“Yes. What’s happened?” she asked, jumping up. “Is it Chase?”
“I don’t know, ma’am. All I know is some lady, a very persuasive lady, told me I had to drive over here in my truck and let you talk to her on my CB.”
Kate blinked up at him confused.
“She’s out there, on the CB, waiting,” he said. “If you wouldn’t mind…I’d like to get home to my own family.”
“Of course,” she said. “Lead the way.”
The man led her out to a dented semi that idled unsteadily on the uneven road. Kate lifted herself up into the cab. The driver reached over her and pointed. “That’s it right there,” he said. Just pick it up and hit the side button.”
Kate reached in and did as he said. “Hello?” she asked.
“You should say ‘over’,” came back Lindsey’s voice.
“What? Lindsey? How did you find me here?”
“Wasn’t easy. Cell towers are out. Phones are out. Internet is out. What a mess. Then, just when I thought there was no way to reach you, I thought of CBs. That’s how I found Dan.”
“Dan?”
“The trucker. You okay, Pipes?”
“Yes, thank God. Chase and I had a tornado shelter. We were lucky. Some of the other people here,” she said as she shook her head. “Maybe not so much.”
There was a pause. “Listen, Pipes, I hate to pile on, but I think we’ve got a big, big problem.”
Kate felt the blood drain from her face. “What?”
“Well, when I was doing research on Ms. Oklahoma and that photographer, I thought I’d go back to the Gala and see if he had any credits there, see if I could tie together some of his other work. I stumbled on some photos of Kenji Kai.”
“The Investment Banker?”
“Well, that’s just it. He’s based in Japan, so I had trouble linking him to any social media or companies there. Their Internet can be totally different, so I put that on the back burner and built a couple of filters to try to pull info. Today, I got a hit.” Lindsey paused again.
“Just say it, Lindz. What is it?”
“According to what I’ve found, he hasn’t always been an investment banker. In fact, I couldn’t find anything saying he was ever an investment banker. He’s a corporate raider.”
Kate sat up in the cab of the truck and found herself gripping the wheel.
“What?”
“Seems his specialty is buying and dismantling companies and selling them for their parts. He keeps the name, but takes over all their operations.”
Kate took a breath. “What about manufacturing, Lindsey? Does he manufacture goods?”
She heard Lindsey typing. “Hold, please.” Lindsey said. Then, “Yes, his other companies manufacture goods all over Asia. What are you thinking, Pipes? I hear the wheels turning.”
There was a long pause, then Kate gripped the CB. “Is the internet down in Tulsa?”
“No. I don’t think the storm went that far.”
“Okay. I’m going to send you some stuff. I need you to put something together for me. Fast.”
“You got it.”
“You’re a life saver, Lindsey.”
“Shucks, I know. Over.”
Kate smiled and hung the CB back in its cradle. She thanked the driver and ran into the gym.
“Sallie! Sallie! Where is Bo?”
“He just got back. What’s going on?”
Kate turned and saw him. “Is Chase with you?”
Bo frowned. “He went to KinCo with the family and that Japanese dude. What’s wrong?”
“Any of those fast cars still working?”
Bo pulled his hat off his head as he ran his fingers through his hair. “Yup.”
“I need you to drive me to Tulsa.”
“Hold on, now,” she heard Sallie say.
Kate turned to her. “Sallie, I would never ask, except, if I’m right—these people aren’t just going to lose their houses. They are going to lose their jobs and this town. I have to get to Tulsa.”
Sallie put her hands on her hips. “Bo? What do you think?”
“Chase in trouble?”
“Yes.”
“Then, yup. I’ll get the car. Meet you out front.” He scooped up Sallie, kissing her on the mouth. “Okay, hun?”
She nodded, “You’ll get back here soon as you can. I know that.”
Bo released Sallie and she watched him walk out the door.
Kate spoke. “Sallie, I know I’m asking a lot. I wouldn’t ask if—.”
“Stop right there,” said Sallie. “Any fool can see you love Chase. I know what it’s like to love a man, lord knows I do. You go do what you have to do.”
