At the bottom was a small line:
Adjustment Factor: 0.04
His stomach tightened.
He had seen that number before.
But now he remembered where.
Three weeks earlier, during a maintenance meeting, he had accidentally seen a presentation on the finance director's laptop.
The slide had shown a proposed “operational normalization factor.”
0.04
Ethan had assumed it was meaningless.
Now he understood.
Four percent of something had been removed.
But what?
And why?
The Meeting Upstairs
Two days later, Ethan received another summons.
This time, it wasn't Martin who met him.
It was the plant controller, Rebecca Sloan.
She was forty-eight, precise, intelligent, and rarely seen outside the administrative wing.
She led Ethan into a conference room.
A man Ethan had never met sat at the table.
Dark suit.
Silver watch.
Laptop open.
“Ethan,” Rebecca said, “this is Richard Bell.”
Richard stood.
“Corporate finance.”
Ethan shook his hand.
“Nice to meet you.”
Richard gestured toward the chair.
“Please sit.”
Ethan did.
Rebecca remained standing.
Richard folded his hands.
“We understand you've raised questions about the gainshare calculation.”
“I asked why it was four cents.”
“And you've reviewed internal production records.”
“I reviewed records I have access to.”
Richard's expression tightened.
“Some of those records are not intended for interpretation outside the finance department.”
“Then why can maintenance access them?”
No answer.
Ethan looked at Rebecca.
She avoided his eyes.
Richard finally said, “The adjustment is legitimate.”
“Why?”
“Because the company experienced an unexpected change in operating conditions.”
“What change?”
“Market volatility.”
“That doesn't explain the missing downtime.”
Richard leaned back.
“Mr. Hayes, your role is maintenance.”
Ethan nodded.
“Yes.”
“You're not an accountant.”
“No.”
“You're not a financial analyst.”
“No.”
“So perhaps you should allow the people responsible for those areas to do their jobs.”
Ethan looked at him.
“And perhaps the people responsible for those areas should explain why the machines say something different.”
Silence.
Rebecca looked down.
Richard closed his laptop.
“Your concerns have been noted.”
Ethan stood.
Before leaving, he said:
“One question.”
Richard nodded.
“Why was the adjustment factor already on a finance presentation three weeks before the quarter ended?”
Richard froze.
Ethan walked out.
He didn't know it yet, but that question changed everything.
Because Richard Bell had not expected Ethan to know about the presentation.
And someone else had been listening.
Martin Voss.
He was waiting outside.
“Come with me,” Martin said.
They walked to a small office near the loading dock.
Martin closed the door.
“You need to stop.”
“Stop what?”
“Looking.”
“Why?”
“Because you're going to make yourself a target.”
Ethan crossed his arms.