“I thought you'd say the video was taken out of context.”
Margaret folded her hands.
“Would you have believed me?”
For several seconds, he remained silent.
Then shook his head.
“No.”
She nodded.
“Good.”
Walter rubbed his forehead.
For a moment, he looked exhausted.
Then he said quietly, “I need to apologize to that woman.”
Margaret considered the statement.
“Yes.”
He looked toward her.
“But do it without asking for anything in return. She's a potential witness in a serious matter, and she deserves independent advice.”
Walter nodded.
“Understood.”
Margaret leaned forward.
“And Walter?”
“Yes?”
She looked toward the portrait of Eleanor.
Then back at him.
“You need to understand that the problem wasn't the possibility she could read Japanese.”
He frowned.
Margaret continued.
“It was the fact that you thought her inability would justify humiliating her.”
Walter closed his eyes.
For a long time, he didn't speak.
Then he whispered, “I know.”
He wasn't sure he truly knew.
Not yet.
But for the first time, he was willing to find out.
Imani met her attorney that afternoon in a modest office near Union Square.
The lawyer's name was Tessa Morgan. She was forty-six, with short dark hair, a quiet voice, and the habit of listening so carefully that clients sometimes became uncomfortable with the silence.
Tessa had worked on employment disputes, commercial retaliation cases, and matters involving witnesses caught between more powerful parties. She wasn't a Japanese corporate lawyer, and she made that clear immediately. Her role was to protect Imani's interests, coordinate with appropriate specialists, and ensure the young woman didn't accidentally surrender rights while trying to be helpful.
Imani placed her notebook on the desk.
Tessa opened it.
For several minutes, she read the notes without speaking.
Then she looked up.
“You wrote this last night?”
“This morning. As soon as I realized how many details I needed to remember.”
The lawyer nodded.
“Good.”
Imani looked relieved.
Then Tessa asked about the confrontation.
The wager.
The Japanese provision.
Julian's reaction.
And the conversation in the service corridor.
Imani described everything as carefully as she could.
When she finished, Tessa leaned backward.
“Has anybody offered you money to change your account?”
Imani shook her head.
“Not directly.”
“Has anyone asked you to sign a confidentiality agreement?”
“No.”
“Has anyone threatened your employment?”
Imani hesitated.
“Julian Sterling said I should think carefully about my future.”
Tessa wrote something.
“Were there witnesses?”
“Yes. Li-hua Chen, another employee, came into the corridor.”
The lawyer nodded.
“We should preserve her account through the proper process.”
Imani looked toward the window.
For a moment, she was silent.