What We See, What We Know #2
He watched the three Nancarrows while Julian opened the slide deck and began his presentation, spinning through data that should be familiar to all around the table from the shareholders’ report.
“How come the company’s financial position has worsened over the last three months, Julian?” Cecily Nancarrow asked in her querulous tone, as if Julian hadn’t just spent twenty minutes explaining it.
“As I mentioned, increasing costs are stretching our cash reserve.” Julian flipped to the next slide in his presentation without even glancing her way.
“The costs of environmental impact assessments have increased by seventeen per cent over the last year. Mining to closure provisions are up by eleven per cent.”
“What have you done to save costs? Do we need,” Cecily counted, “eight different environmental assessments?”
Gareth itched to roll his eyes, impressed that Julian refrained. “Actually, we do. We’re fortunate the law only requires eight. If we developed a find in the UK or in Australia, we’d have a raft of additional ones.”
“Ludicrous.”
“Hardly. Besides, you don’t expect us to break the law, do you?”
“As if you would.” Cecily turned the page and skimmed the text. She was looking for something else to query, like a mean, ratty little dog with a bone. Shame the bone she chose to gnaw on was Julian.
“What do you mean, fourteen projects now have active competition? Shouldn’t project information be confidential?”
“Do you have a problem with security?” Roland jumped in right after.
“We’re working to establish that.” Gareth was happy to draw their fire for a while, especially when, from the corner of his eye, he saw Jack’s fingers begin a rapid dance over his tablet.
“There’s a point in every project, of course, when confidentiality ceases.
” He gave the two Nancarrows his best bland smile.
“It’s possible we’d reached that point.”
“But you don’t know for certain.”
“No.”
“That is—”
“I realise these fourteen aren’t all of our active projects, nor are they the most valuable ones,” Harper cut in, “but what would happen if we lost them all?”
Harper clearly had read the shareholders’ report. The copy open in front of him had highlights and annotations on every page. It earned him bonus points in Gareth’s eyes.
“We’re working to protect our time and resource investments, of course,” Julian answered him. “If we were to lose them all, we’d be looking to raise additional operating capital, sell company assets, or reduce our staffing.”
“Thank you.” Harper tapped his pen against his teeth as he stared at the data. “Nobody wants redundancies, and credit is expensive at the moment. Would it help if we suspended this quarter’s profit distribution or at least delayed it until the company’s cash reserves are in better shape?”
Gareth had to remind himself to close his mouth, and even Julian blinked. They’d discussed this very idea and had dismissed it as likely to start a war. None of them had expected a Nancarrow to make that suggestion. Wonders never ceased.
“You can’t do that.” As expected, Ronald Nancarrow hit the outrage button.
“Nothing in the company articles forbids it,” Aidan contradicted him. “And it would ease the pressure on our cash reserves.”
“Maybe we should put it to the vote.” Gareth kept his eyes on his notes and waited.
“I will not be voting for such a ludicrous suggestion,” Cecily huffed. “As shareholders, we’re entitled to the company profits.”
“Of course we are.” Harper adopted the tone of a nanny placating an irate toddler.
It sounded hilarious. “But company ownership is a long-term investment strategy. Would you really prefer to take cash now and have the company fold in a few months’ time for lack of operating capital?
” Harper had no more luck making Cecily see sense than Julian had ever had.
But he wasn’t letting Cecily and Ronald glare him into submission.
“Suspending the profits distribution for this quarter will help shore up our cash reserves. Aidan is right about that,” Julian said. “At the very least, it will buy us time to defend our projects. Let’s vote on it. For a suspension?”
Aidan, Alex, and Gareth raised their hands. As did Harper.
“You’re voting against the family?”
“Grow up, Cecily.” Harper rolled his eyes. “I’m not so old I need to cash in my chips. I’d rather vote to support my long-term prospects.”
Harper’s words drew spots of red into Cecily’s cheeks. Her lips pinched into a mulish line. “No.”
