He had created an ethics department.
Opened old corporate records.
Compensated workers harmed by previous projects.
And publicly admitted mistakes made by the company decades earlier.
That had made him popular with employees.
It had also made him enemies.
At 8:15, Ethan received an urgent call.
“Mr. Harrison?”
“Yes?”
“This is internal security.”
“What happened?”
“We found something strange.”
“Where?”
“Your office.”
Ethan stood.
“What?”
“There was an envelope on your desk.”
“Who put it there?”
“We don't know.”
“What's inside?”
A pause.
“Photographs.”
Ethan's expression changed.
“What kind of photographs?”
“Old ones.”
“Send them to me.”
“We already did.”
Ethan opened the file.
The first photograph showed his father standing outside a construction site.
The second showed several executives.
The third showed a young woman.
Ethan stared at the woman.
He recognized her.
His mother.
But she was standing beside a man Ethan had never seen before.
On the back of the photograph was a handwritten sentence.
ASK YOUR JANITOR WHO SHE WAS MEETING.
Ethan looked toward the office door.
“Bring me the employee records.”
His assistant nodded.
“Which employee?”
Ethan looked at the photograph.
“Daniel Cole.”
THE INVISIBLE MAN
Daniel was called to Ethan's office at 9:05.
He entered quietly.
“You wanted to see me, sir?”
Ethan looked at him.
“Yes.”
Daniel stood with his hands behind his back.
“How long have you worked here?”
“Eleven years.”
“Before that?”
“Different jobs.”
“What kind?”
“Construction.”
Ethan looked up.
“Construction?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Daniel smiled.
“Many places.”
Ethan placed the photograph on his desk.
“Do you know this woman?”
Daniel looked at it.
His face didn't change.
But Ethan noticed his eyes.
“Yes.”
“Who is she?”
“Your mother.”
“I know that.”
Daniel said nothing.
“Who is the man beside her?”
Daniel looked back at Ethan.
“Someone your father wanted forgotten.”
Ethan leaned forward.
“His name.”
Daniel hesitated.
“Jonathan Cole.”
Ethan froze.
“Cole?”
“Yes.”
“Are you related to him?”
Daniel looked toward the window.
“He was my brother.”
The room became silent.
Ethan stared at him.
“My father never mentioned a Jonathan Cole.”
“He wouldn't.”
“Why?”
“Because your father took everything from him.”
Ethan stood.
“What does that mean?”
Daniel walked toward the door.
“You're asking questions you aren't ready to hear answers to.”
“I'll decide what I'm ready for.”
Daniel stopped.
Then turned.
“Your father wasn't the founder of Harrison Global.”
Ethan's face hardened.
“That's enough.”
“No.”
Daniel looked directly at him.
“That is only the beginning.”
That afternoon Ethan searched the company archives.
There was no record of Jonathan Cole.
No employment file.
No contract.
No photograph.
Nothing.
It was as if the man had never existed.
But Ethan remembered the old photograph.
He called his mother.
“Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Who was Jonathan Cole?”
Silence.
Ethan knew immediately.