A younger warehouse worker raised her hand. "Does ownership mean we have to buy shares with money we don't have?"
"No," Daniel said. "The proposal is for an employee benefit trust funded as part of the financing and restructuring plan. Nobody should have to borrow money to participate. We also need safeguards so the plan doesn't become an excuse to cut wages or retirement benefits."
"What if the company fails?"
"Then shares can lose value. We have to tell the truth about that. Ownership should be an opportunity, not a substitute for fair pay or a guarantee nobody can make."
It was not an answer designed to produce a viral clip. It was the kind of answer Daniel had once wanted people to give his father when they discussed the future of a small freight business. He stayed afterward to speak with employees who had practical questions. Some shook his hand. Some did not. He respected both choices.
On the drive home, Victoria called Frances. "How did I do?"
Frances chuckled softly. "Are you asking for a performance review?"
"I suppose I am."
"You listened. That's a start. Now look at your notes and make sure every promise has an owner and a date. People don't eat apologies. They live with what happens after them."
Victoria looked at the notebook on the passenger seat. It was thick with questions and names. For the first time in months, she felt more useful after a difficult meeting than after an easy one.
The days that followed were hardly peaceful. Greybridge threatened legal action over the suspended asset sale. Adrian's representatives said the investigation was biased and that his client had been unfairly singled out. A financial columnist suggested Victoria should resign rather than remain at the head of a company whose controls had failed so badly. Shareholders argued about whether Northstar's influence was a rescue or an intrusion. Employee families discussed rumors at kitchen tables across Illinois and Wisconsin.
One evening Daniel found Noah sitting on his bedroom floor beside a broken model of the moon lander. A schoolmate had apparently told him that his father was the reason people at Hale Meridian were losing jobs. Noah had carried the comment home without telling his teacher. Now he held the snapped landing leg and looked as if he might cry.
"Is that true?" Noah asked when Daniel sat down beside him.
Daniel chose his words carefully. "Some people at the company may lose jobs because the business needs to change. Some leaders may lose jobs because they did things they shouldn't have done. I don't want anyone to lose their work unfairly. That's one of the reasons we're trying to fix the company rather than break it apart."
"Then why did Ben say it's your fault?"
"He probably heard adults arguing and repeated what he understood."
"Should I tell him you're rich?"
Daniel shook his head. "Being rich doesn't settle an argument. You can tell him you don't know everything, and neither does he. If he's unkind to you, tell your teacher. You don't need to defend my whole life at school."
Noah ran a finger over the cracked plastic. "Can we fix this?"