, which were much less interesting.
Jonah agreed to attend the meeting.
He insisted that Marta be allowed to speak if she wanted to.
Evelyn said she would arrange it.
After she left, Jonah and Lucy unpacked the groceries together.
Lucy discovered fresh strawberries and stared at them as though they were a luxury imported from another planet.
Jonah washed the fruit and divided it between two bowls.
For the first time in weeks, they ate without calculating what would be left for tomorrow.
Chapter Six: Charles Bell
The headquarters of Bell Meridian Holdings occupied a glass building overlooking the river in Philadelphia.
Jonah arrived wearing the only jacket he owned that did not have a diner logo on it.
A receptionist escorted him to a conference room with windows stretching from floor to ceiling.
Arthur sat at one end of the table wearing a dark suit and polished shoes.
The transformation startled Jonah.
The old man’s face was unchanged, but everyone in the room waited for him to speak.
Evelyn introduced Jonah to three board members and a financial officer.
Then a tall man with silver-framed glasses entered without knocking.
He introduced himself as Charles Bell.
He looked at Jonah’s jacket and asked whether the catering staff had arrived early.
Arthur told him that Jonah was a guest.
Charles apologized without sounding sorry.
He placed a folder on the table and began explaining why the Millbrook development needed immediate approval.
The distribution center would create new jobs, he said.
The existing properties were inefficient and commercially obsolete.
Arthur asked how many people would lose their current employment.
Charles answered that the company had offered transition assistance.
Evelyn asked to see the written commitments.
Charles said the documents were still being finalized.
Jonah noticed that nobody at the table seemed surprised.
Arthur asked him to describe the diner.
Jonah spoke about the cracked windows, the failing freezer, and the workers who stayed because they could not afford a week without wages.
Charles interrupted to say that sentimentality could not guide a serious business.
Jonah agreed.
He said a serious business should therefore know exactly how many families its project would affect.
Charles smiled thinly.
He asked whether Jonah understood the difference between a temporary job and long-term economic growth.
