He spent a few minutes sitting alone until the bartender came over to clean up. Elliot went up to his office on the third floor of the building, back to work, but numb. Over the next few days, what Samira had said would gradually sink in, slowing registering in his mind, Elliot wondered if she was right. He had reclaimed his billions and built himself back up after everything that happened with his family. Was Samira right when she said that none of that mattered anyway? Billions or broke, forbidden or accepted, it was not up to anyone but them. Elliot sat through meetings and went through the motions of being a professional businessman, but nothing that happened during the rest of the week compared to the thoughts playing out in his mind.
Samira had been right.
Elliot began to plan his approach. It all started with a single text to his attorney, asking her to begin liquidating some assets.
Chapter Three
It took Samira a week to calm down after seeing Elliot. At first, she had been furious that he had been so close but stayed away from her because of her father. Then she had been furious with herself for caring so much even though he had abandoned her at her father’s order once already. She never knew why Elliot disappeared; she figured it was due to his father’s crimes and the disgrace that they brought, or maybe it was from the shame of losing everything that he had. Now that Elliot had rebuilt himself from scratch, now that he admitted his father’s actions held no weight over him, Samira had finally realized the reason that Elliot had vanished.
Her father had always been protective, he had always been there to make sure that any potential suitor was worthy. There had never been a single suitor that held up to John Foster’s standards of what his daughter deserved. Maybe a foreign prince or a hero come back from the war would have been enough, but those were not exactly commonplace, which may have been the point. John Foster was convinced that money was not enough to marry his daughter; her husband would have status, honor, and pull of his own outside of the fact that he married Samira Foster. In her mind, Samira was convinced that her father never considered what she wanted, just what was best for her success.
Once she had finally calmed down enough to be able to focus at work, Samira began to worry. Three of her shareholders had sales of their stock pending. The phone had been in her hand since she saw that first notification. Clark Bright was the first she reached out to, as he was the first to put his share in for sale. Clark only owned a three-percent share of Foster Acquisitions, but if he was pulling fully away from Samira’s company, then she would also lose one of her father’s oldest clients. His personal assistant said that he was currently in a meeting and unable to talk at this moment. Regardless of what Clark’s assistant told her, Samira called the personal number she had for Clark’s cell phone and left a message requesting a call back immediately.
Clark must’ve been truly busy, because it took him a few minutes to text out his reply: Ms. Foster, sorry that I couldn’t answer. I can only assume you are calling because of the sale order that was pushed through this morning. I must insist that it is nothing personal, I am not stepping away from Foster Acquisitions. I will keep all of my assets involved with your company. A generous offer was made and I would be a fool to let it pass me by. I know you understand how these things work. I cannot divulge who put in the offer at this time, but it will be made public when the sale goes through this evening.
One down, two to go. Samira was relieved to learn that Bright Technologies would not be leaving her fold all together; that would’ve been a bigger hit than they could manage at this time. The second person she reached out to was Susanna Hadley, who was the current CEO of Hadley Pharmaceutical and owned eight percent of Foster Acquisitions, but was not at all invested in Foster’s success beyond her stake in the shares. Susanna was available to talk, but Samira knew that they wouldn’t be able to dive right into the heart of the matter. That wasn’t Susanna’s style; she ran everything to her specifications, conversations and companies alike. “Thank you for your call, Ms. Foster, I was actually thinking of reaching out.”
“Why is that, Mrs. Hadley?”
“I know you heard about the trip that Mark and I took out to the Pacific Northwest, to get a break from everything that has been going on lately.” Susanna paused but picked up again when Samira didn’t comment. “When we were there, we went on this dreadful hike — the guide said that it wouldn’t be that difficult, but I’ll let you know, it was difficult. We’ve hiked before, you know, but that was atrocious. If you ever go out that way, don’t hike Mailbox Peak.”
“I’ll be sure to keep that in mind. Did you do anything else interesting out there?”
Susanna’s smile could be heard through the phone. “We did. We stopped by a shelter and picked up a pup, chocolate lab I believe. We named his Horace and he’s been an absolute menace to Jasper. Can you believe that? I don’t think that Jasper’s even done anything.”
Samira would never admit that she had no idea who Jasper was, but she let it flow anyway. “How is Jasper handling that?”
“Not well, but I digress… I was going to call you about that, but you were probably calling about something else.”
Finally, Samira thought to herself before saying, “I am happy to just chat if you want, but I was calling regarding your recent…trading decisions. Is there something that I’m doing wrong? I just want to make sure that it isn’t something we could fix before you walk away.”
“Look, Ms. Foster, I have stood by your father’s company through all of the financial trouble that we went through in 2008 and the few years after where everything was uncertain. I bought in at two thousand a share, which everyone thought was too high. However, prices are currently sitting at four thousand and I got an extremely fair offer. I wouldn’t be selling out if it wasn’t the offer of a lifetime.”
