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Despondent, I shook my head and slid the phone back inside my pocket, leaving his text unanswered. In that moment, Gabe, the Link Protocol and my career were the last things on my mind.
Turning my attention back towards my grandmother, I reached down with my hand and touched her once more. I didn’t know how many more chances I might have.
GABE
It had been days since Fiona returned to the lab.
During that time, I’d been forced to delay not only the initial presentation but also to stamp out a full-fledged abandonment of fundraising for the Link Protocol. In fact, I’d been within hours of most of the attendees leaving the island, vowing to no longer be involved. And so, while I’d spent most of my time in damage control mode, Fiona had been almost completely unresponsive to my requests for updates.
Her unwillingness to communicate with me put me in a next to impossible situation. People who become billionaires don’t get there by being stupid. It wasn’t hard to see that I was stalling for time. In the face of continuing questions about the viability of the project and the status of the research, I’d been backed into a corner more and more.
Yet, as it is in a game of poker, it’s important not to let your opponent think he’s got you beat. But as the days wore on without feedback from her, it began to become difficult, if not impossible, to portray the delay as anything other than what it was—something serious.
As badly as I might have wanted to do it, I was in no position to get on my jet and confront her about her lack of communication in person. There simply were not enough hours in the day at this point.
Now that the time for putting them off had come and gone, I had little choice but to confess we were facing some last-minute challenges that were going to result in a delay.
Plain and simple… I’d run out of wiggle room and time.
Deciding instead to just deal with the consequences of situation, I invited everyone to dinner that evening. I held the gathering in the same location we’d set up for the initial presentation, because I need a similar forum to deliver the bad news and beg for forgiveness.
After the dinner service that evening, I took the podium once more.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” I began. “I realize that you all know why I’ve asked you here. My prepared remarks boil down to little more than a few bullets on a single piece of paper. What I have to say, unfortunately, won’t take all that long.”
I paused for a moment, holding up the lone sheet of paper for emphasis.
“I want to thank you again for taking time out of your busy schedule to join me here in St. Barth’s. As most of you know by now, we’ve experienced a bit of a setback with the Link Protocol. I’ve had my team working on a solution nonstop since we learned about the issue several days ago. But, above all else, I pride myself on being a man of integrity. Hopeful though I was that we’d be able to get past the issue in a short period of time, it appears as though that’s not going to be the case.”
I stopped speaking yet again and cleared my throat. As I did, the room went completely silent.
“Just to be clear,” I began, but as I spoke into the microphone, a sharp squeal of feedback reverberated from it. I reached for it, covering it with my hand for a moment before continuing.
“As I started to say, I have every confidence that we’re going to get past the issue soon, but it’s not going to be in the time frame we’d originally hoped.”
I paused for a moment and glanced down at my notes. As I did, I detected grumbling once more among the guests. They spoke in a mix of Japanese, Chinese, and a smattering of Middle Eastern tongues, while I kept my attention focused on the podium in front of me, trying not to acknowledge the fact I heard them. There was little question in my mind that doubts were high. But it’s in these times you can never show hesitation, lack of confidence or worst of all, fear.
Instead, I stood tall, straightened my arms and wrapped my hands around the podium.
“And so ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to ask you for a personal favor. Some of you I know well, some of you I’m only meeting for the first time in person. But, like yourselves, I’m a businessman. As you know, not all things in business run smoothly. I’d humbly ask that you keep an open mind and agree, although I realize it’s extremely inconvenient, to come back here for our presentation at a later time.”
Just as I uttered the sentence, a swell of groans and moans rippled through the attendees. I didn’t allow it to continue for long. Instead, I lifted a hand, imploring them to stop. I wasted no time and started to speak once more.
“I understand your frustration, and I understand the inconvenience. Believe me, I know how precious your time is to you. However, you have my word we’re doing everything we can, and that as soon as a solution is at hand, you will be the first to know. The opportunity with the Link Protocol is still stupendous and it’s something that can make all of us, and our families, wealthy beyond our wildest imaginations.”
