by R. R. Banks
“That would be incredible,” said Dillon as he adjusted his neck a bit. “That brief nap between Nice and here did not do a thing for me. To be able to actually lie down and cover myself up will be a godsend.”
Robert chuckled. “They’ll probably have to prep our quarters, but I’m sure that won’t be much of an issue. We can try and eat in that time.”
“Yeah, and honestly, we’re six hours from Zurich if you count the time to departure and the duration of the trip,” he explained. “If we spend an hour at dinner, I can easily catch four to five hours and be well rested for whatever we stumble into this evening.”
“Quite true,” said Robert as they walked up to the train. He looked to his right to see the baggage men hauling the luggage for the waiting passengers, giving him a sense of relief to see his small bag nestled at the top. The passengers on the train departed quickly, with each individual car releasing their passengers at once. Robert and Dillon walked to the back train where their cabins would be located, and showed the attendants their electronic passes. “I know our quarters are not ready, but is the dining car available?” asked Robert as he looked at the attendant with a hopeful smile.
“Yes, sir,” he replied. “The dining car is still open and will not be shutting down until after we arrive in Switzerland.”
Robert nodded. “Perfect.” Robert and Dillon stepped on board the train and walked to where their quarters would be, looking inside to see them already prepared for their arrival. “They must not have been occupied on the last trip,” said Robert as he stepped in and examined them. The quarters were very simple, made up with a small bed on one side of the room, taking up the entirety of it in length and a chair and desk on the other. They were small and quaint, but incredibly useful for longer trips.
Dillon walked into Robert’s quarters after quickly inspecting his own. “There isn’t much to look at here, and I would really like to get the rest of that gyro taste out of my mouth,” he insinuated, trying to convince Robert to move a bit quicker to the dining car. With a subtle nod, Robert stepped out of the quarters and closed the door, walking with Dillon to the next car so that they could get a much better meal.
They walked in to see only one table available, as several passengers were already aboard and eating. With a quick turn, the dining room attendant came up and approached Dillon and Robert with a warm smile and friendly greeting. “Guten Tag!” she exclaimed in her thick German accent. “Good afternoon and welcome to the dining car. Can I have your names?”
“Robert Acostis and Dillon Flannigan,” answered Robert as he looked out at the dining room again.
She looked at her small list and found their names. “Alright, you both have a credit to eat anything on the menu as well as a complimentary beverage. Can I go ahead and seat you?”
“Please,” said Dillon, almost sounding desperate.
“Alright, but do be warned, the only table I have available will seat six people, and if someone else comes in, by policy, I have to sit them with you.”
Dillon was confused as Robert nodded, having dealt with his on numerous occasions. “That’s fine,” he said, shaking his hand in front of his body to show his indifference. “As often as I am that single person to eat in the dining car, I know how the policy works.”
She smiled as she pointed them toward a rectangular table in the center of the room with Dillon and Robert sitting across from each other on each side of the table. “If someone comes in to dine by themselves, they’ll sit on the other end of the table and we don’t have to have any awkward dinner conversations with them,” explained Robert as they both sat down. “It helps the Eurail because a lot of solo passengers can take advantage of the dining services while not taking up an entire table for themselves.”
“I understand the reason for the policy. I’ve just never seen anyone actually use a policy like this, but then again, I don’t often travel by train,” Dillon responded with a bit of angst. “I really just do not like forced conversation.”
“You don’t have to have it,” said Robert. “They’ll sit at the other end of the table and play on their phone and you will barely notice they are there.”
Dillon smirked as the attendant walked up again, this time bringing a young Indian woman with her. “Here you are ma’am, enjoy your lunch.”
“Thank you,” she replied as she took the seat on the opposite end of Robert, who turned to look at who they were placing at the table with them. Their eyes met, and they immediately smirked at one another, each chuckling while Dillon looked on with an awkward glance. “Mr. Acostis,” she announced as she turned and looked down the table at him. “Fancy running into you here.”
“Dillon, this is Mina Patel, the daughter of Sulagna Patel,” introduced Dillon, whose confused look turned into a look of awe. “This world just became much smaller.”
“Incredibly so,” she said politely.
Robert kept laughing. “You can scoot down and join us if you’d like,” he said, offering her an invitation.
“I thought we were going to finalize everything,” said Dillon under his breath, quiet enough so that only Robert could hear it.
“We’re going to be talking a little bit about our conversation with your mother tomorrow, but we’d love a little input,” continued Robert, turning his head a bit so that he could wink at Dillon.
Mina looked at Dillon who smiled slowly and agreed. “Fine, I’d love to have some company,” she said as she shifted chairs next to Robert. “How was your trip so far? Did you leave out of Nice?”
“Yes,” replied Robert. “We left early this morning from Fontvieille by helicopter and left from Nice to arrive here,” he explained briefly. “And of course from here, we will arrive just outside of Zurich where we will have to take a commuter train there.”
“Oh, well that’s not a terrible plan,” said Mina. “My mother has arranged for a car to pick me up at the terminal to avoid the struggle of that dreaded train. I’ve never had a good experience on it.”
