Page 42 of Cameron's Contract

“You just melted my mother’s heart. An accomplishment not to be taken lightly. She’s moving you to the Windsor Suite, for goodness sake. Let’s just take a moment to celebrate.” I waved my fist in triumph. “This might be as good as it gets. Let’s savor it.”

She relaxed a little. “It helps seeing your parents approve of me.”

“Well at least someone in this house has made the grade.” I tapped her arm. “Come on. We have work to do.”

I opened the door to the library and gestured for her to go on ahead, then I followed her in.

Shay and Henry rose to their feet to greet us.

Discreetly, I took a moment to check on Henry. After that dark reflection he’d just shared with us at lunch, I needed to know he was handling all this. His body language revealed he was holding up. His subconscious coping strategies had been effective. His playful banter with Shay was also a positive sign.

No matter how many times I told Henry how remarkable he was, it never seemed to sink in with him. Such was my brother’s nature.

“So, what’s the plan?” said Shay.

I strolled over to the central table, rifled through the drawer, and removed several permanent black markers. “We’re going to gather intelligence. Profile each individual on the board.”

“Find out their weak spot?” said Shay.

“Strengths, weakness, where they live, how many children they have, their interests, work history, affairs—”

“So we can blackmail them?” asked Shay.

I picked up one of the pens. “No, we play by the rules. That way after the vote we have re-secured their loyalty. We must shore up the foundation so this never happens again.” I strolled over to the far wall and pulled off the pen lid. “You’re going to bring me the information and I’m going to identify areas that will be used to sway the vote.”

“I’m not sure I know enough about business,” said Mia.

“Not a problem. Let’s bring youup to speed. We have ten board members. Their responsibility is to protect the shareholders assets and make sure the return on their investments are profitable. The board holds a great deal of power. They recommend stock splits, approve the finances, and have the power to promote a merger or acquisition. Change their mind and we change the vote.”

“Well that seems simple enough,” said Shay sarcastically.

“It’s all Mia needs to know for our purpose,” I said.

“So after we’ve gathered all this,” said Shay. “We call them?”

“Visit them.” I glanced at my watch.

“But what if we sway them this year and next year this happens again?” said Shay.

“Dad’s reassured me his old attorney put an addendum in place to prevent it happening again.”

“Old?” said Shay.

“As in just died.”

“Suspiciously?”

“Heart attack on the golf course.”

“Another good reason never to play golf,” said Henry.

“What’s the first reason?” asked Shay.

“I hate golf.”

Mia sat up. “What kind of addendum?”

“I’ve yet to find it,” I said.