“Is it? Even if we dig and find some rot, we’ll be the new owners—heroes who eradicated crime.” He shrugs. “Or whatever it is your team’s investigating.”
William clears his throat. “Sir, am I reading this right? You’re considering buying a company as big as Alpha Cash? Is that even possible?”
“Of course it is,” Lector says.
I interrupt, feeling a little breathless at the possibility. “We’ll talk about this some more. William, you’ve got enough to get a warrant for Rigton Limited, right?”
“Yes, that’s a red-hot lead. Thanks, Callisto and Mr Wren.”
Lector gives them some details to help them secure evidence, and we end the call. I scan Lector up and down. I might feel ready to faint, but my stepdad looks like an eager footballer about to step on the field. “You’ve got the money gleam in your eye, Lector,” I tell him.
He chuckles. “Of course I have. How about you?”
I twitch. He’s right in a way. Excitement surges over a lead, just like it does in the courtroom. But this is big enough to send ripples through the country’s entire financial industry. Maybe even the world’s.
“If the OCB seizes assets, it will devalue the company,” I argue.
“You’re right, but that kind of shock is exactly the reasons shareholders might agree to a takeover.” He spreads his hands, smiling innocently. “A reputable family with over fifty years of operations moves in to shore up a giant financial institution. Panicked investors will beg us to return stability to the company.”
I stroke my jaw, studying him. It’d take an enormous gamble on our part, but Lector seems confident he can recover the losses.
He tips his head and points to the phone. “How about we call the big boss upstairs and see what he says?”
I nod mutely.
He hums knowingly and dials the phone again. His brother, Simon, CEO of Wren Enterprises, answers. “Hey, little bro. Are you calling about the quarterlies?”
Lector holds my gaze as he says, “Something better than that. How do you feel about finally going into the finance sector? I just had a door open wide for us.”
“Which one?”
“Alpha Cash.”
Simon whistles. “You really know how to tempt a man.”
Lector laughs. “Well, you can thank our son for that. He brought me a worm too juicy to resist.”
“Calli did?”
“Yeah, he’s sitting right here with me.”
“In your office? Calli?” He sounds so surprised, like he expects Lector to be playing a prank on him.
“Now you make me feel like a complete asshole,” I grumble.
“Hi, Calli,” Simon says, a smile in his voice. “Maybe just an incomplete one.”
Lector swallows a guffaw before saying, “Be nice. Like I said, this job will be thanks to Calli.”
“Okay, spell it out for me.”
“Aggressive takeover. I’d say we have three months or less. This will be rougher than the Palmear incident.”
Simon whistles. “Then we’ll shelve the summer expansion project. Capital?”
“First estimate, 150 billion.”
“Shit, Lector. You’re talking about an all-in? You sure it’s worth it?”
