Chapter Ten
The first thing Ann did when Melanie approached her table was stand and pull her younger sister into a tight hug, which thoroughly shocked Melanie, as Ann wasn’t exactly the type to initiate such intimate physical contact. But, there she was, held against her elder sister’s body, her face tucked into the crook of her neck.
Needless to say, Melanie’s body was as stiff as a board.
When Ann finally let her go, she was smiling widely, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. Her smiles never really reached her eyes, as if she was never genuinely happy. It was something that their brother and father seemed to share, as well. Melanie wondered if that was how she smiled. Perhaps that was the only thing they all three had in common, besides their father and their chosen careers.
She certainly hoped not.
“Sit, sit!” Ann encouraged, taking her own seat at their table. Melanie took a deep breath and plopped down in her seat, reaching for the menu. “Don’t even bother,” Ann told her, placing her hand on the laminated folder. “I already ordered us a couple of Caesar salads and coffee. They should be here in a few minutes.”
If it had been anybody else, Melanie might have mentioned how much she disliked Caesar salads, because they always came out too soggy and the lettuce that most restaurants used was always browning and the dressing made her nose wrinkle.
Also, there was the fact that she wasn’t a child and didn’t need her big sister ordering her food for her. But, Melanie decided to take it as an olive branch and forced a smile of her own as she placed the menu off to the side.
“Thanks,” she said, injecting her voice with as much sweetness as possible. “So, what exactly do you want to talk about?”
“Well,” Ann said, giving her a catlike grin, “a little birdy told me that you were thinking of investing in a certain startup tech company with the Aiden Carmichael. Is it true?”
“Yes,” Melanie replied, with a sharp nod, as she reached for her glass of water and took a long sip. “Mr. Carmichael and I…did our research and made an investment. What’s it to you?” She tried her best to sound like her father, keeping her shoulders and back straight as she stared her sister in the eye.
“Well, I figured since you were working outside of the family, then perhaps you might consider working inside as well!”
“Meaning…?”
“I was thinking that maybe we could make a few investments together, Mellie! A little bit of a Brunswick sisters’ project, you know. I’ve actually compiled a list of small companies, like that one that we could possibly look into.” She reached into her purse and pulled out a thin file, sliding it across the table as if she were making some kind of secret business deal—which, to Melanie, it actually did feel like. “Just about a dozen startups that need some serious capital,” she continued. “We could really make a difference, Mellie. Together.”
Her voice sounded sincere, but she had that same cold look in her eyes. It was almost…hungry.
Before Melanie could ask about any ulterior motives, their waitress placed down their salads, a couple of mugs, and a coffee pot between them and asked if they wanted anything else. Melanie opened her mouth to request a side of fries, but Ann just waved the waitress away, dismissively, as she leaned closer to her sister.
“So,” she said, “what do you think?”
Melanie put up one finger as she opened the file and scanned the list that Ann had carefully typed and itemized, in order from lowest to highest risk, with tiny, hand-scribbled notes adjacent to each company name. Most of the notes were written in shorthand and barely legible to Melanie’s eyes, but she could clearly see the large money symbols next to the majority of them. She sighed internally as she shook her head and looked back up at her sister.
“You said these were tech companies?” she asked. “Like the one I just invested in with—”
“Aiden Carmichael, yes,” Ann interrupted. “A lot of them are hoping to do some charity work, like that veteran thingy, but I think there’s a real market; so much profit to be made, you know?”
“Profit?”
“Dad’s favorite word,” Ann chuckled. “But yeah. The first one—Shakespeare—is a word-recognition company, made for people with arthritis or hand problems, to help them with typing on their computers. They make specialized keyboards and programs that you can speak into and have the words appear right before your eyes! It would be great for all those old people that take dictation in courts, you know?”
“Stenographers?”
“Yeah! It would make their jobs so much easier and, hey, maybe they could make the program so that they’re not even necessary anymore. How amazing would that be? Do you know how much the government would pay for something like that?” She reached forward and added a few more money symbols to the page and Melanie rolled her eyes, while Ann was otherwise distracted.
