Victor sat at the opposite end of the table.
Richard gestured for them to sit.
"I'd like to ask you both a few questions."
Ethan nodded.
"Yes, sir."
"How long have you worked here?"
"Two years."
"And Chloe?"
"About eighteen months."
Richard looked at them.
"Do you believe the hotel treats its guests fairly?"
Ethan answered quickly.
"Yes, sir."
Chloe remained silent.
Richard noticed.
"What do you think?"
Chloe hesitated.
"I think we try, but sometimes guests aren't treated equally."
Victor immediately interrupted.
"That's not accurate."
Richard raised his hand.
"Let her finish."
Chloe took a breath.
"Some employees are told to prioritize guests who look wealthy. People who arrive in expensive cars receive more attention. Others are sometimes ignored."
Richard listened carefully.
"Has this happened often?"
"Yes."
Victor leaned forward.
"That's a misunderstanding of our service standards."
Chloe looked toward him.
"With respect, Mr. Collins, I've seen customers wait twenty minutes while employees rushed to assist people who arrived after them."
Victor's face reddened.
"That's enough."
Richard turned toward him.
"No. It isn't."
He looked at Chloe.
"Please continue."
She explained that several elderly guests had complained about being ignored.
Some customers had been charged incorrectly.
Others had been spoken to rudely when asking simple questions.
A few employees had even been instructed not to spend too much time assisting people who appeared unlikely to purchase expensive services.
Richard listened without interrupting.
When Chloe finished, he thanked her.
Then he looked at Ethan.
"What about you?"
Ethan shifted in his chair.
"I agree that we could improve."
"Could improve?"
Ethan nodded.
"Yes, sir."
Richard looked at him for a long moment.
"Today, you had an opportunity to treat someone with respect. You chose not to."
Ethan lowered his eyes.
"I'm sorry."
Richard nodded.
"An apology is a beginning. It isn't the end of the matter."
CHAPTER 7: THE HIDDEN REPORT
The following morning, James delivered a confidential report to Richard.
It contained information that went far beyond the behavior at reception.
The audit team had discovered that Victor had been manipulating several internal performance reports.
Customer satisfaction figures had been adjusted before being sent to the ownership board.
Complaints were sometimes marked as resolved even when customers had received no response.