Chapter 5: The Employee Who Knew Too Much
The next morning, Ethan arrived at the hotel earlier than usual.
No executives.
No announcements.
No cameras.
Just him.
And the people who kept the hotel alive before anyone important arrived.
The cleaners.
The kitchen workers.
The maintenance team.
The employees most guests never noticed.
That was exactly where Ethan wanted to be.
He found Lupita organizing supplies in a storage room.
"Mr. Vance.""
She smiled.
"Please, call me Ethan.""
She laughed softly.
"I don't think I can do that.""
"Why not?""
"Because I spent twelve years calling the owner Mr. Vance.""
Ethan smiled.
"Fair enough.""
Lupita noticed his expression.
"You look troubled.""
"I need to ask you something.""
She nodded.
"Anything.""
"Have you noticed anything unusual happening here?""
Lupita became quiet.
Not scared.
Careful.
That told Ethan everything.
"You have.""
She looked down.
"I don't like causing problems.""
"Sometimes silence causes bigger problems.""
She sighed.
"There are things I noticed.""
"Tell me.""
Lupita glanced around before speaking.
"For months, supplies have been disappearing.""
"Disappearing?""
"Boxes of expensive cleaning products. Towels. Equipment.""
"Did you report it?""
She looked embarrassed.
"To who?""
Ethan understood.
If employees believed management would ignore them, they stopped speaking.
"Did anyone else notice?""
"Many people.""
"Why didn't they say anything?""
Lupita looked at him.
"Because people are afraid.""
Those words bothered Ethan.
A hotel built around hospitality had created a culture of fear.
That was unacceptable.
"Who are they afraid of?""
Lupita didn't answer immediately.
Then she whispered.
"Thomas.""
Later that day, Ethan met with Daniel Brooks secretly in a small coffee shop away from the hotel.
Daniel looked nervous.
He was thinner than Ethan remembered.
Older.
Like someone who had carried stress for too long.
"Thank you for meeting me.""
Ethan nodded.
"You risked a lot contacting me.""
Daniel smiled sadly.
"I already lost my job.""
"You lost it because you tried to do the right thing.""
Daniel looked away.
"I thought the company I worked for cared about that.""
Ethan felt the guilt immediately.
Because Daniel wasn't blaming him.
That almost made it worse.
"What did you find?""
Daniel opened his laptop.
"I started noticing unusual vendor payments.""
He showed Ethan several documents.
"At first, I thought it was accounting errors.""
"But?""
"But the same pattern appeared across several hotels.""
Ethan's eyes narrowed.
"Not just Chicago?""
Daniel shook his head.
"No.""
The room suddenly felt colder.
"How many properties?""
"At least four.""
Ethan stared at the screen.
This wasn't a local problem.
Someone had been stealing from his company systematically.
"Who approved the payments?""
Daniel hesitated.
"That's the problem.""
"What?""
"They used different managers as approval points.""
"Meaning?""
"Someone designed it carefully.""
Ethan understood.
A person with knowledge.
Someone who understood the company's systems.
Someone who knew how to hide.
"Thomas couldn't do this alone.""
Daniel looked at him.
"No.""
"Then who?""
Daniel closed the laptop.
"That's the part I never figured out.""
That night, Ethan returned to the hotel suite.
Lily was drawing at the table.
"What are you making?""
She held up the paper proudly.
"It's our family.""
Ethan smiled.
There were two people.
Him.
Her.
Then he noticed something.
A third figure.
"Who is that?""
Lily looked surprised.
"Mommy.""
Ethan's heart stopped.
"But you said you only draw us.""
She shrugged.
"I wanted her there today.""
He sat beside her.
"Do you miss her?""
"Every day.""
The honesty of a child.
Simple.
Painful.
Beautiful.
Ethan hugged her.
"I miss her too.""
After Lily went to sleep, Ethan looked at the drawing again.
Three people.
Not two.
Sarah was still part of their family.
Still part of every decision.
Including this one.
He opened his laptop.
Tomorrow, he would start the investigation officially.
But before he could begin, his phone rang.
Richard.
"Ethan.""
Something was wrong.
"What happened?""
"We have a problem.""
"What kind?""
"Someone accessed the security system.""
Ethan stood.
"Who?""
Richard's voice dropped.
"They deleted footage from the night you arrived.""
A cold feeling moved through Ethan.
"They know.""
Richard was silent.
"They know you're investigating.""
Ethan looked toward Lily sleeping peacefully.
Someone inside his company had realized the truth.
And now they were trying to hide it.
May you like
But they had made one mistake.
They underestimated the man they were trying to deceive.