Kate felt a rush of gratitude. “Thanks, Sallie.”
Kate turned to Tommy, who was sitting on a cot, looking at photos he had taken since the storm. “Hey, Tommy,” she said. “How would you like to get your first photo credit?”
She saw Tommy’s eyes light up. “What do you mean?”
“I’d like to buy your photos.”
“Really?”
“Yup. But I need you to trust me to pick out the ones I need from your stash. Would you let me borrow your flash drives until tomorrow?”
She watched as Tommy clutched at a box sitting beside him, taking her in with a calculated stare. He loosened his grip. “Okay,” he said. “But be careful.”
Kate reached down beside him and took the box. “I will, I promise.”
Kate ran for the door and waited outside for Bo. He came tearing around the corner in a sleek red corvette. Kate opened the passenger door and plunged down into the seat. “It’s so close to the ground,” she said, reaching back for the seatbelt.
“Yup,” replied Bo, turning to her. “Fast, right?” he asked.
“Fast as you can,” Kate replied, taking a breath and gripping the side of her seatbelt.
Bo revved the engine twice then peeled out. They flew through the streets towards Tulsa, passing the devastation of the tornado along the way. Emergency vehicles passed them going the opposite way, and as the streets and buildings flew by, Kate tried to align her thoughts.
If her suspicions were correct, KinCo was in major trouble. If she was wrong, her own career would be over. She could lose all her clients in Boston, and her second chance would be over. But Chase was in trouble—she had to help him.
An hour later, she and Bo screeched to a halt in front of the Governor’s Mansion. Kate asked Bo to wait outside and rushed into the building. A woman in a dark suit looked her over with wide eyes. Kate realized she must still be covered in dirt, and ran her hands once over her clothes. “Kate Piper for the Governor,” she said, straightening her back.
The woman let out an incredulous little laugh. “Ms.—I’m sorry, who are you again?”
“Kate Piper. It’s an emergency.”
“Look around, Ms. Piper,” the lady said, gesturing at the dozens of people running in and out of offices and up the stairs. “I’m not sure if you’re aware, but it’s a day full of emergencies around here. I can leave the Governor your name.”
Kate shook her head. “That won’t work,” she said. Across the lobby she saw the doors to a large conference room open and just inside, the Governors head towered above the rest. “Mr. Governor!” Kate called out. “Mr. Governor!”
Kate saw the Governor turn his head. She thought she saw some recognition in his eyes, but then he turned away. Kate rushed to the door. As security grabbed her arm, she called out, “Mr. Governor, your jobs initiative is in trouble!”
The Governor turned back and looked at her with a scowl.
“Kate Piper,” Kate said. “We met at your Gala. I’m with KinCo.”
The governor put down his paper and walked towards her, waving for the security officers to let go of her arms. “Ms. Piper,” the Governor said. “I’m sure we all have our fair share of problems today, but my State is a dumpster fire right now. I’m sure we can get you on the calendar in the coming weeks, but today I can
not help you.”
“Mr. Governor, if I don’t speak with you right now, I believe,” she took in a breath. “I believe you will lose all the KinCo jobs in your state and the jobs you’ve promised your constituents from the KinCo expansion. If my math is right, that’s fifteen percent of the jobs in Oklahoma.”
She saw the Governor’s eyes grow wide. “You can’t be serious.”
“I am,” said Kate. “And I need your help to stop it. Right now.”
Chapter 28: Chase
The Kincaid family huddled in the corner of the conference room under flickering, generated lights. Flying over the decimated remnants of what was their town and their company had left Chase with a hollow pit in his stomach. The earth from the family compound to company headquarters looked like the curling, decaying remnants of a peeled orange, the ground turned up and dropped in piles everywhere. The buildings around the company were shredded at the edges, but mostly intact. Cal estimated about twenty percent of their manufacturing capacity was gone. Even worse, all the roads going in and out of KinCo were destroyed. They would not be able to get the materials in to rebuild for some time.
“I think we should take the deal,” said Peggy.
“I don’t know. This is too fast,” said Rose. “Cal, what do you think?”
