Chapter 11
10 Months Later
Prince Walker
“What’s the update, Jane?” I answered the phone anxiously.
“The meeting had just finished. Their lawyers are leaving the conference room. Andy is on his way up and he doesn’t look like it went well. Brace yourself.”
“God,” I groaned, palming my face as I leaped from my seat.
I put down the receiver and began pacing the length of my office, my footfalls silent on the expensive rug. I could feel my heart quicken with each step as I waited for Andy, not just my best friend, but also my lawyer, to walk in with the bad news.Fuck!!
Andy opened the door and walked into the office; grim-faced, he gestured for me to sit down. I sat across from him, green eyes laced with worry. I waited with bated breath. Andy would not look me in the face, so I knew things must have gone badly.Really, really badly.
“They pulled out, Prince. The damn Chinese pulled out of the contract with Cedar,” Andy said. “I’m actually glad that I had made you declare yourself unavailable for the impromptu meeting.” I looked at my best friend with an intense glare, but I knew he was right. I would’ve made things worse, with stilted negotiations and fists thrown out of anger.
“What do you mean, they pulled out? They can’t pull now. Did you tell them, Andy? Did you tell them they can’t fucking pull out now?” I roared, more in frustration than anger. I dipped my head forward and tried to calm my breathing. “What do you mean they pulled out?”
My head hurt. I want to punch someone so badly.
∞∞∞
A day before I lost everything, I had received a call from my correspondent in the Chinese government warning me that something had gone terribly wrong with the deal and their lawyers had already flown into New York. I’d invited Andy over to brief him and find out if he knew anything, but he was just as clueless about the development as I was. I had brought Andy in to help me secure the multi-billion dollar deal for my company after learning my competitors, SysCorp Technologies, had bid for the same contract with a promise to deliver for a lower cost. Andy met with the Chinese to reconsider their next move and finally agreed to execute the two-year contract for three billion dollars less than the initial offer.
The contracts were signed, and the Chinese remitted half the agreed sum as was stipulated; the rest would be paid on completion. For twelve months, Cedar Inc. had channeled their manpower and resources into designing and manufacturing the Bionic AI Chip for the newest cellphone release for the Chinese. We were determined to finish three months ahead of the two-year deadline. Now the Chinese were squeezing us out of the contract.
I forced my eyes shut, trying to ignore the headache that was making my head pound. Almost thirty, I’d become the CEO of Cedar Inc after my father had retired. Handsome and hugely successful; though I did not feel like much of a success at the moment. It felt as though someone had taken over the helm of my ship and was driving it into a looming iceberg.Fuck! This is a freakin’ nightmare!
“The word is, they can no longer continue to do business with us for certain reasons. I tried to change their mind, but they wouldn’t budge. This wasn’t a negotiation; it was a respectful notification.” Andy reached out to pat my arm; he knew how much this deal meant to me, and what losing it would cost my company and, even worse, our friendship.
“Did you tell them how many months we have spent on this project? How many dollars we’ve poured into production? What am I going to do with all the fucking chips we’ve built? Can they do this? Does the contract allow it?” I asked, rapping out each question in quick succession.
“Unfortunately, yes. The contract has a clause to permit their withdrawal if it concerns matters of state. Our only mistake was not adding another clause that guaranteed full recompense of invested resources if it ever came to that. I’m sorry, Prince. No one imagined this would happen, especially with how far along the tenure we’ve come.”
I nodded to acknowledge the apology. Deep down, I laughed at the irony of the scenario. I’d side-lined the company’s lawyers and brought in my best friend-come-business partner to secure the deal. I wouldn’t have taken this news better if it had come from my obnoxious legal team. I cringed as I imagined them sitting across the table with their stiff suits and unnecessarily verbose lingo, not the man I trusted the most in the world.
“My dad would have …” I murmured to myself.
“What?” Andy asked, tipping forward to catch what I was saying in low tones.
“My dad might have imagined this happening. That fox thinks of everything. It helps that he does not trust the Chinese. He would have had a contingency plan.” I exhaled in resignation and swiveled my chair around to look out the glass wall that faced the center of New York City. Maybe if I got up and started running really fast, I could outrun this constantly worsening nightmare. I would run into a new day where, when I woke up, this would all have been just a dream.
“What are our options?” I asked.
“Well, we could sue for breach and demand evidence of the threat that a deal like this suddenly poses to their state affairs. But, and this is my honest opinion, we would just be wasting more money and delaying the inevitable. The Chinese are not requesting that we return their initial input. They even offered to pay thirty percent of the final payment to help offset our expenses, but they have refused to receive any of our gadgets’ output. On my way up to your office, I put out some calls to learn why they would make a move they have nothing to gain from. There’s no word on this, no grand scheme at play. Just a business deal gone wrong it appears, on both sides.”
“Andy, there is always a bigger play. We may never be privy to it, but I assure you, the Chinese always make calculated moves. I’ve been such a fool,” I spat in self-antagonism. I couldn’t sit there any longer. I got up from my chair, stopped to glance at my watch, then began packing my briefcase.
Andy stood to walk out with me, worried by my sudden quiet behavior. He waited for me as I gave some instructions to Jane, and resumed our slow stride out when I was done. Andy was watching my face working over the details that had been flung at me and probably hoped I was sturdy enough to withstand the heat that would come from the Board when they heard this.
“Do you know if the Chinese have initiated a new contract with any other company? Maybe one that wouldn’t pose a diplomatic conflict?” I asked, breaking into Andy’s reverie.Something about this is not right.
“No. Not to my knowledge, at least. That was the first enquiry I’ve made; it would have made this development more logical. Not less painful, of course, just more logical. I guess we have to wait to get more details. Maybe check in with your contacts,” Andy suggested. I nodded slightly in response, distracted by my depressing thoughts.
∞∞∞
Andy Geller
