Unwritten (Summer Of Taking Chances Sequel)

Investment & Custody Battle

27
DOMINIQUE

"Good afternoon, Ma'am Dominique!" Masayang bati sa kanya ni Rose, ang secretary ng Papa nya.

Ngumiti sya rito. "Good afternoon. May kausap ba si Papa sa loob?"

"Wala naman. Clear ang schedule nya buong maghapon," sagot nito.

"Good. I need to talk to him." Dire-diretsong pumasok si Dominique sa opisina ng Papa nya. Naabutan nya itong nagbabasa ng mga papeles. Ngumiti ito nang makita sya. "I have to ask you something."

"Sure. Sit down, iha," sumeryosong sabi ni Mr. Encina nang makitang seryoso ang mukha nya.

Umupo si Dominique. "I just want to know something. Kaya ba...kaya ba hindi ka tumututol kay Pris sa pakikipaglapit nya sa akin ay dahil malaki ang utang na loob mo sa kanya? Kaya ba ayos lang sayong maging kami ulit dahil tinulungan nya ang kumpanya natin?"

Nagulat ang Papa nya. "I see, you already heard about it." Her father said when he finally composed himself.

Dominique nodded. "Yes, but not the whole story. Is it true that our company was a victim of embezzlement?"

"Yes, it's true," her father confirmed.

"When was this?"

"I found out about it when you were still in the hospital."

Yun marahil ang dahilan kung bakit lagi itong may importanteng meeting. Dinadalaw naman sya nito sa hospital pero hindi ito nagtatagal.

"Our Vice President for Finance had been embezzling money from the company. We recently discovered it. He'd been stealing and transferring the company's money to an off shore account. Malaki ang nawala sa atin. So big that we needed help or else we have to lay off a lot of our employees." Her father's face hardened with anger. "Your mother, Devon and I decided to keep it from you. You just came out of the hospital and we want you to concentrate on your health kaya hindi na kita sinabihan. Ayokong ma-stress ka pa, iha. I know how much you love our employees. Our family worked hard to keep the company growing because we want to produce more jobs for people. We fought hard for them. We don't want our employees to lose their jobs but we didn't have a choice. Kapag hindi nagbawas ng tao ang kumpanya, it will collapse. Mas maraming maapektuhan."

That's also the reason why her parents and brother looked distressed during the time she just got back from the hospital.

"The embezzlement issue was hushed. Until now, the culprit was at large and in hiding. We didn't want our investors and employees to panic. We tried finding solution without causing hysteria but the solution found me instead." Her father smiled and was deep in thought for a moment. "Pris, Kristine and Jessica were more than just beautiful faces. Their assets when combined are massive. They were trained and disciplined how to manage money and business at a very young age. Each were given certain amount of money when they reached high school. Other teenage kids would just spend it to buy unnecessary things. But these three, combined their money and started investing. Fatal Frames and Trinity Travel and Tours are just tip of an iceberg. Have you heard of The Big Three Productions?"

"Yes. Nagpo-produce sila ng concerts and movies here and abroad," sagot ni Dominique.

"From the name itself, you already have an idea who owns it. Isa lang yan sa mga businesses nila. Aside from that, they secretly invested in different big companies in the Philippines and abroad. You don't think Pris only travels for leisure and for her photography job, do you? Those three are always on the look out for investment opportunity. May ilang maliliit na kumpanyang lumalaki dahil sa investments nila. They helped these companies prosper. Their assets continued to grow and it will grow more. I had no idea about all of it until they approached me and offered to invest in the company. Their investment was enough to stop Encina Corporation from collapsing. With their help, we didn't need to lay off any of our employees and kept the company stable."