I tensed up, irritation prickling under my skin, but kept my voice steady.
"Why lock the door? Is my question…"
I paused, scanning their faces. "…that sensitive?"
Walter let out a nervous laugh.
"No, no, Vivian, don’t overthink it. Just keeping this hush-hush, that’s all."
"Oh, so there’s a story."
He nodded.
"Hank Miller and Tanya Brooks—they were founding workers here, bonded. Got hurt in an accident, left unable to work. To avoid chaos, we struck a deal: compensation, but they wanted pay spread over years instead of a lump sum."
Nice try, but that tale’s full of holes.
I pressed my lips together, feigning concern.
"Why not report it to pack?"
Walter sighed.
"Office types don’t get factory life. We didn’t want folks losing jobs over it. And really—lump sum or spread out, what
