he think about your right to get your original investment returned?”
“There’s an addendum to the contract that says we’re entitled to make that request if the project hasn’t started within twelve months of the original signing date.”
“I didn’t see that in the papers you sent.”
“Sorry, I was in a hurry.”
“The twelve months is up now.”
“Yes, it’s been fourteen months.”
“And you’ve made the request?”
“Repeatedly.”
“And what do they say?”
“They say no, and when we persist, they tell us to sue.”
“And we’ve talked about how difficult that would be.”
“Even our lawyer agrees with that.”
Ava looked down at her brother, who seemed lost in his own thoughts. “It seems to me, Michael, that the Macanese probably want you to abandon your investment. Asking for the extra money is just them leveraging you.”
“We can’t walk away from that money, or even just let it sit,” he said absently. “The bank is already all over us for missing deadlines. We are in breach of some covenants and I’m afraid they’re going to call in the loan.”
“I understand.”
Michael finally seemed to see her. “I’m sorry,” he said, standing up. “I’m sorry to be so rude. Thank you for coming, Ava.”
He was about a foot taller than her, lean and fit. He looked down at her, an awkward smile on his face. He started to extend his hand, then pulled it back and leaned over to kiss her on both cheeks. “Thank you for coming,” he said again.
( 3 )
They sat side by side in the boardroom, the contract and its addendum between them. They went over it line by line, parsing it until they were cross-eyed.
She saw Michael sneaking sideways glances at her; she was doing exactly the same. It was as if they were each trying to accept the reality of the other’s presence.
Ava finally said, “They’re fucking you over. The contract is very clear about the nature of your investment, and the addendum is equally clear that you can request the return of your money after twelve months if the project hasn’t started.”
“I know. Like I said, they don’t care.”
“How did you meet these guys?”
Michael looked uncomfortable. “Through Simon. Or actually, through a friend of Simon’s.”
“His name?”
“David Chi.”
“What do you know about him?”
“Not much. I’d met him socially a few times with Simon.”
“So Chi brought the deal to Simon and Simon brought it to you. Is that how it worked?”
“Yes.”
“Did Chi get paid for this?”
“Not by us.”
“By the other side?”
“I’m beginning to think so.”
“How about this Ma Shing — how much due diligence did you do?”
She saw a bead of sweat on his forehead; his lips looked dry. “Not nearly enough,” he said.
“What does that mean?”
“I left it mainly to Simon, although our lawyers did confirm that the land was owned by and registered to Ma Shing.”
“So what kind of due diligence did Simon do?”
His discomfort increased. “Ava, I’m beginning to think that he didn’t do any, that he just believed everything David Chi told him.”
“Geez.”
He said in a rush, “We’ve been friends for more than twenty years and I trust him like a brother. Besides, he has as much to lose as I do, and I just assumed he was looking after our interests . . . That’s the way we run the business, you see. We each have our own turf and we don’t meddle in each other’s areas. Business development falls under Simon’s watch.”
“You don’t have to defend him to me.”
“I feel as if I do, because I want you to understand our relationship.”
“The same kind of relationship Simon obviously had with David Chi.”
“I imagine.”
“So you trust Simon, Simon trusts Chi, and Chi trusts — or is paid to trust — Ma Shing. And you end up getting screwed.”
“Not yet.”
She looked at the contract in front of them. She suspected it wasn’t going to have any bearing on how this