CLAIRE
The meeting request came through just after noon.
No subject line. No explanation. Just a calendar block labeled Medical Compliance Review and the quiet authority of club management attached to it. I stared at the screen longer than necessary, thumb resting against the trackpad as if the delay might soften the meaning.
It didn't.
By the time I reached the administrative floor, the atmosphere had shifted. Not hostile. Procedural. The kind of environment where emotion was stripped away in favor of liability and documentation. Conversations were quieter here. Steps were measured. Every door looked like it closed on more than it revealed.
That scared me more than Madison ever had.
The conference room was glass-walled and bright, designed to look transparent while kee
