He stayed silent.
Even Camden heard the absurdity once I stated it plainly.
August addressed security.
“Elena isn’t leaving.”
Then he faced me.
“You have access to your office?”
I remembered that afternoon’s message.
Your credentials will be updated after tonight’s event.
I’d assumed it concerned routine department security changes.
Now I saw its purpose.
“I don’t know.”
“Find out.”
Camden spun toward August.
“Why?”
August lowered his voice.
“Because if Elena’s grants were approved and someone altered the record afterward, we’re no longer discussing poor performance.”
Sloane’s expression shifted.
Briefly.
I noticed.
Fear.
My humiliation suddenly felt secondary.
The company’s systems held an answer Camden never expected me to seek.
Who changed my work before it became grounds for dismissal?
PART 3: WHAT THEY NEEDED ME TO LOOK LIKE
My badge failed at 10:17 that evening.
I checked the clock.
I scanned it twice at the executive elevator.
