“And that’s me,” we say in unison.
Stone said it because that’s what he believes, and I said it because I knew that Stone would.
He smirks at me and I grin smugly in response.
Mom clears her throat. “I’m sure you’re wondering why I had you change clothes and hand over your phones.”
I scrape a thumb over my bottom lip. “It did occur to us.”
Mom leans forward and folds her hands. Her knuckles turn white as her grip tightens like she’s trying to contain her excitement. I’m gladsomeone’sexcited.
“Starting now, you are no longer Pane and Stone Maddox, heirs to the Maddox Group of hotels,” she explains.
My brother and I exchange a confused look. For a long moment neither of us speak.
It’s Stone who hesitantly pokes the bull—I mean, my mother. “Then who are we?”
Mom leans back and grins widely. “You are Pane and Stone Maddox, big nobodies.”
What is she talking about? “What do you mean?”
She clicks a button on a remote, and a screen buzzes down from the ceiling. She opens her laptop, presses a few buttons, and a PowerPoint begins.
The first slide readsWin the Maddox Group.
Win the Maddox Group?“Are we supposed to play some sort of game?”
Stone’s foot pops off his knee and he sits up. “What is this?”
Mom points to the slide as if that will explain everything. “You see, boys, I thought I’d made a decision, but when I rechecked the numbers, both of you were too close in terms of profits for me to confidently pick the next president and CEO. So we’re doing it this way.”
My stomach drops. The rug hasmorethan been pulled out from under me; it’s been tossed into the ocean, where it’s drowning in a whirlpool. The company should be mine.Mine.I’ve worked hard, given up my life for the Maddox Group. Stone’s worked hard, too, but he hasn’t sacrificed his personal life.
“What is ‘this way’?” I growl.
She clicks a button on her computer, and the next slide appears. My mother explains what it says, so I don’t bother looking at it. Besides, all I can see is red, as her frivolous decision to make us play some sort ofgamefeels like a betrayal of how hard I’ve worked, a betrayal that sinks deep into my bones, crystallizing and petrifying.
“From tomorrow forward,” she explains with delight lacing her voice, “you each have sixty days to resurrect a dying business. This business must be on the verge of collapse, with no hope of recovering. In two months you must whip it into shape so that when the time frame is up, your venture has a higher valuation than your brother’s.”
A headache blooms behind my eyes as I wrap my mind around what she’s saying. “You’re telling me that I have to find a business and make it more profitable than Stone’s, and I have sixty days to do it.”
“Yes.” She smiles like a satisfied cat. “Exactly.”
“And I’m also a big nobody.”
“That’s correct.”There is way too much glee in her voice.“The only things you now own are the clothes in each of your suitcases, the money in your new wallets, and a vehicle that has been picked out for you.”
Stone scrubs his fingers through his hair and laughs bitterly. Then he sits back and folds his arms. “So when you say that we’re nobodies, you really mean that.”
“Correct. You’re not allowed to use any of your resources—no business contacts, no bank accounts,” she clarifies in a voice that suggests she thinks this is fun. “You are completely cut off, and must win the companyalone—without help from me or each other.”
Well, there went the millions in investments that I could have used.
“And if I find out that youdoaccess your funds, you are automatically disqualified—unlessyou have my approval and the funds aren’t going toward the project,” she adds, eyes flashing from me to my brother.
“There goes cheating,” Stone half jokes.
“In the end, the venture with the highest valuation will also receive a one-time bonus from the Maddox Group. A gift, if you will, of one hundred thousand dollars.”