“Well, my daddy always said not to make any major decision from a position of weakness. I don’t know about you all, but I’m feeling pretty damned weak, right now.”
They all nodded in gritty silence.
“Chase?” asked Rose.
Chase shook his head. “We have a responsibility, here,” he said. “What about our employees? If we can’t rebuild for a year, what about those jobs?” He clenched his teeth. “If Kai says he can transfer some of that load to his facilities for a year, maybe we should take him up on it.”
“And go through with the IPO now?” asked Rose.
“You can’t blame them for wanting that,” Peggy said. “After all, it’s that or nothing. They were clear. If they make an investment in our manufacturing and distribution, they want that IPO signed to protect their interests. Makes sense.”
Chase looked over at Kai and his team, huddled in the other corner. Donna Ogrodnick gave Chase a stern nod. “I don’t know,” said Chase. “I’d feel a lot more comfortable if I could run this by Kate, first.”
“Kate?” Peggy scoffed. “What the hell for? What does she know about corporate finance? Or IPOs, for that matter? She might know how to ping somebody or twitterpate, or whatever, but this is my area of expertise, let’s not forget.” She nodded in affirmation. “And I say do it.”
“Peggy,” Rose said. “Kate has saved our bacon. Don’t forget that. We would have been toast if she hadn’t been here this last month.”
Cal took Chase’s arm and pulled him to the side. “Son,” he said, “Kate’s gone.”
“What?” Chase asked. “What do you mean gone?”
Cal looped his fingers through his pants. “IPO is over, Chase. Her job is done. And she’s got that new job waiting for her in Boston.”
“What new job?”
“She didn’t say? Well, you can’t blame her, I guess. Lou Tarly has set up a whole group of new clients for her. Keeping her on retainer. Pretty good gig for Kate, from what I hear.”
Chase felt the wind go out of him. He steadied himself against a table. “No, she didn’t tell me.”
“Look, son,” Cal said, placing a beefy hand on Chase’s shoulder. “I’m not a blind man. Or an idiot. I can see you’ve got feelings for that girl. But you’ll have to deal with that later. Listen, this is your moment. This is your time to take over the company and make it your own, sad as it is.” Cal looked around the room. “I know these are not the ideal circumstances, but I know you, and you love a challenge. Take your turn, son.”
Chase nodded. He couldn’t believe Kate wouldn’t tell him about the new job. No wonder she had been so reticent to talk about staying, or her feelings. He put his hand to his chest. He believed Kate might love him back, but he would deal with that later. Right now, he had a company to save. He stood and addressed the room. “Alright, everyone. I think we have some papers to sign. Let’s do this.”
Chapter 29: Kate
As the Governor’s helicopter landed on the battered roof of KinCo with a shudder, Kate finished reviewing the file Lindsey had sent her. She shut the laptop with a tiny click and a prayer she was not wrong about all of this. Before the blades could come to a stop, Kate jumped out of the copter, and bending down, ran towards the door.
She bolted up to the conference room and burst through the door just as Chase’s hand was poised over a document. “Stop!” she yelled.
Chase looked up at her, and she could see relief and confusion flood his face. “Kate?” he asked in disbelief. “What are you doing here?”
Kate put her hand to her chest and struggled to catch her breath. “You can’t sign those papers,” she gasped.
Chase looked down at the papers and back to her, a deep furrow creasing his brow.
Donna Ogrodnick popped up in the corner. “Really, Peggy,” she said, “you’re going to let this girl run rough-shod over your meeting?”
Peggy lurched forward. “What are you doing, Kate?” She hissed. “Get out of here.”
“Now hold on a minute,” said Rose. “I’d like to hear what Kate has to say.”
Kate put her laptop down on the conference table and took a breath. She looked at Chase. Their eyes locked, and she knew she was doing the right thing. “I need to speak to the family privately,” she said.
Kenji Kai stood and straightened his suit. “This is very unorthodox,” he said. “This is giving me too many pause. I think sign now or we leave.”
Peggy put her hands on the table. “For Christ’s sake, Chase. Sign the papers.”
Chase searched Kate’s eyes and Kate felt a string form between them. “What is it, Kate? Just say it.”
