"That's a question for the people who managed the chain."
She scrolled down.
"There's something else."
"What?"
"Employee turnover."
Adrien leaned closer.
Talia pointed to a column.
"Ridgeview lost almost forty percent of its staff every year."
He frowned.
"That's high."
"Very high."
She looked at him.
"And the company kept spending money to recruit new employees instead of fixing the reasons people left."
Adrien studied the figures.
"You're right."
Talia sat back.
"I think the problem is bigger than Martin."
Adrien nodded slowly.
"I think so too."
He reached for his phone.
"I'll ask Daniel to expand the review."
Talia stopped him.
"Wait."
He looked up.
"What?"
"I want to speak to the people who left."
"Former employees?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because the people who are still working there might be afraid to tell us everything. The people who left may have less to lose."
Adrien considered that.
"That's a good idea."
Talia closed the notebook.
"Can you arrange it?"
"I can."
She looked at him.
"And Adrien?"
"Yes?"
"I don't want to be introduced as your wife."
He smiled.
"How would you like to be introduced?"
She thought for a moment.
"Talia Brooks. Restaurant operations trainee."
Adrien nodded.
"Done."
But before the meeting could be arranged, another development arrived.
Daniel called Adrien late that night.
"There's something you need to see."
Adrien looked at the clock.
It was nearly eleven.
"What is it?"
"We found a connection between Gregory Hale and Martin Voss."
"What kind of connection?"
"Financial."
Adrien sat upright.
"Explain."
Daniel paused.
"Gregory approved several vendor contracts involving a company owned by Martin's brother-in-law."
Adrien frowned.
"How much?"
"Approximately eight hundred thousand dollars over three years."
"Was the pricing competitive?"
"We're checking."
"Why wasn't this disclosed?"
"That's what we're trying to determine."
Adrien looked toward the library.
Talia was still studying.
"Send me the documents."
"Already sent."
Adrien opened the files.
He read the first page.
Then the second.
Then the third.
His expression darkened.
This was no longer simply a question of workplace culture.
It was a question of whether someone had been using the company for personal gain.
And if that was true, the people responsible might have been hiding much more than a history of employee mistreatment.
THE PEOPLE WHO LEFT WITHOUT SAYING GOODBYE
The first former employee Talia met was a woman named Renee Wallace.
Renee was thirty-four and had worked at Ridgeview Grill for almost five years before resigning.
She arrived at the corporate office wearing a dark green coat and carrying a folder filled with papers.
When she entered the conference room, she looked at Talia carefully.
"You're the woman from the video."
Talia nodded.
"Yes."
Renee sat down.
"I'm sorry that happened to you."
"Thank you."
Renee placed her folder on the table.
"I wish I could say I was surprised."
Talia looked at her.
"Why?"
Renee gave a humorless laugh.
"Because I've seen Martin do things like that before."
The independent investigator, Rachel Morgan, sat beside Talia.
She opened her notebook.
"Would you tell us about your experience?"
Renee nodded.
She had worked at Ridgeview as a server, then as a shift supervisor.
For a while, she had enjoyed the job.
The restaurant was busy, the customers were mostly friendly, and the original management team had treated employees like members of a community.
But after Martin became manager, things changed.
At first, the changes were subtle.
Employees were discouraged from discussing schedules.
Requests for time off were treated as personal inconveniences.
Customers who complained were automatically believed.
Employees who questioned unfair treatment were described as difficult.
Then the rules began changing.
"Martin started keeping a list," Renee explained.
"What kind of list?" Rachel asked.
"Customers who spent a lot of money."
She looked at Talia.
"He called them priority guests."
Talia frowned.
"What did that mean?"
"It meant their complaints mattered more than anyone else's."
Renee leaned forward.
"If a priority guest complained that a server had taken too long, that server could be written up even if the kitchen was responsible. If they said an employee had an attitude, the employee could lose shifts."
"Did this happen to you?" Talia asked.
"Yes."
Renee opened her folder.
She removed a printed email.
"One afternoon, a customer made a comment about my body. I told him to stop. He complained to Martin."
She pushed the paper toward Rachel.
"Martin emailed me that evening."
Rachel read it.
The message was brief.
It said Renee needed to demonstrate a more welcoming attitude toward valuable customers.
Talia looked at the email.
"Did you report it?"
"I did."
"What happened?"
Renee smiled sadly.