"After what happened on the aircraft?"
Evan looked toward the photograph of his mother sitting on his desk.
"Her behavior toward me doesn't give us permission to ignore her legal rights."
He paused.
"We're trying to establish standards that apply consistently. That includes when the person being reviewed is someone who mistreated me."
The chair exhaled.
"Understood."
When the call ended, Evan returned to the report.
He wasn't pleased.
He had hoped that Whitmore & Vale's leadership problems could be addressed with clearer responsibilities, stronger oversight, and better management support.
But sometimes the necessary change was larger.
And fairness did not mean avoiding a difficult conclusion.
Darla received the board's decision during a formal meeting with her attorney present.
Her employment as president would end.
The company acknowledged her contributions and confirmed that outstanding compensation, ownership interests, and contractual matters would be handled according to the applicable agreements.
There would be no false statement claiming she'd voluntarily stepped away to pursue exciting new opportunities.
There would also be no theatrical public humiliation.
The board's announcement would be factual.
The company would explain that a leadership transition was taking place following an independent review and that operational changes were being implemented.
Darla listened without interrupting.
Six months earlier, she would have shouted.
She would have threatened lawsuits before hearing the entire explanation.
She would have reminded everyone that her grandfather's name appeared on the building.
Now she simply stared at the polished conference table.
The board chair spoke carefully.
"Darla, do you understand the decision?"
She raised her eyes.
"Yes."
"Would you like to make a statement?"
She looked around the room.
Several directors had worked with her for years.
Some appeared uncomfortable.
Others looked relieved.
Evan sat at the far end of the table.
He had said little during the proceedings, leaving the explanation to the independent directors and legal advisers.
Darla looked toward him.
For a moment, she remembered the airplane.
His gray suit.
The boarding pass.
Her gloved hand striking it away.
The words she'd shouted because she believed he couldn't do anything about them.
She had been wrong about his power.
But that wasn't the central mistake.
She understood that now.
She turned toward the board chair.
"I spent years believing that being part of the founding family meant I understood this company better than everyone else."
Nobody spoke.
She continued.