GABE (Silicon Valley Billionaires 2)
And Lauren was threatening to do what Li Na wanted. I understood, but Lauren couldn’t get on that plane. It would be over my dead body—even if she didn’t care for my word choice. It was accurate.
Levi and I sat in the back of the surveillance van, waiting and drinking our respective coffees. We’d parked a few streets over from the house Ash was checking out.
“Why’re you here, again?” Levi asked.
“Because I’m not your silent partner on this case anymore. This is my family, and I’m done sitting around, doing nothing.”
“What did you find out about Zhao?”
“I found out that she’s scheduled the closing for Friday, and she’s still expecting Lauren to get on a plane afterwards.”
Levi waited for me to continue.
“Li Na called last night, to ask Lauren, CEO to CEO, if she would honor the agreement.”
“And?”
“And Lauren said she would. And when she just called, she said that she’s spoken to Hannah this morning via Skype, and that Hannah was beat up, drugged and semi-catatonic.”
Levi leaned his head back against the interior of the van. “And Wes had a heart attack. Jesus. This could not be going more wrong.”
“That’s why I’m here—we need to find Hannah before the closing.”
“And you think you can help?”
“No,” I admitted, “but at least I won’t have to sit at home and wait to find out what’s happening.”
“What else did you find out about Zhao? Anything useful?”
“I think so.” I frowned. “She doesn’t seem to have hung on to any personal relationships after her divorce. But it made me think about what she is after.”
“You mean aside from Lauren’s multibillion-dollar technology?”
I nodded. “I don’t think it’s just the money.”
Levi looked interested. “Well, then, she’s deeper than I thought. Tell me.”
“I think it’s about her standing, her reputation. I think she’s someone who has big dreams and is used to accomplishing them. She also has an important business standing in Shenzhen, and she’s been boasting about the technology her company’s about to acquire. But she hasn’t been able to create something as technologically sophisticated as the patch, which is what’s necessary to be a star in a rapidly changing healthcare market. In order to deliver, she’s taking the alternate route to success.”
“Okay…so? What’re you going to do about it?”
“I’ve got some ideas. The most important thing is getting Hannah back. Then it’s getting Li Na out of our lives.”
“Without Lauren going to Jiàn Innovations.”
“Of course. That’s the whole point.”
My brother inspected his coffee. “When’s the closing scheduled for, again?”
“Friday.”
His gaze rose to meet mine. “So Ash had better be right—this needs to be it.”
“That’s what I said.”
The door burst open and Ash came in, breathing hard. “Guys.” He grinned at us, then leaned over to catch his breath, as if he’d literally sprinted back to the van. “Be prepared to shower me with gifts, compliments, and food—you both owe me.”
Chapter 21