Even though Susanna couldn’t see her through the phone, Samira knew she could feel the scowl developing on Samira’s face. Susanna continued, “Before you ask, as per the buyer’s request, I cannot divulge any information about the deal. You’re going to have to wait until the deal closes tonight and the information goes public.”
Samira sighed. “Is there anything I can do to keep you on board here? You’ve offered a unique insight to how we should do things.”
Susanna suppressed a laugh. “Sorry, Ms. Foster, but I’m a little busy with my own child over here at Hadley Pharma. I’m glad you appreciated my input, and if you ever need advice, I’m sure we could set up a meeting to talk things over, but it would be purely as a consultant. Right now, I just don’t have the time to maintain all of the irons I’ve put in the fire. To be honest, I was drowning, and I didn’t even recognize it until he came by and made the offer.”
She had been waiting for a slip-up and as soon as Susanna gave her something, Samira hopped on it. “He?”
Susanna cleared her throat, and that was all that Samira got from the slip-up. It had been a single person, a man nonetheless, that made the offer. “They came by and made the offer. I look forward to talking to you again, Ms. Foster, but I have to run to a meeting in fifteen. Have a good day.”
“I hope you have a good day as well, Mrs. Hadley.”
The last shareholder selling out only held two percent, which was below the minimum for having any real pull within the company. Normally, Samira would not have batted her eyes at the trade, but after Mr. Bright and Mrs. Hadley sold out their shares, Samira felt like her company was sinking. However, after she talked to both of the other soon-to-be former shareholders, Samira was feeling more comfortable with how they were sitting. The only sinking feeling she had was that one person or company had bought up all three stakes. Unfortunately, the last shareholder was unavailable to talk, and Samira got the impression that they were trying to cut ties with her company to keep the sale as orderly as possible.
Five o’clock came as slow as could be. Samira left the office halfway through the day, under the guise of making preparations for the charity auction Foster Acquisitions
was hosting tonight, but in truth she wandered the city for a few hours trying to pass the time. At four thirty, she was back behind her desk, watching the minutes pass and waiting for the daily report, which was normally not this interesting or anticipated. When the report finally did come through, Samira had been so lost in anticipation that it took her a minute to collect her thoughts and open it up to find who had become the newest shareholder in Foster Acquisitions.
She scrolled through the usual data: the current standings, the recent acquisitions, old business and projects that would be starting soon. There was a two-page installment about the plan to revitalize Exotic Antiques, hoping to bolster the falling price of that business’s stock before Samira had to pull out of the company all together. The last page of the daily report, which was only included in the copy sent out to Samira and a few other key individuals, listed the shareholders and their percentage. As expected, a single new entry was listed: Elliot Dowling, Dowling Holdings, 13%
With a blank expression on her face, Samira’s eyes fixed on his name, wondering what kind of joke this was supposed to be. She had gone to him with the intention of rekindling whatever flame was left from when they were younger, but he had no intention of getting back together; he had pushed her away due to fear of her father. Now he was the fourth largest holder in stock of Foster Acquisitions.
If this was some kind of game, if Elliot was trying to remind Samira to stay away, she could play such games as well. With a few quick strokes at her keyboard, Samira ordered up a welcome package to be sent to Mr. Dowling, as well as adding him to the guest list for the charity auction that was set to start in a few hours.
To Samira’s surprise, no sooner than she had hit send and closed down her computer for the evening, she received an alert on her phone. Elliot Dowling had confirmed the RSVP to the charity auction with a plus one. If that was the game, then Samira would be just as in as Elliot was. If he was going to show up with a plus one to her auction, then she would make sure that there was no chance any girl he could bring would outshine her.
Chapter Four
The driver pulled up to the curb in front of Foster Acquisitions. Elliot took a deep breath before stepping out of the car. He knew that he would be able to slip through the crowd without issue, but there was still the fear in the back of his mind that someone would recognize him, or at least recognize that he did not belong here. Elliot was dressed the part, in a fine suit he’d picked out this afternoon, but even with the suit and the fresh haircut, he still felt too rough for the crowd he was about to step through. He had told Samira that his father’s actions did not weigh on his conscience, but he had not mentioned that his own actions weighed heavily.
It was a charity auction, but most of those in attendance couldn’t care less for charity. They were here as a show of their power, their status, and their financial reach. At the drop of a hat, they would throw millions at a piece of trash and call it art. They would drop those millions toward a cause they knew nothing about and cared little for, but they would be called generous and philanthropic. In the basest sense, their money would go to a good cause, but Elliot wondered if that would outweigh the reason behind the donation. It was a game of status and tax breaks, and he feared the sharks would pick him out for the blood dripping from his wallet.
Elliot steeled his mind into simple and solitary thoughts as he walked around the car to open the door for his attorney and plus one, Emma Augustine. As she stepped out of the car, he found it easier to center his mind around their purpose here. If there was anything to keep the sharks away, it would be her. She was dressed in a sleeveless and slender green dress with an emerald necklace that matched his tie and cufflinks. With her arm in his, Elliot led them through the small crowd outside the doors without a second glance from anyone around them. No eyes lingered on Elliot, though he noticed that a few lingered long on Ms. Augustine as they waited for the doorman to verify their names on the list.
