Chapter 7 - The Cleanup at Apex
The firing of Sarah Jenkins sent a shockwave through the corporate hierarchy of Apex BioTech that took less than an hour to ripple from the lobby to the executive boardroom.
By 4:00 PM, corporate legal had seized Sarah’s office computer, uncovering a horrifying trail of retaliatory firings, hostile work environments, and systemic discrimination against lower-tier hourly employees. The HR director who had signed off on her abusive management style was quietly escorted out of the building before the stock market closed.
Ethan, meanwhile, found himself sitting in a spacious, sunlit office on the forty-fifth floor—an office with a mahogany desk, leather chairs, and a panoramic view of the Chicago skyline that took his breath away.
His new title: Director of Corporate Ethics and Employee Advocacy.
His salary: eighty-five thousand dollars a year, with full tuition coverage and medical benefits for his mother.
At 4:30 PM, the heavy oak door of his new office clicked open.
Arthur Sterling walked in, carrying two cups of premium dark roast coffee from the executive lounge. He set one cup on Ethan’s desk and pulled up a chair.
"How’s the view from up here, Ethan?" Arthur asked, a faint, good-natured smile playing on his lips.
"It’s... it’s insane, Mr. Sterling," Ethan admitted, shaking his head as he looked out the window. "Six hours ago, I was being shoved against a quartz desk by a security guard. Now I have a corner office and a corporate expense account."
"Life turns on very small hinges, Ethan," Arthur said thoughtfully, taking a sip of his coffee. "My mother taught me that a company is only as strong as its foundation. For years, we let people like Sarah Jenkins build little kingdoms of cruelty in the lobby, forgetting that the people who wipe the floors and haul the bins are the ones who actually keep the lights on."
"She was terrified of you," Ethan noted quietly.
"She was terrified of accountability," Arthur corrected. "And accountability is the only thing that keeps a multi-billion-dollar enterprise from turning into a criminal syndicate."
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He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the desk. "My mother is downstairs in the private dining room, eating a turkey sandwich and complaining that the crusts were cut too thick. She asked if her favorite lobby runner would join her for dinner after your night classes."
Ethan smiled, a bright, genuine grin that chased away the lingering shadows of the morning’s humiliation. "Tell her I'll be right down."
