Chapter 9 - My email
My biggest mistake came that night.
I was angry.
In pain.
Humiliated that a program carrying Sofia’s name had been used this way.
I wrote an email to nineteen senior people.
Hotel board.
Operator.
Foundation.
Outside counsel.
Two lenders.
One major donor.
Subject:
WHAT DOMINIC HALE HAS BEEN DOING.
Bad start.
I wrote:
Dominic has been stealing from sick families and anyone who helped him will answer for it.
Then:
I will make sure every person who protected this is removed.
I sent it.
Miriam called in less than three minutes.
“What did you just do?”
“Wrote an email.”
“I’m aware.”
“He stole.”
“We do not know the full mechanism yet.”
“We have the LLC.”
“We have an LLC name. We do not yet have beneficial ownership confirmation.”
I hated her.
Then she said:
“And you are Rocco Romano.”
“I know.”
“When you say people will answer and be removed, employees hear threat, not governance.”
There.
My surname changing language again.
The donor I had copied temporarily suspended a pending $600,000 renewal until the investigation clarified.
Hotel employees panicked.
Two witnesses called counsel asking whether their jobs were safe.
Dominic’s attorney attached my email to his civil complaint and called it retaliatory intimidation.
Excellent.
I had turned righteous anger into evidence against my own process.
The next morning I sent a correction.
No employee would face retaliation for truthful cooperation.
Employment decisions would follow independent review.
I recused myself from personnel decisions directly involving witnesses.
Too late to unsend the first email.
May you like
Consequences do not disappear because you write a better second draft.
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