"Please record that response."
Eleanor made a note.
The meeting continued for another forty minutes.
They reviewed the appointment records, the performance-review system, and the informal authority Vanessa had accumulated over the previous three years.
Some of the problems were clearly her responsibility.
Others were the result of a management structure that rewarded sales without adequately measuring service quality.
The salon director, Peter Lawson, had delegated scheduling decisions to Vanessa without defining the limits of her authority. Regional management had encouraged premium-service growth while failing to investigate complaints about how those goals were being pursued.
Arthur did not intend to make Vanessa the sole explanation for a problem that had developed under his company's supervision.
But he also would not allow organizational failures to excuse individual cruelty.
At eleven-fifteen, he asked for Daniel to join them.
Daniel entered the conference room looking nervous.
Arthur gestured toward an empty chair.
"Please sit down."
Daniel did.
"Do you know why you're here?" Arthur asked.
"I assume you want to discuss yesterday."
"Yes. And your performance review."
Daniel swallowed.
"Am I going to lose my job?"
Arthur looked at him carefully.
"That is not a decision we are making today."
Daniel's shoulders tightened.
Arthur continued.
"I want to understand your experience at Lumina. Not only yesterday, but during the eleven months you've worked here."
Daniel glanced at Martin.
Then at Eleanor.
Finally, he looked at Arthur.
"Do you want the honest answer?"
"Very much."
Daniel took a breath.
"I like cutting hair. I like the customers. I like learning new techniques. But sometimes it feels like the company cares more about how much people spend than whether they leave happy."
Arthur nodded.
"Can you give me an example?"
Daniel described the pressure to sell products, the changes to appointment scheduling, and the way employees were criticized for spending too much time with customers who did not purchase premium services.
He explained that he had learned to keep certain conversations private because Vanessa often interpreted questions as challenges to her authority.
He described the performance review she had initiated after the five-dollar haircut.
When he finished, Arthur asked, "Did you ever raise these concerns before yesterday?"
"No."
"Why not?"
Daniel gave a small, embarrassed smile.
"I was afraid."
"Of losing your job?"
"Yes."
"Has anyone threatened to fire you?"
"Not directly."
"Then what made you afraid?"
Daniel considered the question.
"Because you don't have to threaten someone to make them understand what might happen. You can reduce their hours. You can give them worse appointments. You can make every shift uncomfortable until they leave on their own."
Martin looked down at his notebook.
Arthur remained very still.
"Has that happened here?"
"I think so."
"To whom?"
"Chloe, sometimes. Marcus, too."
Arthur glanced toward the door.
"Would they be willing to speak with us?"
Daniel hesitated.
"If they know their jobs are safe."
Arthur nodded.
"That is a reasonable condition."
He turned toward Eleanor.
"Please make sure every employee receives written confirmation that they may speak freely during this review and will not be penalized for participating."
Eleanor wrote it down.
Arthur returned his attention to Daniel.
"Why did you accept the five dollars?"
Daniel frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"You could have given me the haircut for free. Why did you accept the money?"
Daniel thought for a moment.
"Because he—because you asked for a service."
He stopped and corrected himself.
"Because you offered to pay for it. I didn't want you to feel like you were receiving charity."
Arthur's expression softened.
"And if I had no money at all?"
"I would probably still have given you the haircut."
"Then why accept the five dollars?"
Daniel smiled faintly.
"Because it was important to you."
Arthur looked at him for a long time.
Then he nodded.
"Thank you, Daniel."
Daniel stood, uncertain whether the meeting was over.
Arthur gestured toward the door.
"You may return to your station."
Daniel rose.
Before he left, Arthur added, "One more thing."
Daniel turned.
"You are not on a performance review because you gave me a haircut. That review is suspended pending the investigation."
Daniel's mouth fell open.
"Thank you, sir."
"And Daniel?"
"Yes?"
"Continue doing good work. But don't assume that doing the right thing means you must ignore your own well-being. Courage and recklessness are not the same."
Daniel nodded.
"I understand."
He left the room.
Arthur watched the door close.
Then he turned toward Martin.
"How many employees do we have across the company?"
"Three hundred and twelve, including contractors."
"How many locations?"
"Twenty-four."
"And how many might be experiencing the same problems?"
Martin was silent.
Arthur leaned forward.
"That is what I want us to find out."
The next person called into the conference room was Chloe Bennett.
She was twenty-six, had worked at Lumina for two years, and had been promoted from junior stylist to senior stylist six months earlier.
She sat down with her hands folded in her lap.
Arthur greeted her warmly.
"Thank you for meeting with us, Chloe."
"Of course."
"Are you comfortable speaking freely?"
She glanced at Eleanor.
"Yes."
"Do you believe you can do so without fear of retaliation?"
Chloe hesitated.