Free TUNA LIFE by Erik Hamre Page B

in an intricate system, for only a fraction of what it would have cost to buy the finished systems from suppliers. It didn’t look professional with all the open wiring and motherboards stacked on top of each other. But it worked.
    “How’s it going?” Frank hollered from the top of the stairs to the basement.
    “Where the fuck have you been?” Andrew yelled back.
    “Had to go to Nimbin. Ran out of weed,” Frank replied as he walked down the stairs.
    “So you left your fucking front door open? We have more than seventy thousand dollars of equipment stored down here. You might as well have left a sign on the door: Please come in, take whatever you feel like.”
    “Is something missing?” Frank asked.
    “No, but…”
    “So why the long face? I’m bringing back good stuff,” Frank said and pulled out a big bag of marijuana from his backpack.
    Ken straightened up in the couch, smiling.
    Andrew just walked straight past Frank without even looking him in the eyes. “We have a company to run here. This isn’t a game.”
    “Yes, sir,” Frank replied. Standing erect as Andrew left the basement.
     
     

19
    They don’t take it seriously,” Andrew whined to Richard. “They don’t understand that this is going to be massive. I’m afraid they may hurt the company more than they will help it.”
    “So you want them out?” Richard asked.
    “No, no out. But I don’t see how they fit into management if the company continues to grow at this speed.”
    “They are co-founders, Andrew, and they own the same number of shares as you. It won’t be easy to get rid of them. And you would also have to consider who to replace them with. Have you thought about that? Ken is a brilliant designer, and I shouldn’t even have to tell what I think about Frank. The man is a genius.”
    “I know. But we have the source code in place. With a couple of good engineers on the team I’m sure we could improve the product, even without Frank. Nobody is irreplaceable.” Andrew didn’t necessarily want to get rid of Frank, but there was something about him that just didn’t feel right. He was unpredictable, he had a massive authority problem, and he had disappeared in the middle of the launch of the Tuna Life app. Just when they needed him the most. On one of the most important days in the short history of Tuna Life, Frank had decided to travel to Nimbin to buy marijuana. It was a bad sign, and Andrew had to make sure that he had alternatives available if something like this should ever happen again.
    “I don’t really know,” Richard said. “But I’ll bring the issue up when I next see Roman. He will know what to do.”
    Andrew skimmed through the piece of paper in front of him. The first investment of one hundred thousand dollars was almost depleted. Roman had suggested injecting another two hundred thousand, valuing the eight-week-old company at seven hundred and fifty thousand. The money would come with a promise that any further funding would be from external investors at a significantly higher valuation. Andrew liked Roman, and he trusted him. He had a great vision for the company and was a person Andrew could learn lots from. He signed the contract, and promised to get Frank’s and Ken’s signatures before the day was over. He slid the papers into his black leather bag, glanced quickly at his TAG Heuer watch, took a sip of the Japanese beer, wiped the corner of his mouth and threw the napkin on top of the plate with half-eaten salmon sashimi. Richard observed the performance that played out before his eyes with interest. It never ceased to amaze him how quickly money and success changed people. The insecure thirty-year-old accountant, who had bought Richard lunch two months ago, had suddenly received a solid injection of confidence.
    “What’s your plans for the rest of the day?” Richard asked.
    “I’ve got an interview with the Gold Coast Times. They want to do a profile on me. Something about the new economy,”