Chapter 3 — The Misaligned Interior
Caleb pointed to the third line from the bottom of the service log.
Abigail leaned over the edge of the counter to read the faded handwriting.
The entry explicitly noted a replacement of the interior refrigerator bracket.
It also noted that the job had been marked as incomplete due to a missing manufacturer part.
Abigail stared at the page, her expression tightening.
“Marcus told me he finished everything,” Abigail muttered.
“He wrote right here that he was waiting for the correct hardware,” Caleb said, tapping the page with his finger.
Chloe shifted nervously beside the kitchen desk.
Caleb closed the maintenance binder and set it back on the wooden surface.
He walked back to the open stainless steel refrigerator to take a closer look at the suspect shelf.
The interior shelves looked normal at a glance when the door was wide open under the harsh overhead lights.
Upon closer inspection, however, subtle misalignment marred the symmetry of the wire racks.
The left side sat flush against the factory-molded plastic ridge.
The right side drooped by nearly a quarter of an inch.
Abigail stood back with her arms crossed, maintaining her stance by the counter.
She watched Caleb lean his upper body into the cold compartment.
Caleb reached out and touched the right plastic support peg.
It jiggled loosely inside its molded slot instead of locking firmly into place.
He wiggled the peg back and forth, demonstrating how easily the whole structure could shift under minimal weight.
“It’s barely holding on,” Caleb said over his shoulder.
Abigail remained silent, her jaw set tight.
Caleb reached down to the lower tier of the refrigerator door where the condiment trays were mounted.
He picked up the heavy orange juice bottle to test its seating position on the upper rack.