Chocolate Umbrella

Chapter 5 - Chocolate Umbrella

He walked back into his office and stood by the windows. The view outside was no longer the fall coloured valley he enjoyed looking at. It was now gray and colourless, mirroring his moods. The relaxed atmosphere in the office annoyed him. The causal chit-chats were like nuisance, totally meaningless and waste of time. Everyone was fooled by their fat pay cheques and the rosy business, he concluded. They were totally unprepared for the sharp turn the company was about to take.

He sat on his chair and started working. He needed a few more data points for the meeting.

****

"Morning, Emile. Ready for the meeting?" Marcus greeted as Emile walked into his office. "Have a seat. Ryan is on the line already." Marcus gestured Emile to take a seat across his desk.

"You hear us, Ryan? Emile is here." Marcus spoke to the speaker phone on his desk and Ryan was calling in from the west coast over the latest conferencing technology.

"Loud and clear. Did you guys sleep well last night? How was the flight from Boston?" Ryan asked from miles away.

"Get on with it Ryan. I don't think Sleep and Flights are on the agenda." Emile replied and his voice was tight.

"What's the matter, Emile? You don't like our plans?" Ryan heard the hardness in Emile's voice. He did not anticipate that Emile would be a difficult one to convince. "Haven't you figured out how much your shares will worth?" Ryan threw the bait up high, expecting Emile would catch on.

"It can worth multi-millions or nothing, that I know," Emile's voice was now cold as ice. He would not be fooled by the bait. The plan just did not make sense.

"Spill, Emile. What's wrong with our plan?" Marcus finally joined the conversation.

"It is too risky. I looked at the recent acquisitions in the market and some of the competitive technologies out there. It does not make sense for us to create new products. That space is already very crowded and it is not our core competence. But we now have clients lining up for our consulting services and we are good at it. Our technology in that space is top notched. That's where we should put our bets." Emile tried hard to lay out all the facts, to win the battle.

"But you know the return on investment for these two options differs drastically. If we get acquired by Venus Inc. with new products, all three of us can retire in the Caribbean. Whereas betting on the consulting services will only generate us good income." Marcus countered.

"Look, Emile. I want a big return on my investment. I don't want tiny bit of cash flowing into my bank account every month. I want trophies." Ryan was obviously running out of patience. "Now go and execute our plan. Meeting adjourned." With a click, the line went dead.

Emile clenched his teeth and then huffed out a frustrated breath of air. He covered his face with both of his hands. He could not believe greed could make a smart person so dumb.

Marcus walked to Emile and patted on his shoulder. They had been working together for the last six years. He had never seen Emile so frustrated. Emile was well known with his ability to remain calm even during the most catastrophic crisis.

"Worried about Mason?" Marcus cautiously suggested.

"Hah! You remember Mason?" Emile glared at Marcus. Emile and Mason had forged a special kind of friendship over the last ten years. They may not be friends outside the building, but they watched out for each other in the office. "But apart from that, the plan just does not make sense, Marcus! You know it." Emile continued.

"Come on, Emile. I am not a heartless person. You know me. But it is my job to manage this company for the investors' benefits. Ryan holds the stakes," Marcus retorted.