Chapter 13 - Five Chairs, One Vote
Five directors would vote: Luca, Michael, Carlo, Pike and Dr. Anika Shah, who'd helped design the housing program. With two on each side, Dr. Shah would decide.
When we entered the meeting room, she was reviewing a slim folder Carlo had prepared. Its first page was the gossip article. The second listed unverified concerns about Michael's reliability. None mentioned the phantom apartments.
Michael didn't plead for sympathy. He handed her the construction photographs and asked her to compare them with the payment records.
"You deserve to know what actually exists," he said.
Pike interrupted. "This isn't on the agenda."
"Then it should be," Dr. Shah replied.
Luca explained that the staff statements concerning the toast had been preserved and were being reviewed. He didn't pretend he could prove every allegation at that table. He said Michael's sobriety was not grounds for removal without reliable evidence and fair process.
Carlo folded his hands. "A project this sensitive cannot be led by a man whose personal life draws scandal."
Michael looked straight at him. "I had a problem. I got treatment. You're using my recovery to keep anyone from checking the books."
Dr. Shah requested a recess to speak with the independent accountant. When she returned, she moved to postpone the removal vote and temporarily suspend new payments to Northline pending a review. Luca and Michael supported it. She supplied the third vote.
Carlo's face stayed calm. Pike's did not.
"You'll make us miss the opening," he said.
"That opening was already a promise built on six rooms that aren't there," Dr. Shah answered.
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The meeting ended without removing Michael. It wasn't a victory large enough for a headline. It was enough to stop another payment.
As we walked out, Luca received a call from his compliance officer: someone had tried to wire the remaining construction reserve out of the foundation that morning.
