The audit committee didn't finish that day. That was the first thing I learned about how these things actually go. Nothing happens in one dramatic moment. It happens in a series of smaller, quieter ones, over weeks, and the people in the room are never as dramatic as they look in movies.
What happened that day was simple: Helen Okafor asked me to stay, and I stayed, and I answered questions. Charles Mercer left the room twice, and each time he came back without looking at me. Julian left once and didn't come back. Corinne stayed for an hour and then was asked to leave by Helen, politely, and she walked out with her binder, and in the doorway she turned and looked at me for a second and then kept walking.
At the end of the fourth hour, Helen closed her notebook and said, "Thank you, Miss