She was more than arm candy or something pretty to look at; Ms. Augustine was a shark that bit well above her weight class. Born into this life, she had fought for every single client she had with the exception of Elliot, who hired her on without her ever meeting him. A master of conversation and directing the flow, Ms. Augustine could effortlessly turn a five-second meet and greet into a planned lunch for the following Monday to go over partnership potential and potential profits.
Once inside, Elliot grabbed a drink for each of them from a passing waiter. Ms. Augustine did not drink hers, so when they were making their way through the third row of items up for auction and Elliot had finished his drink already, they switched glasses. It was hard to find interest in the items for sale; they were all extremely modern pieces of art. There were no classics among them, but everyone fawned over the minimalist pieces as if they were the truly original works of a master craftsman. Maybe it was just Elliot’s taste, but when coupled with the kind of people that were wandering around the auction, he couldn’t help but feel like it was all a facade just to make the rich and powerful feel better about themselves. Samira’s father had been that kind of a man and to this day, Elliot still got a bad taste in his mouth when he thought of John Foster.
Even if the causes that the terrible art championed were noble, Elliot had a hard time finding them interesting at all. There were charities concerned with building wells in third world countries, others with building shelters in major cities to ease the plague of the large homeless populations. There were at least two different charities looking for funding to help create sustainable energy practices that would be cost effective to install in hard to reach locales. Most of the charities were focused on setting up support groups for the victims of natural disasters and tragedies of all kinds, as well as those who were the victims of tragic crimes. There were even charities solely focused on technologies that no one thought we needed yet, but Elliot glossed over those vague charities without thought.
Beyond just being a distraction to keep people away from looking too closely at Elliot, Ms. Augustine was there to remind him of the official reason he attended. For her, it was all about the money, the investment, and the public perception. As a new shareholder, Elliot had to either immediately distance himself from the company to allow a grace period before he appeared as a supporter of Foster Acquisitions, or he could dive right in. Elliot had insisted on diving right in, and when he filled Ms. Augustine in on his past with Samira, she was hesitant.
As they looked upon a charcoal and wax painting of a wolf mid-leap, Ms. Augustine broke the silence. “I would have liked to have known of your relationship with Ms. Foster before we started the purchasing process.”
Elliot leaned into the painting, noticing flaws instead of finding beauty. “If I had told you, would you have acted as quickly? I was on a timetable.”
“To get the shares? They weren’t looking to sell before you came along. Why did you need to hurry?”
The charcoal and wax wolf had a starting bid of a few hundred thousand dollars. Elliot shook his head both at the price and at what Ms. Augustine said as he moved on from the wolf. “It is done now, let’s move on.”
“Only if you pick something to buy.” Ms. Augustine stopped at the next piece. It was a copper and wire outline of the world that spanned about five inches in diameter, and at the center there was a diamond suspended. The light caught the diamond and reflected beautifully around the copper. “If you wanted to dive into your support of Foster Acquisitions, then you’re going to have to do more than just wander around the event. They will see it poorly, a lukewarm reception or an unimpressed shut-in trying out the real world.”
Elliot shrugged and tapped at the tablet set on a podium in front of the copper world. “If that’s all I have to do.”
Ms. Augustine clenched her jaw as she watched Elliot key in his bid on the copper world. It was well over the starting bid, by at least sixty percent. She relaxed her jaw, but Elliot could tell she had to fight with herself to not say something as he put exorbita
nt bids in on the next four items they walked past, and then every other one after that until they reached the end of the rows. In total, Elliot ended up bidding on ten items out of the forty at the auction. By the end, Ms. Augustine was hoping that he did not win the bid on a single one.
While they stood next to a refreshment table, Elliot felt someone looking at him. No one on the auction floor was looking his way, not even the waiter that had just set a drink down in front of him. Elliot looked up and found his watcher standing on the edge of a balcony, looking down on him. Samira was dressed in a black evening gown. Even from where he stood below and across the auction floor, Elliot could not help but marvel at her beauty.
It was the way the slit on the floor-length dress rode up her left leg, revealing her tan skin and heels that matched her dress, the way that her right shoulder was bare to the world due to the single sleeve going over her left side. He could not make out the design from where he was, but there was a swirling pattern to her flesh just inside her right shoulder, perhaps a tattoo? It was hard to tell from this distance; it might’ve even been a layer of lace. The way her eyes pierced the distance between them, burning with curiosity; the way her mouth was set in a soft smile that she was trying to hide; the way her head tilted slightly with the music, even if she wasn’t aware of it.
Samira truly was the angel on high that everyone sought after. She was the prize that all men strove to win. She was the gem at the center of the universe and, despite the fact that anyone and everyone else might be longing for her, Elliot wanted her more. Elliot wanted every part of her, and he felt his heart lurch forward as her smile lessened when she noticed him looking back at her. No matter what happened next, Elliot knew this was why he was here. He took a step and disappeared into the crowd.
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