Gemsicuted

Written by Julian Robov


Forty Three


The next day, Winston Lord arrived at his office quite early with some decisions. He wasn’t sure if it worked, but he was willing to give it a try. He decided to meet Den personally after a quick confirmation.

Winston called Den on his mobile. Den was having his breakfast at the Holiday Inn. It was a perfect timing for Lord to do some business or just listen to Den’s advice, if he had any.

As he walked into the restaurant, Winston saw Den talking with a stranger. He had never seen the person before, and wondered why Den had to call him, when he was with a stranger. As Winston approached Den’s table pretending to be unaware of anything, suddenly both, Den and the stranger shook hands, and then the stranger was gone. Winston wondered how to start the conversation, and at the same time to get to the point knowing Den’s personality. He hated it when people beat around the bush, when discussing a problem.
“I lost the piece and peace at the same time?” Winston said reluctantly.
“What are you talking about?” Den stared at Winston.
“I’m talking about that 37carat ruby,” said Winston, spreading his arm on the table.
“They put the money in my account, very smart and clever. I’ve no way of negotiating a deal. There is nothing to negotiate when there is no deal. The money is in, and the stone is gone. The problem is how am I gonna tell Ris? I’m sure he will listen to the whole story with that deceptive silence and anger. I just couldn’t help him this time.”
The waitress arrived with the menu. Winston ordered a cup of tea. He was in no mood for a heavy breakfast like Den. Even after Den’s insistence to have the same breakfast Winston stuck to his decision. For him the ruby deal was more important and he needed a way out to save his face, and Ris’s too.
“You must find a way to present your case,” said Den thoughtfully. “We all do a deal for money. That means profit. So give them another of your pieces.”
“But he wants that precise 37carat piece,” replied Winston. “Rubin is waiting for that last piece. Ris can’t bluff him anymore.”
The tea arrived.
“So what is left is to buy back the stone from Miko and Tito,” commented Den. “If Ris has no problem paying your price for the sake of keeping a friendship, pay three million and get the stone back. You sell it for four million to Ris, if he is that desperate. In this case, time and word is more important than money. That’s when you make your money. There is nothing wrong with that. I would do the same thing if I were in your shoes. Friendship and business should be separate. Give Tito and Miko another offer, which they can’t refuse. Don’t delay. We all make and lose deals around the clock. So this one shouldn’t be an exception. What are you thinking about?”
That really surprised Winston. He understood the logic behind Den’s statement, but what he needed was a practical solution.
“Miko and Tito! How am I gonna convince them? I can’t even call them back,” replied Winston questioningly. “That can be from now till anytime of the year, right? You just can’t wait that long. I’m just stuck like a pig in a hole. I’ve Ris pulling from one side for the ruby, and Tito and Miko feeling relaxed and laid back on the other end of the spectrum. But why this 37carat piece?”
“Someone must have a reason to be so persistent,” said Den bluntly. “But, then it’s none of your concern. Your job is to find the ruby for them at a marginal cost, right? Can you do it?”
Winston had no immediate answer. He felt the discussion was getting nowhere. The fact was no one had an immediate replacement for that 37carat ruby. Recutting a big ruby to replace the 37carat ruby was the last thing in the world the dealers wanted to do, unless and until they got their price. But this was a unique moment in Winston’s, Tito’s, and Miko’s life. They had never come across a situation like this before. All that Winston wanted at this particular juncture was to find an alternative source. He knew Den had several pieces of rubies uncut in his inventory from a reliable source and the problem was how to tell him the truth. If he did ask directly it was going to hurt Den knowing his business style. Lord didn’t want to embarrass Den at this particular situation. Also, Den was keeping his deceptive silence.

Lord thought otherwise. Den should have said something realistic after listening to his side of the story, and pushing further meant losing a friend. He was in a dilemma. Instead, Lord decided to talk to Ris direct and get it over with. He didn’t care what Ris thought about him. He wanted to just clear the misunderstanding after the peace talk they had with Den.

Now the brothers were back to their same old game, and he didn’t want to create another reason for continued hatred. It was making him sick and tired. Den was not at all helpful. It didn’t take much time for him to understand that. Without elaborating, he thanked Den for the tea, and walked straight to his office once again for that final meeting with Ris.