The boardroom doors slid shut behind Simon with a quiet click.
He checked his watch, not bothering to hide his impatience.
"You've got 10 minutes," he said, walking in. "Whatever this is, make it quick. I'm needed elsewhere."
The 12 board members were already seated around the table. At the head sat the chairman—his hair snow-white, his chest heaving with a harsh cough. The man looked one breath away from a stroke.
Simon's nonchalance was the final straw. The old man slammed his palm onto the table.
"You owe us an explanation!" the chairman barked. "Never mind the 200 million you skimmed from company funds. Never mind handing our top innovation proposal to that useless woman—what in God's name possessed you to go on live TV and destroy yourself?!"
He leaned forward, veins bulging. "D
