Let's Do This Part 1

The following morning, Ernest arrived at Helmarte Machine Works with the rolled plans for the Oriel Hydroelectric Station tucked beneath one arm.

For once, he did not walk toward the telegraph laboratory, where glass bulbs, copper coils, and exhausted assistants had become part of the usual scenery. He did not head for the machine halls either, where lathes screamed against steel and hammers struck hot iron from dawn until dusk. He also avoided the offices, where merchants, supervisors, and accountants waited with contracts, invoices, production reports, and problems they expected him to solve before lunch.

Instead, he crossed the eastern yard and entered the engineering conference room above the factory's administrative wing.