It was only a matter of time before the Gilt Rat’s and Ramon had become aware of what had become of the department store. News like that didn’t stay hidden for long, especially when it involved a large property changing hands and one of the more visible families in the city being involved.
Once again Ramon was outside his large manor sitting at the fire pit while Skully was not too far from him enjoying a smoke. The setting was calm, controlled, nothing about it reflected the irritation that was building beneath the surface.
"I told you." Skully said. "You should have just sent me to that department store to deal with them.
"I would have gotten rid of them, and then they wouldn’t have been even brave enough to buy that store."
Although Ramon was furious he had taken several deep breaths to calm down. Losing his temper now would achieve nothing. The mistake had already been made, and what mattered was how to respond.
"You’re right, I’ve been quite wrong about this one. We had been dealing with idiots with no tools to deal with the situation at hand that I didn’t think they would be doing this." Ramon said.
Up until now, most of the resistance they had encountered had folded under pressure. Businesses disrupted, owners panicked, assets acquired cheaply. The Billion Bloodline group had broken that pattern.
"They’re only doing it because they’re confident they can fight against us." Skully replied. "That’s what happens when they fight against the Black Hounds who don’t do their job properly, we have let them get away with things again and again and now they think they can walk over us."
Although Ramon partly agreed with the comment from Skully he didn’t fully. Because in the end, Ramon had already decided to deal with the Billion Bloodline group.
He wasn’t going to let them get away with what they had done so far.
It was just there was an importance of issues to deal with. When Ramon dealt with something he wanted to put 100 percent focus on one part. Splitting attention meant mistakes, and mistakes meant weakness.
The research for the Exoskeleton’s was complete. The issue now was needing more financing to be able to mass produce and manufacture exoskeletons for their syndicate, and then they were ready to take on those that received the invitation.
The power balance was shifting, and Ramon had no intention of being seen as inferior.
"And Ramon wouldn’t be seen as an inferior."
He had built the Gilt Rat’s reputation carefully, layer by layer, not just through violence but through calculated expansion. The exoskeleton program was meant to be the next step, something that would elevate them beyond ordinary gangs and into something closer to a private army.
"So we doing this?" Skully asked.
"We are, but there’s one thing I need to sort out before all of that." Ramon commented. "Just inform the Black Hounds that we will be ready to move soon."
He wasn’t going to rush into retaliation blindly. The Billion Bloodline group would be dealt with, but not at the expense of the larger plan.
Meanwhile, Bobo was getting the money and was ready to move it after promising her mother.
The only thing she had asked was if she could have a day to send it, because she knew two important meetings were coming up. The timing wasn’t ideal, but if she handled it correctly, she could stabilise her position before releasing such a large sum.
What she was hoping was to secure enough funding for at least one of her projects to make it out to market, and then they could use the money earned to continue to support the business. Once one product succeeded, investor confidence would rise, and raising capital in the future would become easier.
If she didn’t get the funding she needed today with the talks she had then it would be hard for her to let go of the money to her mother. Even though she had agreed, seeing 400 million leave her control without backup funding would feel reckless.
The good news was that the first part of her talks had gone rather well, and now she just needed the second to go well.
In her office there were two men dressed in suits, one older with greyish hair. They had the look of seasoned negotiators, the type that didn’t rush decisions but had already calculated their position before sitting down.
"It’s nice to meet you, we are nearly there but there are some conditions we would like to add, and we would like to know if you are open to them." One of the two men said.
Bobo kept her expression calm. Conditions were expected. Large investments never came without strings attached.
"We are happy to take 10 percent of the company shares, for an investment of 100 million, but we would like two things. We would like at least half of this funding to go to your Biotech Immune diseases department.
"And we would also like you to personally match the same commitment to the department. We are aware you have invested quite a bit.
"But your company still hasn’t brought one product out to the table. We believe out of all of the departments, this is the closest and most likely profitable.
"In order to know that your commitment is also there we would like you to fund more in the department."
After giving her mother 400 million, she would have left 270 million. From what they were asking she would invest a further fifty million of her own funds, in order to gain a 100 million.
It didn’t seem like a bad deal to her, but the percentage was slightly higher than she would have wished.
’There aren’t many investors these days due to the economy.’ Bobo thought.
’Even with selling off all parts of the company, I will still be the majority shareholder in the company, and will still have more than those that are on the board of the company as well.’
She had structured it carefully from the beginning. Even after dilution, control would remain with her.
’I guess for now I will just have to accept it, since I can’t be using much of my own money any more, as I have to help my mom.’
The calculation was simple. Secure funding now, stabilise operations, then transfer the 400 million.
"It looks like we have a deal." Bobo said with a smile.
After standing up, the man shook hands with her.
"The Rum Organisation look forward to working with you." The man claimed.
The name hung in the air, subtle but deliberate, and Bobo didn’t yet realise how connected everything around her had just become.