Kate took a deep breath. It was all or nothing. “I don’t believe that this IPO is going forward in good faith,” she said. “I believe Kenji Kai is planning to take over the company so he can steal the KinCo brand name and move the manufacturing to Asia.”
Cal and Rose both stood in unison. “What?” Cal bellowed. “Kai―is this true?”
“That’s character assassination, Kate.” Donna said from the other side of the table. “Even you know better than that. You must have proof to make an accusation like that. Do you?” Donna asked. “Do you have proof, Kate?”
Kate glared back at Donna. “I think the facts speak for themselves,” Kate said. “A strange rash of PR nightmares seems to suddenly befall this company after decades of absolutely nothing. I thought that was strange, but if somebody was trying to tank the launch, they would have hit harder. Then I realized that wasn’t the goal. You wanted the launch to happen, then you were going to set all of these PR blunders you’ve created ablaze and crater the stock price post-launch. The family would see all their assets and life work crumble right before their eyes. For Kai to get controlling interest of the company, you would only need to convince one family member to sell before it was too late.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Kate,” Cal said. “That can’t be true. Nobody here would ever sell their stake in the company.” Kate watched as Rose reached out her hand and put it on Cal’s arm. Cal looked down, then dropped his head. When he raised it again, he looked over at Peggy.
Peggy sat in the corner, her face alight with anxiety. Her eyes darted from Chase to Cal then settled on Donna Ogrodnick. “Donna, are you setting me up?” Anger and hurt lined her face. “You were setting me up this whole time?”
“Don’t be silly,” said Donna. “These are all lies. I told you Kate Piper was a train-wreck. I told you she would come into your company, ingratiate herself with the men,” she said, sneering at Chase, “and then destroy everything. That’s what she does.”
Chase turned to Donna. “Shut up, Ogrodnick. Kate’s worth ten of you.”
&nb
sp; Several voices started talking at once; Rose was admonishing Peggy, Cal was speaking to Chase, and Kai’s whole team began whispering. Kai stood and buttoned his jacket. “Enough!” he bellowed.
Everyone in the room turned and looked at him. “So, here we are,” he said. “No difference. Same plan.” He turned to Chase. “You sign the papers.”
“The hell I will,” said Chase.
“You will sign,” Kai said, “or we will destroy your reputation. Your brand will crumble. You think all we have is a couple photos? A tweet?” he laughed. “No, if you don’t sign, we go ahead, anyway. We will release everything. You will not recover.”
“That’s not true,” said Kate. “I have a plan.”
The conference room doors swung open and in walked the Governor. “Am I too late to the party?” he asked, turning to Kate.
“Just in time, sir.” Kate turned towards Chase and the rest of the family. “I explained to the Governor that if Kai and Ogrodnick succeeded, lots of Oklahoma jobs would be lost. So he has graciously agreed to co-sponsor a rebuilding initiative. He will put emphasis on rebuilding the roads around KinCo first, if KinCo agrees to keep jobs alive in Oklahoma.” She watched as the Governor nodded his assent. “Also, to combat whatever ineffectual propaganda Ogrodnick unleashes, I suggest we move aggressively to the public with the following message.” Kate propped up her laptop and pulled up a video. “Forgive the quality, it’s a rough draft I did on the way here. Of course, my voice will be replaced by a professionals.”
The family turned to see the screen. A video began with a picture of the KinCo headquarters and Kate’s narrative. “KinCo, an American Company for four generations. We believe in Oklahoma, we believe in America.” Then the video ran through pictures of the original Kincaid Mill, the first general store, Rose in her lab coat holding a beaker. Then she and Cal holding a baby. The photos showed black and white images of Peggy as a young woman racing her horse, and Chase racing his car, then his crash, and photos of the company picnics, and Chase busting down doors to help his neighbors after the tornado. The voice over continued, “KinCo believes in America, and they believe in their neighbors. We are committed to rebuilding after this storm, and are partnering with the Governor’s office to keep Oklahoma and America strong.”
Chasing Kate (An American Dream Love Story Book 1) Page 15