“I’ve been too focused at work here. I should have seen the signs but I was too freaking blind. Now I think it’s too late.”
Art scratched the left side of his head. “I’m sorry. You know, I’m as much at fault for this. We’ve both been up to our eyeballs with all these projects and builds and we both neglected our families. You’ve been by my side all these years and covered for me—that’s a hell of a sacrifice. Maybe if we do a double date or something so I can explain it to her?”
Nick shook his head. “I don’t think it’s going to work. She totally blames me, and I can’t say she’s wrong.”
“I see.”
“Even my kids are all whacked out. Kimberly walked in on her boyfriend, right while he was screwing somebody else, and the cops pulled her over after she sped off in her car. She’s lucky they let her go. Scotty… I don’t even know what’s wrong with him.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah,” he said. “My whole damn personal life is unraveling. I wasn’t there for Cathy—or the kids—and now I feel sick to my stomach.”
Art thought about it for a minute before he spoke again. “You know, you’ve never taken a vacation ever since we started up this firm, right?”
“I took that day off when I came down with the flu last year.”
“That’s a sick day,” Art said. “I’m talking about a real live vacation. A long time off, so you can clear your mind and spend quality time with your family.”
“How can I do that? We’ve still got a lot to do before we move to the beta build with Benny Orenstein’s project.”
Art slapped his biceps. “Doreen is coming back in tomorrow. She can cover for you while I finance your much-needed two weeks off.”
Nick laughed incredulously. “How the heck can you even pay for my whole family’s vacation when you’ve got nothing left in the bank? You said this just yesterday.”
His partner winked at him. “Benny the client is sending funds over today to cover the next build stage, so it looks like we’ll be hanging on for the next few months, at least.”
“That doesn’t answer my question, Art. You’ve got enough to cover the overhead, but extracurricular activities are something else.”
Art gestured with his thumb towards the meeting room. “I’ve got that covered too. Let’s head over there so I can explain it to you. In private.”
9
NICK SAT DOWN INSIDE the meeting room and waited while Art pulled a folder and his laptop computer from his own desk and joined him.
His partner placed a large, multi-page color brochure on the table for Nick to peruse before closing the door so they wouldn’t be heard. “Check that out, buddy.”
Nick scanned the document. It looked more like a gaudy company prospectus than a brochure. “Lemuria? What’s this?”
Art sat down beside him while powering up the laptop. “Something Benny Orenstein gave me last night as a sort of consolation for threatening to pull his account. I guess it was his way of motivating us, the son of a bitch.”
Nick flipped through the pages. Dozens of pictures of scantily clad models lounging on white sandy beaches, toasting drinks, and doing all sorts of activities. “Some sort of tropical resort?”
“Not just any beach resort,” Art said with apparent relish. “This will be the next huge tourist destination in the Arabian Sea.”
Nick furrowed his eyebrows while reading the fine print. He hadn’t realized where it was. “Arabian Sea? But it looks like it’s all Indians staffing the place.”
“Well it’s not exactly in the Arabian Sea, more like the Laccadive Sea, just off the coast of India.”
“Why there?”
Art used his laptop to show a virtual map of the area. “You’ve heard of Kazimir Morgenstern, right?”
“The billionaire mogul? Who hasn’t.”
“Right, this is his brainchild. He teamed up with an Indian billionaire to develop Lakshadweep. Mukesh Dhar is his partner’s name, and he practically owns a third of India.”
“Lakshad what?”
“Lakshadweep,” Art said. “They’re a group of islands a few hundred miles off the southwest coast of India. You know, desert islands, coconuts, white sandy beaches, and all that.”
“Okay, what about them?”
“There were news reports that this will be the next big tourist spot, so Morgenstern and his Indian partner decided to dredge up one of the reefs in the area and built themselves an artificial island,” Art said.
“And they named it Lemuria?”
“Right.”
Nick glanced at the virtual map shown on the laptop. “Couldn’t they just have bought one of the islands instead of building their own?”
“Benny told me a few bits last night before you joined us at the restaurant,” Art said. “It seems the locals in the islands fought against the development in the whole area, saying it would wreck the ecosystem, their traditions, and all that.”
“Really?”
“Really. A few other resort firms wanted in on it too, but the people of Lakshadweep raised such a stink that Morgenstern and his partner Dhar decided to maneuver around them and built their own island instead,” Art said. “The locals still protested, but they couldn’t do anything about it. Benny heard plenty of bribes and other shenanigans happened.”
“Okay, so they built their own island resort. Are you sure it’s safe with all these controversies?”
“Safe as can be,” Art said. “Benny told me he toured the place while it was under construction. World class amenities, enough to rival the best resorts in the Caribbean, French Riviera, South America, and elsewhere. I think he even invested in it too.”
Nick let out a deep breath. “It must be expensive as hell.”
“It is,” Art said. “Benny gave me four reservations for the soft opening, open travel visas included. I was planning to either raffle it away to the staff as a reward, or even just you and me and we take our wives over there.”
“Cathy might like it,” Nick said. “But leaving Kim and Scotty on their own for a few days won’t be a good idea, especially with what’s happened.”
Art nodded. “I know. So I’ve decided to give all four reservations over to you, buddy.”
Nick was taken aback. “What? Me?”
“Yes, you and your whole family,” Art said. “It’s for two weeks, and you get the whole run of the place leading up to the grand opening. I heard there’s going to be plenty of billionaires, millionaires, celebrities, and other corporate bigwigs that’ll show up for the event, so see if you can get some new clients for us while having some fun, okay?”
He could hardly believe it. Nick knew he needed time away to patch things up with Cathy and the kids. What better way to do it than at a tropical island? “I… I don’t know what to say.”
“You can say thank you.”
“Thanks,” Nick said. “But two weeks? Are you sure you can hold the fort down here while I’m gone?”
Art winked at him. “Hell yeah, bud. With Doreen coming back, it’s pretty much smooth sailing. We’ll finish up Benny’s build and get it ready for release, and then we’ll tackle a few smaller projects while you’re away. Once you come back to us tanned, fit, and full of energy, and hopefully with some new references, then we take on those bastards up in Silicon Valley.”
For the first time in months, Nick had a genuine smile on his face. “Thanks, Art. You don’t know what this means to me.”
Art stood up, and they both hugged. “You deserve it, buddy. This company wouldn’t have lasted without all the sacrifices you’ve made. It’s time for me to pay you back, and this is it.”
Nick felt like crying for joy, but he kept his composure.
10