The boardroom is small, only seating six people. That's enough, though. Nearly the entire board of directors is represented at this meeting, only the chair at the head of the table empty. Five men sit around the table, waiting to start, until a phone goes off.
Picking up his phone, the bald man at the other end of the table looks at his four colleagues. "She's not going to be here today."
"Hmph." This dissenting voice comes from a round-faced man, adjusting his tie. "Doesn't she know that we need to talk about this now?"
"Calm yourself, Randolph." A Southern drawl cuts through his complaining, getting Randolph to quiet down immediately. "We'll just have to move ahead. Gansley, will you start?"
Gansley, the bald man, nods. "Gentlemen, we're here because of a critical threat. There's an upstart coming to our territory." He tosses down several papers onto the table, and the other four look at them. Press releases, business articles, and legal documents, all showing that Kawashiro Technologies - that new business that had taken Las Vegas by storm - was moving their base of operations to Kuwahawi Island. "Mr. Leichter will explain the details," he says, gesturing to the man with the southern accent and sharp, pointy goatee.
"Thank you, Gansley. This Kawashiro company is only a year old, and they've already gotten a reputation for high quality, high-priced products. They completely shook up the Vegas scene, and knocked Alan Anderson off his perch. Now they're coming here. I'm sure you all recognize the danger?"
"But that's... this is our market!" another man protests, slamming his fist on the table. "I won't let my creations be undercut by some upstart who doesn't know what she's talking about!"
"Nesbitt, my friend, don't worry," says the last man, adjusting his glasses as he smirks. "If you think we'll be playing by the rules against someone who dares to do this, you've forgotten everything about how I operate."
"I assume you already have something in mind, Johnson?"
"Let's just say I've been thinking ever since I read about Kawashiro."
"So it's agreed, then," Leichter says, taking control of the meeting once more. "We'll use our usual tricks, and take this company apart like we did to all the others."
"Kawashiro Technologies will regret ever trying to interfere with the Big Five!"
KAWASHIRO PLOT
SPRING 2017
