Chapter 28 - The Correspondence Office
The following day, investigators reopened records connected to the old executive correspondence department.
Most employees had long since retired.
Some had passed away.
Others had relocated overseas.
One name, however, still appeared in corporate archives.
Elaine Porter.
Former Executive Correspondence Manager.
She had left the company fifteen years earlier.
Unlike many former employees, Elaine agreed to meet immediately.
"I've wondered when someone would ask," she admitted as soon as Margaret explained the investigation.
Elaine retrieved several personal notebooks she had kept after retirement.
"I wasn't allowed to remove company documents," she said, "but I always kept personal work journals."
One entry immediately caught Margaret's attention.
Private Chairman Mail — Redirected Pending Executive Review
Margaret frowned.
"Executive review?"
Elaine nodded.
"It wasn't an official policy."
"Who introduced it?"
Elaine hesitated.
"I never received written instructions."
"Only verbal ones."
"From whom?"
Elaine slowly answered.
"A newly appointed executive committee."
Margaret's expression remained calm.
"Do you remember any names?"
Elaine listed four executives.
Three had already appeared repeatedly during the investigation.
The fourth had not.
Margaret wrote it down without comment.
Elaine continued.
"Whenever certain letters arrived, we were instructed to hold them until they could be reviewed."
"Did Arthur know?"
"I honestly don't believe he did."
She looked down at her notebook.
"I questioned the procedure once."
"What happened?"
"They told me it was for efficiency."
She smiled sadly.
"I wanted to believe them."
Margaret carefully closed the notebook.
Every answer seemed to reveal two more questions.
The investigation was no longer uncovering isolated misconduct.
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It was exposing an informal system that had quietly operated alongside the official organization for years.
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