“Motion carried five votes to two,” Julian said. “Any further questions?”
Gareth tuned out while Julian went through the last remaining slides, Ronald and Cecily silent like a pair of grumpy toddlers.
Gareth much preferred the regular board meetings, where ideas and suggestions flew back and forth and left them all invigorated by the decisions they agreed on.
Not a single shareholder meeting Gareth had attended had been like that.
“I have some ideas about raising short- and medium-term finance,” Harper said when they’d watched Cecily and Ronald stomp from the room at the end of the meeting. “Can I email you?”
“Please do.” Julian held out his hand. “I’m grateful you decided to hold on to your shares and join us.”
Harper grinned. “I dare say, if Cecily and Ronald are your usual fare. I thought my father was hard going, but those two? Do they do anything useful for all the money you throw at them?”
“Not that you’d notice,” Aidan boomed from the far side of the table.
“Then I’m wondering why you’re putting up with them.”
“I’m beginning to wonder that, too,” Julian replied.
And that, Gareth thought as he followed Alex and Jack out of the conference room, was more progress than he’d seen since joining Nancarrow Mining.
“Penny for them?” Gareth asked as he wended his way through the Friday afternoon traffic. “You look like the poster child for brooding discontent.”
Jack turned his head. Shadows lurked at the back of that silver-green gaze. “Not discontent,” he said, almost too quiet for Gareth to make out over the traffic noise. “Guilt. I wanted to watch that dance class—”
“And instead, I made you sit through Julian’s family drama.” Gareth said it carefully, wondering if he’d screwed up.
Jack shoving a fist into his shoulder proved him wrong. “Don’t be an arse. I don’t blame you. Work is work and watching that meeting was illuminating. But I promised to make our family my priority and I’m feeling as if I broke my word.”
“Welcome to the joys of command,” Gareth said, surprising himself. They’d had that discussion—or one very like it—just the previous weekend. Maybe they hadn’t exhausted the topic yet. “The moment you assume responsibility for more than yourself, internal conflict comes as standard.”
“Good to know it’s not just me.” Jack’s shoulders dropped an inch.
“Hardly. Though I’m hoping Cecily and Ronald will stay out of Julian’s hair for a while.”
“Are they always like this?”
Gareth shrugged. “Pretty much. They live under the illusion they have power and enjoy throwing their weight around. Delaying projects, slowing acquisitions, making Julian’s life a misery—all while complaining about the size of the dividends, of course.”
“Has Julian tried to buy them out?”
“Roland’s too spiteful to sell. Donovan needs money, but his demands are unreasonable.
We haven’t tried Cecily. Not sure if you remember, it happened when you started, but Cecily had an affair with Graham Halston, hoping to sway him to vote with the family.
Julian gave him a second chance, but he was too embarrassed to take it.
When he quit his job, Cecily dropped him like a rock. ”
“Serves him right.”
“Yeah. Harper was a pleasant surprise.” Gareth replayed the expressions of sheer outrage on Cecily and Ronald’s faces when their newest shareholder had voted with Julian. “Asked good questions and put the company first.”
“And he almost suggested Julian get rid of the others.”
“Gods, yes. Did you see Aidan’s face? He’s been advocating that forever, but he’s always so careful not to push.”
Silence. Gareth turned his head, took in Jack’s expression.
“Jack?”
“What was that? A teaching moment?”
“Huh?” Gareth went back over his words. “Serendipity,” he said eventually. “Or simply something that’s on our minds. The boys can’t make their own choices if we stand in front of them taking the heat. Nico especially will struggle with that.”
“Yes,” Jack agreed. “I get that.”
“But knowing is one thing and acting like it is another.”
Gareth turned through the gate to their house and Jack blew out a deep breath. “I think I’d make a lousy gardener, too.”
They got out of the car and Gareth backed Jack up against his door and kissed him as if he meant it. “Don’t sell yourself short,” he growled.