Booking Glory-Chapter 98: The Missing Details

"Rob, I think what he said makes sense. Why don’t you want to sell this? If it was me, I would have signed this contract in a heartbeat," Dacey asked after perusing the contract Graham has left behind.

"I have confidence that the computer field will grow exponentially in the near future," Rob said softly massaging his brows.

"Even so, this is almost a million we are talking about here. If you want to invest in computers, you can sell this stock, get the money, and buy some cheaper stocks right?" Dacey asked in confusion.

"You are right. The reason I didn’t agree was that I wanted to hear what Brent has to say," Rob sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"You seem to trust him a lot," Dacey remarked.

"Dacey, Brent is the kind of guy who doesn’t have much ulterior thoughts. His thoughts are simple and he isn’t interested in schemes. He opened a computer company and almost mismanaged it because he wanted his friends to pursue their ideas. I had to beat some common sense into him to make him see that business is business and friendship is friendship. So, I trust him more than this Graham," Rob said with a small smile.

"I am not telling that I will only listen to Brent. I just want to hear what he wants to say. For him to stress that much that I don’t agree to any offers, there might really be something he must be privy to," Rob smiled softly at Dacey. "So, I am waiting to see the missing piece of the puzzle before committing to a course of action."

"What do you mean by missing piece of the puzzle?"

"The reason why Graham’s words were so effective is, what he said is the truth. Just not the full truth. This morning, when Brent’s uncle called me, he let it slip that some capital groups are interested in buying the shares of IndiSoft. But, is this Mr. Goldbloom the guy he was talking about?"

"I don’t think so. If my hunch is right, then there is another offer that is going to come soon. I think Brent might be the one who will be bringing that offer. That’s why he asked if I had sold my stocks and urged me not to make any deal until he comes," Rob smiled brightly.

"Brent may not have much common sense, but when it comes to computers, he is really a genius. He has a lot of connections in the industry. He might know some inside information that no one is normally privy to. How do you think I knew about IndiSoft’s product launch and decided to buy the stocks before it happened? It is because of Brent. So, I am willing to give Brent the benefit of doubt," Rob said chuckling softly.

"Whatever, the last discussion was enough to overwhelm me. I don’t think I was much help there. As for this one, I better sit this one out," Dacey grumbled a bit unhappily.

"I am afraid it is not possible," Rob said with a mischievous grin causing Dacey to look at him curiously. "Both Brent and his uncle are big fans of Dacey Surestone. You will have your hands full soon."

Dacey looked at him a little bewildered for a few moments before shaking her head and laughing softly.

"Come on, no one is going to pay me attention when talking about a million-dollar deal," Dacey shook her head softly. "I know my worth. I am not that interesting compared to million dollars."

"In some circles, you are," Rob said chuckling. "Wait and see. I am giving him five minutes before he asks for your autograph."

"Let’s see."

"Wanna bet?" Rob asked with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

"Sure, what do you want to bet?"

"Winner will get a kiss from the loser," Rob said smugly.

"I don’t see you losing anything. You just want to rub the fact that you are dating me in your friend’s face. Either way, you will be kissing me in front of him," Dacey chuckled seeing through Rob’s ruse.

"Spoilsport," Rob grumbled.

Just then, Rob saw Brent’s car pull up in the parking lot. Brent and his uncle got out of his car and walked towards the café in a hurried manner. They entered the café and saw them both sitting in the corner and hurried over.

"Rob, you didn’t agree to sell your stocks, did you?" Brent asked anxiously taking a seat in front of him.

"Not yet," Rob said gesturing to the contract that was on the table. "I am still mulling over it."

"Good," Mr. Walker took a seat beside Brent calmly and nodded at Rob. When his eyes fell on Dacey, his face lit up with a big smile. "I told you that he is more sensible and wouldn’t rush into stuff like you," he said patting Brent’s back.

"Who was it that asked me to drive fast after hearing that Rob was meeting with his stockbroker?" Brent snorted.

"I know Graham. I know how persuasive he can be. So, I was a little worried," Mr. Walker laughed it off. "Luckily, Rob remained sober and didn’t sign this contract."

Mr. Walker took the contract and started reading the terms. He paused briefly when he came to the amount specified and didn’t express much. He quickly perused the entire contract and put it down.

"Decent contract. Almost everything is as it should be. I can say that it is meticulously prepared and not created in a hurry," Mr. Walker commented looking up.

