"Find out where they are living."
James nodded.
"What would you like to do?"
Edward answered quietly.
"I would like to apologize."
Daniel Foster lived in a modest apartment on the northern side of the city.
The building was surrounded by small shops and narrow streets.
A playground stood across the road, although most of its equipment was old and worn.
Daniel worked two jobs.
During the day, he repaired electrical appliances.
At night, he delivered groceries for a local supermarket.
His children, Sophie and Ben, were seven and nine years old.
Since their mother's death, the three of them had learned to live with a routine that left very little room for anything else.
Daniel prepared breakfast before work.
He packed lunches.
He checked homework.
He attended school meetings whenever possible.
And every evening, he tried to make sure his children never felt that their family was incomplete.
But some nights were harder than others.
Especially when Sophie asked questions about her mother.
On a rainy Thursday afternoon, someone knocked on the apartment door.
Daniel opened it.
A woman stood outside holding a folder.
"Good afternoon. Are you Daniel Foster?"
"Yes."
"My name is Olivia Bennett. I work with the Grand Imperial Hotel."
Daniel's expression immediately changed.
He looked at her for several seconds.
Then he began closing the door.
"Whatever happened, I don't want to discuss it."
Olivia placed one hand gently against the doorframe.
"I understand. But I'm not here to argue."
Daniel stopped.
"Then why are you here?"
"Because the hotel's founder would like to apologize for what happened to your family."
Daniel laughed bitterly.
"Three months later?"
Olivia nodded.
"Yes. Three months later."
Daniel looked away.
"My wife is dead. An apology isn't going to change that."
"I know."
"Then what exactly do you expect?"
Olivia remained calm.
"Nothing. Mr. Harrison simply wants to acknowledge that your family was treated unfairly."
Daniel stared at her.
"Why now?"
"Because he recently learned what happened."
Daniel leaned against the door.
"Does he know we were sleeping in a hospital waiting room that night?"
Olivia lowered her eyes.
"No."
"Does he know my daughter cried for hours because she thought the hotel staff hated us?"
Olivia said nothing.
"Does he know my wife apologized to me because she believed she had ruined our trip?"
Olivia's eyes filled with emotion.
"No. But he would want to hear it."
Daniel shook his head.
"She spent her last weeks trying to make everything easier for the children. She didn't want them to see how frightened she was."
He paused.
"And when we were told to leave that hotel, she was too weak to argue."
Olivia looked at him.
"I'm sorry."
Daniel stared at the floor.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then a little voice came from inside the apartment.
"Dad?"
Daniel turned.
Sophie was standing in the hallway.
She held a drawing in her hands.
"Who is it?"
Daniel looked back at Olivia.
"This is someone from the hotel."
Sophie frowned.
"Which hotel?"
"The one we stayed at before Mom went to the hospital."
Sophie looked at Olivia.
Then she looked at her father.
"Did we do something wrong?"
Olivia immediately shook her head.
"No, sweetheart. You didn't do anything wrong."
Sophie seemed confused.
"Then why did they make us leave?"
The question was so simple that Olivia couldn't find an immediate answer.
Daniel knelt beside his daughter.
"Sometimes adults make mistakes."
Sophie looked at him.
"But they said we were too noisy."
Daniel gently touched her shoulder.
"You were children. You were scared. That's not something you should ever feel ashamed of."
Sophie looked down at her drawing.
It showed a small house with three people standing outside.
Her mother was drawn in the middle.
Daniel looked at the picture.
His expression softened.
Olivia quietly explained that Edward would be willing to meet them wherever they felt comfortable.
Daniel hesitated.
Finally, he agreed.
The meeting was arranged for the following afternoon.
Edward chose a small public garden.
He arrived early and waited beside a wooden bench.
When Daniel approached with the children, Edward stood immediately.
"Mr. Foster?"
"Yes."
"My name is Edward Harrison."
Daniel shook his hand.
Edward then looked at Sophie and Ben.
"Hello. You must be Sophie and Ben."
Sophie nodded.
Ben stood close to his father.
Edward smiled.
"Would you like some ice cream?"
Sophie looked at Daniel.
He nodded.
"All right."
Edward bought three ice creams and a cup of coffee for Daniel.
They sat together beneath a large tree.
For a while, the conversation was ordinary.
The children talked about school.
Ben explained that he liked mathematics.
Sophie said she wanted to become an artist.
Edward listened with genuine interest.
Then Daniel spoke.
"Mr. Harrison, I appreciate you coming here. But I need you to understand something."
Edward nodded.
"Please."
"What happened to us wasn't just inconvenient."
Daniel looked at his children.
"It changed the way they saw themselves."
Edward listened.
"After we left the hotel, Sophie refused to enter another hotel for weeks. She believed people would judge us because we couldn't afford expensive things."
Sophie looked down.
Edward felt his chest tighten.
Daniel continued.
"My wife was already very sick. She spent that night worrying about the children instead of resting."
He paused.
"She died six weeks later."
Edward lowered his head.
"I'm deeply sorry."
Daniel looked at him.
"I don't blame you personally. I understand you weren't there."
Edward nodded.
"But you are responsible for what happens in your hotel."
"You're right."
Daniel continued.
"I don't want money. I don't want anyone to lose their job just because I complained. I want the next family who walks through those doors to be treated differently."
Edward looked at him.
"That's exactly what I want too."
He reached into his jacket and removed a small envelope.
Inside was a handwritten letter.
"I wrote this last night."
Daniel opened it.
It contained a personal apology from Edward.
There were no excuses.
No legal language.
No attempt to minimize what had happened.
Only an acknowledgment that the family had been failed by an institution that should have protected them.
Daniel read it silently.
Then he folded it carefully.
"Thank you."
Edward nodded.
"I also want to restore the accommodation program Margaret created. Families receiving medical treatment will once again have access to safe, comfortable rooms."