Chapter 12
We sealed the deal with Prime Realty.
The contract was only 3 million dollars, but it was CloudBuild's first big-name client, so this was a game-changer.
Once the news got out, three or four property management companies reached out, eager to talk about working together.
The team at CloudBuild was fired up, and Kevin finally started to respect me.
Everything was finally looking up.
Until one day, I got a call I really shouldn't have picked up.
The caller ID showed it was Frank Linwood.
Julia's father.
My ex-father-in-law.
"Luke," he said.
His voice sounded a lot older than I remembered.
"Frank..." I said, stumbling over the words.
"Are you free? I'd like to talk to you face-to-face," he said.
I hesitated for a few seconds.
"Okay," I said.
That afternoon, I went to the place Frank had picked, a private room at a cafe.
Frank looked a lot thinner than the last time I saw him, and his hair had turned almost completely white. He was a retired engineer, humble to a fault, nothing like his wife Mary, who was always chasing status.
I'd always respected him.
"Sit down," he said.
He poured me a cup of coffee.
"I heard about what happened with Julia," Frank said.
He wasn't judging, just staying neutral.
"I'm not here to judge, just want to be fair. I'm sure you had your reasons for what you did. But there are some things I think you should know," he said.
"Go ahead, Frank," I said.
He picked up his cup, his hand trembling a little.
"Do you know why Julia went to the hotel with Michael that day?" Frank asked.
I didn't say anything.
"It's because there's a problem with the Riverfront One plot. That land used to belong to City Investment Group, and Sunrise snagged it at auction. But lately, someone's been working behind the scenes, trying to change the zoning.
"If they pull it off, the 130 million dollars Sunrise poured in will go straight down the drain," Frank explained.
I frowned.
"The person she met that day was a contact from City Investment Group. Michael set up the meeting. That guy only meets people at the hotel's private club," Frank said.
"So she was telling the truth? It really was just a client meeting?" I asked.
Frank looked at me and sighed.
"I can't guarantee it's true," Frank said, "but one thing I do know. The issue with that piece of land is real, and Julia's been under so much pressure lately she's about to break."
He took another sip of coffee.
"But that's not the main reason I called you here today," he said.
"What is it?" I asked.
Frank set his coffee down and looked me straight in the eye.
"The real issue is, you should look into who's pulling the strings behind the scenes to change the zoning plan," he said.
"What does that have to do with me?" I asked.
"It may have something with you," Frank replied.
His tone turned serious.
"When you sold your company back then, who was the one who took it over?" he asked.
My hand froze.
"Peter Shaw," I said.
"That's right," Frank nodded. "You need to find out what Peter Shaw's been up to lately and dig into his connection with Vulture Capital."
My fingers tightened around the coffee cup.
Peter Shaw.
Three years ago, I sold StellarTech, the company I founded, to him for 100 million dollars. I put every cent of that money into Sunrise.
Was he connected to Vulture Capital?
"Frank, what are you trying to tell me?" I asked.
Frank stood up and picked up his cane from the table.
"That's all I can tell you. The rest, you'll have to find out for yourself," he said.
Then he left.
I sat there in the private room, the coffee sitting untouched and cold before me.
There was only one thought in my mind.
If none of this was merely a coincidence, then the entire sale of my company all those years ago was a trap from the start.