"But, it isn’t the right one?" Rob asked sharply.

"You are quite sharp. This contract is good. Even above average, but the terms of remuneration leaves much to be desired," Mr. Walker said with a small smile. "This is fine for ordinary stocks. But, IndiSoft’s stocks are a bit different. It is in high demand, so the price should be higher than this."

"But, Rob’s stockbroker said that this is the best that could be offered," Dacey said unable to help herself.

"I am afraid Miss Dacey, that is where Graham does his magic. If I am not wrong, he will use this contract to sell your stocks to an intermediary and then sell it to the real buyer for the real price. That way, he would rake in the difference and also enjoy the commission from Rob’s sale," Mr. Walker smiled softly.

"If Greyson Group of Companies is not the real buyer, then who is?" Rob asked the most pertinent question.

"Flower Capitals," Mr. Walker said succinctly shutting up Rob.

"Can you elaborate?" Dacey asked curiously.

"I can, but before that, I must say I am a big fan of your work. I even have one of your Original 500. It is a great pleasure to meet you," Mr. Walker said charmingly causing Dacey to be shocked and turn towards Rob.

Rob had a smug smile on his face.

"Yes, yes, me too. I am also a great fan of yours. I even have a large poster of you in my room. Can I get your autograph?" Brent said excitedly from the side.

Rob’s joy at winning the bet was marred by Brent’s admission that he had his girlfriend’s poster on his wall. Rob’s face blackened causing Dacey to laugh out loud.

"What happened? Why are you both looking at me like that?" Brent asked as he saw Rob’s hostile look and his uncle’s exasperated look.

"You, my nephew, need to learn some manners. There is a time and place to ask autograph. You are simply ruining Rob’s image in front of his girlfriend," Mr. Walker said shaking his head.

"You have my girlfriend’s poster on your wall?" Rob gritted his teeth and asked Brent in a sarcastic manner. "And you want me to give you a good look as well? Are you that retarded?" Rob gritted his teeth causing Dacey and Mr. Walker to laugh.

"I... Um... You know..."

"Save it, you better remove it before I come around next time," Rob said shaking his head.

"Umm.... It’s a really rare edition. I don’t want to ruin it," Brent said a little sheepishly.

"Brent!!!" Rob said a little exasperatedly.

"You stop it," Dacey said hushing Rob. "Don’t worry, you can leave it there. I will take care of him. If he gives you a hard time, let me know. I will deal with him," Dacey said sweetly to Brent causing Rob’s eyes to twitch.

"Am I your boyfriend or is he?" Rob asked rolling his eyes.

"You are, but he is my fan. So, he wins naturally," Dacey said shamelessly causing Brent to shoot Rob a smug look and Mr. Walker to chuckle.

"Fine, fine, let’s get back to the topic," Mr. Walker said after composing himself.

"Wait a minute," Rob stopped him and looked at Brent. "Order something. I think this will take some time. Let us all get comfortable first."

"Sure," Brent got up and called down a waiter.

Once the orders were placed and all of them were comfortable, Mr. Walker once more began.

"Let me tell this from the beginning. All this fuss about your stocks began after the congress introduced a bill yesterday afternoon," Mr. Walker began. "Have you gone through the bill?"

"No, I haven’t paid much attention to it. I just got to know the current stock price of IndiSoft. Even if I went through it, I wouldn’t understand the impact much. I don’t have the mind for it," Rob admitted simply.

"Then, I will give a brief summary," Mr. Walker said nodding. "This bill is aimed at aiding emerging technological industries like the computer industry, mobile industry, and a few others. There are lots of grants and provisions mentioned in the bill. Simply, the government will support the development of these industries on large scale."

Rob nodded as he got the gist of the bill.

"Now, as a result, these industries have a lot of interest from capital groups and they want to enter this industry as soon as possible to have a say in their development trend. It is your luck that IndiSoft is the only computer company that is making even a small profit," Mr. Walker said smiling a little.

"The only computer company?" Dacey asked surprised.

"The computer field is an emerging technology. It is still in its infancy. We aren’t focusing on profits right now. We are focusing on how to change the world," Brent said a little passionately.

"Whatever," Mr. Walker brushed off Brent’s speech and continued unfazed. "As you heard him say, most computer companies are tinkering in their garages not bothering about any profit model at this point. IndiSoft is the only one who has turned out even a small bit of profit."

