The Term Sheet: A Startup Thriller Novel (10 page)

A
few minutes
after Andrew walked out, Doug called. David was still barefoot and a little dazed at Andrew’s revelation.

“Hi, David, did you get the term sheet I just sent you yet?”

Stupid technology. It must be passing through my decryption process right now.

David had recently finished prototyping an idea he had to encrypt emails instead of chats. He was beta testing this new feature on his own email account. There were clearly some kinks to work out, but a few seconds later the offer came in. Five hundred thousand dollars. This was more money than David had seen in his entire life. It was more money than he had earned in all his years of programming combined. David’s palms were sweaty, heart racing. He gently tugged on his beard as Doug continued walking through the term sheet.

Given that Doug had only mentioned the prospect of an acquisition the night before, it seemed like a lot of thought and care went into it. David wondered if this had all been in the works for a while, but ignored the thought.

“I think I get it, can I mull the offer over and get back to you later today?”

“Of course, let me know when you’re ready.”

David hung up and realized that Andrew had been right. The number was a lot smaller than he had imagined. But this was still a real opportunity to make a lot of money and call it a win.

Feeling excited and overwhelmed, David stepped out to the brisk air. It was overcast and cold, but he was in denial that summer had ended so quickly. He walked around Ladd’s Addition and goose bumps covered his arms. His mind was reeling.

A black Lincoln Town Car with black tinted windows crawled in front of David. The car came to a halt. A tall older man with a half-balding head, a baggy black suit and dark-rimmed glasses swung open the back door and stepped out onto the sidewalk.

Shawn took off his glasses and looked directly into David’s eyes.

“You have something I need. If you cooperate and make this easy, I’ll let you get back to your life.”

David felt flushed. He didn’t say a word as they drove across the bridge into the northwest hills. They wound through the twisty forest road until it started to straighten out again and the trees began to disappear. David hadn’t ever gone this far west; he felt confused and lost.

What are they going to do to me? I should never have gotten into the car.

As they drove deeper into unfamiliar land, he thought of all the important things in his life. He thought first of Heather. He hadn’t seen her in a while—and that thought embarrassed him. He had said the same thing to himself numerous times in the past weeks. Why hadn’t he done something about it?

He thought of Megan and how much he missed her. He realized how much he had really jerked her around in the last couple years. It was his idea, after all, to quit everything to try to make it with startups. He decided that if he made it out of this situation alive, the first thing he would do was make it up to Megan. Treat her right. Get her flowers and take her out to a nice dinner. Tell her how much she meant to him. How much she inspired him to do better. Not just by always telling him when his ideas were terrible (no matter how much he hated to hear it), but by driving him to want to build a better life for them—a life together. A life better than the ones their parents had or could even dream of. He wondered why he hadn’t asked her to marry him yet.

Then he realized he didn’t have handcuffs and hadn’t been read his Miranda rights.

“Am I under arrest?”

Shawn didn’t say anything for a moment.

“No.”

“Then am I free to leave?”

“No.”

David’s panic subsided slightly as the drive wore on. If he wasn’t under arrest, then they were just trying to intimidate him. David watched enough
Law & Order
episodes with Megan to know when the police were putting on an act.

The car pulled into an unmarked driveway.

“
I
already know
Cryptobit wasn’t designed that way,” said Shawn. “If it had been, we wouldn’t be here right now, would we?”

Shawn stood over David as he summoned all the gravitas that years of practice had taught him. He hadn’t run an interrogation since training camp in the late 70s, but Shawn knew what he needed to do. Brandon was ready to play the bad cop if needed. And it was clearly needed. Terrifying twenty-somethings wasn’t fun, but David wasn’t cooperating and nothing was going to stop him from getting what he needed.

He used all the old tricks he knew. Like making David sit in a chair that had its legs cut a foot shorter than normal, which left David significantly lower to the ground than a typical chair would. This made Shawn’s already tall figure appear to tower over David’s. He also had made sure that one leg was a tiny bit shorter than the rest to make the chair feel unsteady.

“I don’t know what you expect me to do,” said David. “If I can’t help, then why am I here?”

“Oh, but you can help.” Brandon grinned a grin as wide as a Cheshire cat’s. He was taking his new role very seriously. “And you will help. It’s a matter of national security. We just need you to rewrite your code. We need it to become tappable. That’s why you are here.”