“What other plans do you have for these companies?” she asked. “I don’t suppose you just want to throw money at them and hope for the best? You did your research?”
“Of course, Mellie!” Ann assured her. “In fact, I was thinking that we could actually buy a bunch of these companies, consolidate, and streamline them while the profits look high.”
At that word, Melanie paused, placing the list down in the center of the table and leveling a look at Ann. “What exactly do you mean by that?” she asked. “Streamlining?”
“Oh, I thought Father would have taught you that word. It basically means that once we have ownership of the company, we go in, lay off half of the staff and cut any unnecessary expenses, or exchange them for cheaper options to raise the profits. Once the company looks like it will make a lot of money, we sell it to some inexperienced buyers and reap the rewards. Daddy used to do it all the time, you know.”
“Yeah,” Melanie replied. “I remember. But I’m not sure if I want to—”
“Oh, Mellie, come on!” Ann huffed. “It’s not like we’re the only ones who’ve ever had the idea. Dad wasn’t either. That’s how most investors get off the ground and, hell, that’s how Dad himself made his millions. Don’t you want to be a millionaire like him? Even, you know, a billionaire. Wouldn’t it be fantastic never to have to worry about anything ever again? Dad never had to; you should follow his example.”
His example was cheating and coldness towards most of his ‘loved ones’, Melanie thought to herself. Her father had been a ruthless businessman and, as much as he had given to charity, there were plenty of things that Melanie had disliked about his business practices. Hell, one of those practices nearly bankrupted her, if only it hadn’t been for Aiden.
Melanie shook her head, erasing all thoughts of the man with whom she had shared a bed the night before. The man that had barely noticed when she left the morning after. She bit her lip and sighed, looking away from her sister, to hide her flush. That’s not how Ann took it though.
“Mellie, look at me,” Ann said, her voice softer than Melanie had ever heard it. “This is a good plan. It might seem morally dubious or whatever right now, but it’ll make us a lot of money and then we can make even more investments and do good for other companies and even a few charities; like Daddy used to do. So stop worrying and just say yes.”
“I don’t know…” Melanie said, shaking her head. “I’ve been working with Aiden and he—”
“Studied under Daddy,” Ann interrupted, yet again. “You should know that Aiden Carmichael did exactly the same as Daddy to make his own fortune. He streamlined all of his businesses in the beginning and built his empire on them. He’s still doing that, even today, I hear.” Melanie’s eyes widened and Ann nodded, solemnly. “In this business you’re either shark or prey and all sharks need to eat. It’s time for you decide which one you want to be. My advice is, if you’re going to be a shark, might as well stick with your own family.”
Melanie was silent for a long time, just staring down at the paper in between them, her mind whirring with all the new information she had just received. She took a deep breath and shook her head.
“Can I get back to you on this?” she asked. “I have a lot to think about.”
“Of course,” Ann said, her voice that same soprano of fake sweetness that Melanie was so used to by now. “Take as much time as you need, Mellie. Ian and I will always be here for you. But you might want to act quickly; these investments won’t be available for that much longer.” She slid the paper back to Melanie and stood, dropping a fifty onto the table for their bill. Then, she walked off without another word.
Melanie turned to watch as Ann sauntered out the door and out into the street, hailing a town car and sliding in gracefully, before closing the door. Melanie watched until the car sped away, then she turned back to her limp salad and the list right in front of her that Ann had left behind. She sighed and shook her head, leaning back in her chair as she wondered what to do next.
If she were being honest with herself, she knew what she wanted to do, but she didn’t know if teaming up with her siblings was a good idea or not. She wondered, not for the first time, what her father would encourage her to do…
“Excuse me,” she said, holding up her hand as she tucked the list into her pocket (out of sight, out of mind), stopping the waitress in her tracks, her arms full of plates. “Could I get a plate of fries and a glass of wine?”
“Right away,” the waitress said, offering her a polite smile as she rushed off.
Melanie relaxed back into her seat as she allowed herself to get lost in her thoughts once again. She had a lot to think about, but at least she could do it with a bit of comfort food. She deserved some kind of comfort today.
Didn’t she?
*****