Dillon leaned forward. “What do you mean?”
Mina reached for a small glass of water and sipped on it. “I usually end up getting hit on by strange men,” she replied. “I’m a very private woman, and I tend to keep to myself. Thus, when men I’ve never had any communication with flirt with me, I get a bit uncomfortable.”
“So, you’re saying I shouldn’t flirt with you right now?” Dillon asked playfully, trying to break the ice a bit.
“I mean, I cannot stop you, but you’ll get nowhere,” she replied.
The three of them laughed as the waiter came up and took their orders and immediately rushed off to the back. “I sincerely hope this is better than that gyro,” pleaded Dillon to himself, regretting the mistake he made in the food court.
“I’m almost positive a can of dog food would have been better than that gyro,” quipped Robert. “I told you that nothing in that place even appeared to look like food.”
“And I should have listened, but I didn’t,” stated Dillon. “It’s a character flaw, but I’m stubborn and like random food.”
“You like having your stomach torn in knots,” continued Robert as Mina looked on with a confused smile.
“Where did you get this gyro?” she asked curiously.
Dillon shook his head. “From the terminal food court.”
“Oh, mistakes were made,” she said in disgust. “I feel bad for you, though if you ate there of your own accord, I don’t pity you.”
Dillion held his head in his hands as he laughed a bit from Mina starting to rib him about his decisions. “I agree, but I usually like Gyros so I gave it a chance.”
“To eat anything from a food court in a train terminal is playing with fire,” she continued to give him a hard time. “I’d probably go get myself checked for tapeworms or other parasites.”
“He can just add it to the list of other things he’s got,” joked Robert, as Dillon started to get defensive.
�
��Easy now. I wasn’t expecting a two-on-one,” he said as the waiter brought out their drinks.
With their drinks in front of them and the conversation flowing, Dillon took the initiative to start talking about the business and what was next for them. “Okay, so you want me to do what, exactly?”
Robert adjusted in his seat to face Dillon as Mina leaned in to listen. “I need you to be the overarching stabilizing force in this company,” began Robert. “You will be the face of the company to any investor who happens to come in from the outside.”
Dillon nodded. “But you’re the majority owner. Why wouldn’t you do that?”
“Because her mother is right,” he said as he pointed at Mina. “I’ve never been associated with things that are stable and growing, and we need someone else to be the face of the company if we’re going to be successful.” He paused while he sipped his drink. “Dillon, I know what I am amazing at, and it’s making the company run efficiently. However, if we need stability with investors and their funds, it might prove to be better for you to be the face of the company.”
“I’m not following you,” he stammered. “You have never been afraid to stand up and make something happen if you want it to succeed. What’s making you take a step back now?”
Robert laughed. “I’m not stepping back at all. I’m just disappearing from the public eye so that I can negotiate and make ourselves profitable. I will handle the actual business; I just need someone to be the face of the company who is better at personal relationships than I am.”
Dillon paused as he pondered the words coming from Robert and as their food made its way to the table. “So basically, you want me to handle all the public and investor relations,” he reasoned as the waiter placed the plate in front of him. “Is there anything else?”
“Not unless I need assistance,” replied Robert. “You’ll help me manage some of the people directly beneath you, but we’re going to make it a point to overpay for the best and brightest in the industry so that we never have to worry about having the right people for the jobs.”
Mina leaned in further as her plate was placed in front of her. “Have you considered how you will handle your relationships within the Consortium?”
Dillon and Robert paused and looked over at her, both shaking their heads briefly. “I was hoping to get accepted first,” said Robert. “Do we have to have someone to do that?”
“Absolutely,” she replied. “It’s essential to have someone who can communicate with the other members to ensure that productivity and distribution is maximized.”
Robert and Dillon nodded together as they listened to her. “If we have to bring on someone to do that, then we will,” said Dillon slowly. “Like Robert said, we’re going to hire the best and brightest.”
“Absolutely,” continued Robert. “I want this company to succeed and will do whatever it takes to make that happen. If I have to hire a thousand consultants to help me with a copy machine, so be it. As long as we’re successful, profitable, and happy, then I will be satisfied.”
Mina smirked. “You want to be happy?”
“Of course,” he replied. “I want to be happy in everything that I do, especially this.” He stopped briefly as the waiter set his plate in front of him. “Honestly, I’m tired of buying and selling. It’s profitable, but I’m ready to stabilize my own life and create something that will last for the rest of my life. I want to be known for my hard work and my dedication, not my quick turnarounds and lucrative deals. One day in the – hopefully – distant future, I will be the owner of my grandparents’ winery, and I can’t sell that. I must be able to run the day-to-day operations of that company, or everything my family has built will fail. I’m not at a point now where I consider myself ready for that challenge, so I feel now is the time to prepare myself.”
Robert paused for a bit and sipped on his drink. “I’m ready to give everything I have to make this oil company work so that when the time comes, I will be ready to sustain my family’s legacy.”
