They’d asked for a corrected schedule and independent verification.

Dennis had reacted by demanding immediate signature instead.

The buyer walked away.

I knew Dennis well enough to picture the scene: his cuff links gleaming, his voice rising, his belief that a firm handshake could overcome whatever arithmetic refused to do.

At six, the chairman of the Whitmore board, a retired engineer named Arthur Bell, called Elaine’s office.

He said an independent board committee had begun examining the failed sale and wanted to interview people with first-hand knowledge of the review.

Elaine asked him to send the request in writing.