Fancy A Quickie?

Cut

"This deal has the potential to blow open the market, not just in this country, but the whole world. You don't understand the significance of this, Jonathan."

"On the contrary, Stefan, I do. I understand the significance so much that I'm not willing to rush into some half-cocked arrangement without considering all angles."

"I can't hold on to this. I've come to you for first refusal but this doesn't mean it's yours. We cut a deal today or I'm taking it elsewhere."

"Stefan, with all due respect, all you have is a chemical. You have no idea how to distribute it and move it around. You're selling potential, not certainties."

"I'm warning you, Jonathan, you don't-"

"Never ever threaten me, Stefan. I promise you it'll be your death warrant you sign, not mine. You have a chemical compound which blocks the olfactory senses on a sniffer dog, meaning they cannot sniff out drugs because it scrambles their smell-to-brain synapses. I get the science. But I have a drug network across the country. I have the means to use this or bury it, so it's up to you."

"... What do you mean?"

"Well, up to you if you want to stop playing the big man and listen to what I'm offering."

"I want half."

"Half of what?"

"Half of the money you make selling with my compound."

"It's useful, but it's not magic. It doesn't stop the drugs being traceable with a test, it doesn't stop them showing up on scans. It stops the dogs. So, no, half is not acceptable. I'm offering you fifteen K a month once it's proven to increase profit from a decrease in busts. I'll give you seven K now and after a month, once I've seen if it's worthwhile, you can get more. It'll increase if my profits increase."

"Fifteen?"

"Yes, once I've seen an improvement."

"A month?"

"That's what I said. What do you make as a vet, anyway?"

"...Not that much."

"Well, there you go. How did you go from a vet to selling chemicals to drug barons?"

"I... I was trying to find a way to stop my dog getting stressed when he could smell other animals on me from work. I tinkered about, thought I'd make a synthetic compound to calm the olfactory nerve sense. Took a few tries, but... student debts, you know?"

"Oh, tell me about it, Stefan. My daughter wanted to go to Cambridge, I can't tell you how many donations I had to make. She's good, but not Cambridge good. Anyway, she dropped out after six months to become an influencer. Waste of time, but hey, we gotta see our kids happy."

"I suppose."

"So, how about it? Are you going to walk out of here richer, or are you leaving in plastic sheets? I like you, I do, but you're not leaving until I get what I want. Money or a bullet in the head, Stefan?"