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I was in the presence of one of the richest and most powerful men in the world. I took in his dour expression and bushy white eyebrows. Part of his face looked slack, as if he had lost control of its function, and his arms and legs were withered. Despite his frail appearance, he maintained an aura of power. I sensed he was a man you wouldn’t want to mess with, even in his current condition.
With my focus on the chairman, it took me a second to notice that everyone in the room had stood up. I followed suit.
“Chairman,” Daniel said. “What brings you here?”
“Why do I need a reason to be here?” the chairman barked in a gruff voice with a slight speech impediment. “I’m the primary shareholder and the chairman of the board. Of course I should be here. Where’s my table?”
“Chairman Ling,” Neil said, gesturing to the empty desk next to us at the left tip of the inner U.
A member of the chairman’s entourage wheeled him over. Neil moved the seat out of the way to make room for the wheelchair.
Once the chairman was in position, everyone sat back down. The chairman gave Neil a once-over. For a fleeting moment, I thought I saw fondness in his stare, but his expression quickly turned stony. “Neil, my boy, are you ill?” he asked.
“I admit I’m feeling a tad under the weather today.”
“Hmph. That’s unlike you.”
“Yes, well, it’s unfortunate.” Neil examined him. “At least you look well.”
The chairman made no comment. Instead, his gaze wandered over to me. It looked like he was about to say something, but Daniel cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention back to him.
“We were about to vote on the Magnium partnership,” Daniel said. “All in favour?”
I watched Neil raise his hand without a hint of hesitation, along with the vast majority of others in the room, including the chairman. That Neil would so readily agree to a partnership with an oil company surprised me. His vegetarian diet and electric car had me under the impression he was conscious about the environment. Maybe not. Or maybe he had his reasons.
Daniel struck his gavel, passing the motion. From there, he moved through the rest of the agenda, but I was too preoccupied by Neil’s deteriorating condition to pay much attention to the business decisions being discussed. Neil’s presentation drew closer, and he was doubled over in his chair, face drained of all colour, hands clutching his gut. How was he going to present in this state?
“Now, I’d like to invite Neil Kingston, CEO of Luxmore Appliances in New Zealand, to give an update on the company’s finances,” Daniel said. “As you will remember, Neil put a stop to the Flerotech merger and took over as CEO, promising an uplift in the company’s performance. Let’s see how he has fared. Neil?”
Daniel directed a sly grin at Neil, and all of a sudden, it fell into place. The reason Daniel had insisted on taking Neil out last night and plied him with alcohol and who knows what else. He had planned on sabotaging this presentation by making him look incompetent in front of the chairman and the shareholders. Why he would do such a thing, I did not know, but it seemed in line with his character based on what Neil had told me. It could be a power move to assert his dominance and remind Neil who’s boss.
I watched Neil shakily stand up, looking like he could pass out at any second. Was he aware that he was about to walk straight into a trap?
I got to my feet before I knew what I was doing. “Wait.”
Neil halted.
“I can’t let you do this. You’re unwell. I’ll give the presentation. I’ll do it. Sit back down. Please.”
Neil studied me, his jaw muscle straining.
“What’s going on?” Daniel asked.
“Neil is feeling sick,” I announced. “I will present in his place.”
Even as I said the words, I had yet to process my spur-of-the-moment decision.
Daniel gnashed his teeth. For a second, it looked like he might push back against my proposal, but ultimately, he conceded. “Very well,” he said, the twinkle returning to his black eyes. “Please come forward.”
I didn’t give Neil the chance to stop me, hastening to take the stand, but as I turned to face the audience, the reality of what I was about to undertake hit me. Here I was, in a room full of some of the wealthiest people in Asia, about to give a presentation that could make or break the future of Luxmore Appliances and the jobs of thousands of employees. My throat turned dry. I gulped.
On instinct, I looked to Neil. His jaw worked as he watched me, a mixture of concern and intrigue displayed on his pallid face. I told myself that if he truly thought me incapable, he would have stopped me, no matter what. I kept this in mind as I brought up the presentation on the provided laptop.
With the first slide up on the wall and my notes on the laptop in front of me, I checked the microphone, then took a deep breath, ready to begin.
Here goes.
I emptied my mind of everything except the contents of each slide and the underlying goal of showing that Luxmore was on the brink of an uplift in financial performance. The thorough speaking notes saved my life as I bluffed my way through the presentation just like I had when I presented in Amelia Crook’s place all those months ago.