"What this signifies is that the computer industry has potential. However, as it is right now, it wouldn’t have much of an impact in business circles. What these capital groups want to do is get in before others and occupy a strong position. They want to have a say in how this entire field is developed in the future," Mr. Walker explained calmly.

"They don’t know anything about computers. They are a bunch of vultures that come sniffing after money. They have never understood the power of computers," Brent grumbled from the side.

"Will you shut up for a bit?" Mr. Walker said a little exasperatedly at Brent and turned to Rob. "While these capital groups want to enter, they don’t want to make a bad bet either. No one knows which technology would rake in money. It is all guesswork at this moment. However, IndiSoft already has seen some profit. That means..."

"IndiSoft’s profit model is working," Rob said in realization and continued. "So, they want IndiSoft’s stocks as the first priority. As I have a large number of their stocks, I have a huge advantage."

"Exactly," Mr. Walker smiled happily. "It’s good that you understand the cards in your hands. The amount of stocks in your hands isn’t small. I think, you probably own around six to seven percent of the available stocks. This is a huge advantage for you during negotiation."

"Normally, when these capital groups buy in-demand stocks like yours, they will offer a premium rate based on the market prediction. I had around 500 stocks. I sold it for a premium price of $2 above the market price. But, your situation is different. You can sit and negotiate with these capital groups to get a more favorable rate," Mr. Walker said excitedly.

"But, Rob’s stockbroker said that he could only sell for market price," Dacey asked in confusion.

"Like I said, he wants to buy the stock in Rob’s hand first. Then, he will sit and negotiate with the capital group and sell it for a higher price. However, there is a huge risk in that as well. If the stock price falls, he will be stuck with the stock. Basically, it is a gamble," Mr. Walker explained leaning back.

"Do you think the price will fall?" Rob asked immediately.

"You can’t predict stuff like this. But, as per market analysis, I don’t think they will fall anytime soon," Mr. Walker shook his head.

"Then why did you sell your stocks?" Dacey asked curiously from the side.

"I don’t understand computers at all. I am at the age where learning anything new is taxing. Let alone an entirely new developing technology. I thought it best to sell it for a profit and invest it back in traditional stocks I know best," Mr. Walker shrugged nonchalantly.

"So, it is better to sell it now?" Rob asked thoughtfully.

"It depends on what you want to do. If you hold on to the stocks and they rise in the future, then you will gain big. But, if you sell it now, you have assured profit. It depends on how confident you are about this computer industry. Are you willing to gamble your chance to be a millionaire on the belief that the stock price will rise further?" Mr. Walker asked the most important question causing Rob to fall silent.

Even Dacey felt that this was a tricky thing. To her, the situation was simple. Just sell and become a millionaire overnight. But, she can see that Rob valued these stocks a bit much and was unwilling to sell them easily. In that case, it was really a huge decision to make.

"What do you think? Should I sell it?" Rob turned and asked Brent.

"I don’t know much about business. You better listen to my uncle when it comes to that," Brent shrugged.

"But, you know a lot about computers. Tell me what you think frankly," Rob said stubbornly causing Brent to lick his lips nervously.

"If you ask me, I don’t think you should sell it," Brent said causing everyone’s eyes to raise a bit. "Hear me out, I think you will lose a lot if you sell it now. You remember that piece of software I started working on after you gave me some ideas?"

"Yes, I do," Rob nodded.

"Was that your idea?" Mr. Walker asked in surprise. "I have to say that is simply genius. If that comes to fruition, I might buy a computer for my office. That thing is very handy."

"Thanks, but I only gave the idea. It was Brent and his friends who made it a reality. I was just feeling lazy. You know, too much paperwork," Rob chuckled causing Mr. Walker to laugh.

"I can feel your pain," Mr. Walker nodded patting Rob’s hands in a consoling manner.

"Anyway," Brent said causing everyone’s attention to shift to him. "We finished a demo version by Wednesday and I went to meet with IndiSoft’s owner with it. He checked it out and was very excited about it. Currently, we are in talks regarding a deal featuring that piece of software. That’s why I wanted my uncle to take a look and give his input. I am pants at business."

"So, anyway, what I am trying to tell is, with our new software added, IndiSoft’s sales data is expected to explode soon. If that happens, IndiSoft’s stock will rise. So, if you sell it now, you will be losing out big time," Brent explained passionately.

*****

A/N: Hey folks!

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