“He fired me because I challenged unsafe decisions,” I said. “He didn’t know the ownership. But he did know the facts. He chose arrogance anyway.”
Marianne tapped the folder. “Your documentation is… thorough.”
“It had to be,” I said. “He doesn’t respect verbal warnings.”
Counsel cleared his throat. “If you want to remove him, you can. With ninety percent voting shares, the action is straightforward. We should document cause carefully to reduce wrongful termination exposure.”
I nodded. “I’m not here to humiliate him,” I said, and meant it. “I’m here to stop the damage.”
Marianne asked, “What do you want?”
I answered without drama. “Immediate suspension pending investigation. Interim operations lead appointed today. Reinstate the supplier remediation plan. Restore QA authority. And yes—reverse my termination. Not for ego. For continuity during recovery.”
The directors exchanged glances. Then Marianne nodded once. “All right.”
When Derek was called back in, he tried to regain the script.
Marianne spoke first. “Derek, the board has reviewed operational incidents and personnel actions. Effective immediately, you are being placed on administrative leave pending investigation.”
Derek’s face tightened. “You can’t do that.”
Marianne slid a prepared document across the table. “We can.”
He glanced at the paper, then snapped his gaze toward me. “This is because I fired you.”
I didn’t smile this time. I kept my tone even. “This is because you fired the guardrails.”
Derek’s voice rose. “I improved margins. I increased throughput. I did what you wanted!”
Marianne’s eyes were cold. “You did what made the spreadsheet look good while the product got worse. That’s not leadership. That’s gambling with the company.”
Derek turned to legal. “This is insane.”
Counsel replied calmly, “This is corporate governance.”
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