She said creative decisions often reflected collaborative work rather than individual ownership.
The investigator examined the documents.
Some supported her explanations.
Others raised additional questions.
The process continued.
For Darla, it was humiliating.
Not because people were shouting at her.
Nobody was.
Not because they were treating her unfairly.
They weren't.
It was humiliating because she was finally required to explain decisions she'd made without expecting anyone to question them.
When the interview ended, she stepped outside the office building and sat in the back of a waiting car.
Her attorney asked whether she wanted to return home.
Darla stared through the window.
Then whispered, “I think I've become someone I don't like.”
Her attorney remained quiet.
For the first time, Darla wasn't blaming Evan.
Or the flight attendant.
Or the airline.
Or the board.
She was looking at herself.
And she didn't know what to do with what she saw.
The independent workplace review concluded seven weeks after the airplane incident.
By then, Whitmore & Vale had become a different company from the one Evan acquired.
Not because every problem was solved.
Far from it.
The company still faced difficult financial decisions, outdated systems, and employees who had grown accustomed to promises that never produced meaningful changes.
But for the first time in years, senior management was being asked to explain its decisions with evidence rather than influence.
The workplace review substantiated several concerns about Darla's leadership.
Witness accounts and contemporaneous records showed repeated incidents of disrespectful treatment toward employees, inadequate procedures for addressing complaints about senior executives, and failures to maintain consistent standards for crediting creative work.
Not every allegation was supported.
Some employees had misunderstood decisions made for legitimate business reasons.
Certain promotion disputes involved complex considerations that couldn't fairly be reduced to favoritism.
The investigators acknowledged those distinctions.
But the overall findings revealed serious weaknesses.
Darla's behavior had contributed to a workplace
The first thing Darla Whitmore did after admitting she had become someone she didn't like was cancel an appointment with her public relations adviser.
For nearly two weeks, she'd been preparing for a televised interview intended to repair her reputation. The agency had drafted a careful statement about misunderstandings, emotional pressure, and the importance of treating everyone with respect. They had recommended a soft-colored suit, minimal jewelry, and an interviewer known for sympathetic conversations with public figures facing controversy.