Some of these tech companies took on new investors as quickly as a young dragon acquired trinkets. I should check any I hadn’t looked over in a while.
I spent the next several hours combing through the financials of every company at that party, adrenaline spiking through me when I found a hit.
Just in time, too.
“Your two o’clock is here.” Diego’s voice filtered through the intercom on my desk.
“Send them in.”
Oliver and Elizabeth sauntered in wearing identically terrible outfits. No visual harmony to the bland, ill-fitting blazer, the bland, dark-wash jeans, and the bland, beige tops.
“Welcome. Have a seat.” I gave them my toothiest smile. The one that Elle said unsettled humans.
“Thank you. So glad you could make time for us,” Oliver said as they both sat stiffly.
I shuffled some papers. “After further investigation, we won’t be able to work with Voyage Games on any new projects.”
Oliver gaped at me. Elizabeth said, “What? Why? I thought…”
“Well, I was going over your financials this morning, and it looks like one of your newest investors is Regal Claw, LLC. That’s a dragon-owned business, and the likelihood of a territory dispute is too high.”
“You’re turning us down because of a silent investor?”
“Silent? He showed up at Accutrust’s gala and harassed my date.” I almost growled the last few words, unable to keep the anger out of my voice.
They winced in unison. “The purple dragon?”
“Yes. His name is Udar.”
“Excuse us a moment,” Elizabeth said.
They both left the room, only to hold a whispered conversation right outside my door. I wondered if I should warn them that dragon hearing was exceptional.
“Weneedthis new branch, Oliver. That green one is practically giving us a pipeline of new technical artists with his training programs.”
“Regal Claw has given us two hundred and fifty thousand dollars! We can’t drop him just because someotherdragon says so,” Oliver replied.
“Yeah, he popped up out of nowhere and gave us money for practically nothing. I told you it was suspicious, and you didn’t want to listen to me.”
So, Udar had chosen his vessel well. In Oliver, at least. Elizabeth was obviously a little smarter.
“You think he planned this?”
“I don’t know. We don’t know how dragons do business. But if that was him starting shit the other night, he’s only going to cause us more problems,” said Elizabeth.
“Okay, okay.”
Whispered conference over, they shuffled back into my office like contrite children. “What if we buy back his investment? Then he wouldn’t be involved anymore,” Elizabeth suggested.
I shrugged. “We can talk as soon as he’s off the paperwork.”
“Understood,” they said in unison.
I hid my grin.
The second I was certain they were out of earshot, I picked up my phone.
“Az,” Udar greeted me.