“That’s honorable,” Mina remarked as she grabbed her fork and knife from beside the plate. “I wish you nothing but the best and hope that everything works out for you in Zurich, Mr. Acostis.”
“Me, too,” he replied. “Me, too.”
Chapter 6
Dillon and Robert walked into the hotel and took note of the hustle and bustle of the lobby, finding people running around frantically with bell boys carrying their luggage. “It looks like everyone is in a hurry,” quipped Robert with a smile.
“Looks like it,” he replied back. “Have you already checked us in?”
“Of course,” Robert said with a grin. “I’ll go get our keys to our rooms from the concierge.” He walked over to the concierge and immediately acquired the keys, turning back and tossing Dillon his card, which he caught without much of a struggle. The two men were in the best of spirits after their rail trip through Europe. They experienced a fantastic meal, followed by four hours of sleep in their private quarters to allow them to relax and recover after their previous evening in Monte Carlo. With a pep in their step, the two were going to finish the night preparing their business plan before waking up to conquer the meeting tomorrow, giving everything they had for the sake of their success.
Dillon stood in the lobby of the hotel on his phone, looking at the several text messages he received while they were in transit to the hotel with Robert standing at the concierge’s desk, finding out about the meeting with Sulagna Patel and other accommodations. “Robert, I think there’s something you need to know,” Dillon announced as the concierge walked out to address Robert.
“Your meeting with the executive committee is in three hours during their late dinner gathering,” stated the well-dressed concierge. “Should I let them know you will attend?”
Robert looked at the man with a completely dumfounded look. “The meeting was supposed to be tomorrow. Are you sure that’s when they scheduled it?”
“Yes, sir. I made sure to double check,” replied the concierge. “Can I alert them that you will be attending?”
Without much of an option, Robert nodded his head. “I guess I don’t have a choice,” he said, conceding that he would lose a great deal of time for preparation. “I will just have to make this work.”
“Absolutely. Is there anything else I can get for you while you are here?”
“No, that’s quite alright,” he replied. “Thank you.”
Robert turned around and walked over to Dillon who stood bewildered. “What’s up?” asked Robert as Dillon tilted his head slightly to look up from his phone.
“Something isn’t right,” claimed Dillon as he handed his phone to Robert for him to read the headline that the Australian Oil and Trade Corporation was saved by two women from the United States. Robert’s expression went from positive to negative within the span of a couple of seconds. “In the last hour, before filling out the petition for financial protection, these two women swooped in and saved a sister company within the Consortium.”
Robert shook his head in disbelief as the words on Dillon’s phone sunk in. “Mina did say that every company within the Consortium will take care of one another no matter what is at stake, and that loyalty to the overall body is second to none,” he said as he returned Dillon’s phone. “I was under the impression that the Australians were left for dead.”
“I was as well,” replied Dillon. “Every piece of data that I received from our accounts said the company was done for.”
“Well at least your investment in them is saved,” replied Robert. “I think I’m going to need a moment before our meeting in three hours.”
Dillon’s jaw dropped. “Our meeting is in three hours?”
“Yes,” replied Robert. “We are going to be meeting during their evening dinner, and I have yet to really figure out what we are going to be talking about since the whole basis of what we were trying to achieve is now completely out of reach.”
Dillon
looked around the lobby as Robert fumed over his entire plan falling apart. “I think I’m going to head to my suite and take a few moments to myself,” stated Robert, trying to calm himself down. “I’ll meet you down here in the lobby before dinner.”
“I understand,” replied Dillon. “Clear your head. This isn’t over yet.”
“It definitely seems that way.”
Robert stepped away from the lobby and walked toward the elevator, pressing the button and immediately walking onto it. He rode it for nearly a minute before it stopped at his floor and he walked over to his room, inserting the magnetic key and walking in to find his luggage waiting for him in the entryway. He wheeled his luggage into the bedroom and placed it on a rack, opening it up to pull out the two bottles of wine he brought with him before setting them inside the small refrigerator in the room. With too much crowding his mind, Robert walked around the suite and found a couch positioned in the center of the room for him to contemplate what to do next.
The presentation and discussion with the executive committee took a much different tone with the news that the Australian company was saved by two American women. Though upset, Robert held it in as he sat alone in his hotel room, hoping for clarity and inspiration for his next move. This was not a position that Robert was used to occupying, as he was normally an aggressive businessman instead of one that relied on sitting back and reacting. This was not playing to his strengths.
He leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees with his hands directly underneath his chin, looking straight ahead at his bed. “Maybe I should just go to bed and forget about all of this,” he said to himself, as crippling negative emotions started to fill his mind. He replayed the events in his mind from the past two days of the peaks and valleys, with the successes and pitfalls. He was able to make it into the stadium to talk to Sulagna Patel where she turned him down, but then offered him a lifeline. He met an amazing woman whom he enjoyed spending time with without getting sick of her presence. He sighed dejectedly as he thought about the meeting that was still going to happen, though now was going to take place during a small dinner.
