The CEO Shoved an Elderly Woman Asking for Bread—Then Learned She Owned the Company
Chapter 6
The boardroom doors opened.
Three employees entered.
A warehouse worker.
A customer service representative.
And the receptionist Margaret had met the previous day.
The receptionist looked terrified.
Margaret smiled at her.
“You don’t need to be afraid.”
Victoria stared.
“What is this?”
Margaret gestured toward the employees.
“I asked them to tell the truth.”
The warehouse worker spoke first.
“My name is Luis Hernandez.”
Victoria interrupted.
“This isn’t appropriate.”
Margaret raised one hand.
“Let him finish.”
Luis swallowed.
“Last month, I was injured at work.”
Victoria looked impatient.
“The company paid his medical bills.”
Luis nodded.
“Yes. But then my supervisor told me I should resign because injured workers slow production.”
Daniel’s face tightened.
Victoria looked at the general counsel.
“Is that true?”
The attorney said nothing.
The receptionist stepped forward.
“My name is Emily.”
Victoria looked at her.
“You were the woman at reception yesterday.”
Emily nodded.
“I gave Mrs. Whitmore crackers.”
Margaret smiled.
Emily’s eyes filled with tears.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“I was afraid I’d lose my job.”
Margaret stood.
“You won’t.”
Emily wiped her eyes.
The customer service representative spoke next.
“We’ve been instructed to close complaints after forty-eight hours even when they’re unresolved.”
Victoria’s expression changed.
“That isn’t a company policy.”
The woman looked at her.
“It came from your office.”
Daniel slowly turned toward Victoria.
Margaret watched them all.
Then she reached into her handbag.
She removed a small loaf of bread.
It was wrapped in plain paper.
She placed it in the center of the table.
“This is what I asked for yesterday.”
Nobody spoke.
“I wasn’t asking because I couldn’t afford it.”
She looked at Victoria.
“I was asking because I wanted to see what kind of company I had built.”
Victoria stared at the bread.
Margaret continued.
“And now I know.”
