Chapter 18

A flicker of something unreadable passed through George's eyes. "How's the deal progressing on your end?" Austin responded quickly, "I was just about to bring that up. They reached out again. They said someone else had already started negotiating. They want to know how much we're willing to offer. I haven't given them a figure yet. I thought I should wait for your decision. "But it's strange, who else could hate Rowan enough to want to completely ruin him? To take everything he's worked for and burn it to the ground? "And the scariest part is… whoever it is, they made an offer that's nearly identical to yours. Same strategy, with almost the same terms. The only thing they lack is funding. If we go head-to-head with them, they don't stand a chance. They just don't have the resources to compete." George didn't respond immediately. He already had a good guess who that person was. "Hold your position. Don't try to outbid her." Austin paused, then seemed to catch on. "Mr. Schuman… do