News outlets are already calling. Lisa Anderson’s phone buzzed continuously with incoming calls. Your response in the next 5 minutes will determine whether Grand View Hotels becomes a case study in corporate accountability or corporate failure.
He checked his watch, the PC Philippe that had seemed so out of place moments ago.
You have 4 minutes and 30 seconds left. The lobby fell silent except for the sound of Rebecca’s quiet sobbing and the distant hum of traffic through the glass doors.
Michael Brown looked at Lisa Anderson. She looked at Steve Wilson. He stared at the floor.
Everyone looked anywhere except at David Thompson, who stood in the center of the marble space like Judgment incarnate.
The live stream hit 10,000 viewers, and the clock kept ticking. 4 minutes, David said softly.
In boardrooms across America, emergency meetings were being called. Crisis management teams were assembling. Stock prices were being monitored.
But in the lobby of Grand View Grand Hotel, time was running out on 25 years of building something that could be destroyed in 25 minutes.
What’s it going to be? David asked. The question hung in the air like smoke.
And somewhere in the distance, sirens wailed as news vans raced toward downtown Houston, drawn by the digital wildfire spreading across social media platforms faster than anyone could contain.
The reckoning had begun. Michael Brown’s voice cracked when he finally spoke. Option one, sir.
We choose option one. David nodded slowly. Ms. Miller, you’re terminated effective immediately. Please surrender your badge and key card to Mr.
Brown. Rebecca’s legs buckled. She gripped the reception counter to stay upright. Please, Mr. Thompson.
I have a mortgage. I have kids in school. I made a terrible mistake. But you made a choice, David corrected quietly.
Multiple choices over several minutes while being recorded by dozens of people. This wasn’t a split-second error in judgment.
Lisa Anderson stepped forward with practice efficiency. Ms. Miller, you’ll receive two weeks severance pay and co continuation.