“I wouldn’t do that even if I could,” said David as he tried to fix his posture. “It would break the trust of my users and sabotage the entire business. But let’s say, for the sake of argument, that you forced me to do it anyway. Even if I did change the code, there’s no guarantee that everyone would upgrade. If whoever you are after doesn’t upgrade his copy of Cryptobit, it wouldn’t make any difference. The only surefire way to do what you’re asking is to insert the back door manually by breaking into his computer or forcing him to upgrade. I haven’t written any auto-upgrade code yet, so there is no way to force an upgrade.”

Brandon approached David with as much of an intimidating posture as a fellow lanky geeky guy could muster.

“Why can’t we just tap your servers then?” said Brandon. He was proud of this question—it was one of a few questions that his techie friends had armed him with.

“None of the messages go through our servers. It’s completely decentralized.”

“Look, David,” said Shawn in a sudden change of tone, softer and more agreeable. “I want to help you. I really do. I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know much about computers. That’s why I brought my friend Brandon here. But what I do know is that where there’s a will, there’s a way. I don’t want to be a bully. I just want to catch a bad guy who is doing some really bad things right now. You are not a bad guy. You have a good heart. But you are putting us in a difficult situation. I understand your company is important to you. I get that. I feel for you. I wouldn’t want to compromise my business if I were you either. But we’re talking about life and death, David. Don’t you want to save lives?”

“Of course I want to save lives, I’m not a monster. But that’s a straw man argument. Look, if I could help you catch this guy, I would. Of course I would. But destroying someone’s business—my livelihood—simply because you have a hunch that maybe someone might be using it for less than legal purposes is a massive overstepping of government power. From what you’ve told me so far, you don’t have any proof that this so-called terrorist has done anything other than sign up for my waiting list. You don’t even know for certain whether I’ve even invited him to use the service.”

“Can you tell us that then?” asked Brandon.

David ignored him and kept talking: “And yet you want me to compromise the security of everyone else right now based on your hunch? And if you happen to find someone on Cryptobit admitting to having cheated on their taxes, will I now be liable for having aided and abetted tax fraud? Or if the government doesn’t lock me up, will the users of Cryptobit end up suing me for misrepresenting their privacy? All because of your hunch?”

Shawn’s face went into a deep frown as he continued. “David, if you don’t help me, I can’t help you. If you want to save lives, you will cooperate with us. If not, for whatever crazy ideals you think are important, so be it. But don’t think you are protecting yourself or your business by not cooperating. Your business is fucked whether or not you cooperate. One way is just going to be easier on you than the other. If you don’t help me, I’ll freeze your assets and shut down your servers so fast that your head will spin. Then I’ll freeze the assets of the people you love, starting with Megan. Imagine what your girlfriend will think when she goes to pay for a jug of milk at the supermarket with a long line of people behind her and the attendant says: ‘Sorry lady, your card’s been declined.’ Then I’ll freeze your sister’s assets. Let’s see how long they keep taking care of her at that home of hers when the checks start bouncing. Imagine what kind of reputation you’d have with all your precious users if your servers went away. I don’t want these bad things to happen to you, but I need your help.”

“There won’t be a reputation to protect if I do what you are suggesting.”

“I don’t think you are understanding us,” said Brandon, eager to chime in. “Your reputation is already over with. It’s dead. It is like
Night of the Living Dead
dead. Your reputation is a zombie and you just don’t realize it. Let’s just put it out of its misery now.”

Shawn stared at Brandon, trying desperately to get him to shut up, but he continued completely unaware.

“If I were a zombie,” said Brandon, “it would be pretty terrifying to be compelled beyond reason to eat other people’s brains. I mean think about it, wouldn’t that suck to be a zombie? Imagine how scary and gross it would be. Wouldn’t you prefer to be shot in the head and have it just be done with? I know I would. That’s what we’re offering you here. It’s a good deal. I would take it if I were you.”

Brandon smiled, pleased with his analogy, not noticing the puzzled look on Shawn’s face.

“Let’s go over this one more time,” said Shawn. “We just need you to write a little piece of code that allows us to back door our way into one guy’s machine. It shouldn’t be that hard…”

D
oug Kensington’s
office was long, narrow, and dimly lit. The walls and floor were beige and stark. There was a black rug under the clear Lucite desk where Doug usually sat. There was not so much as a smudge or a fingerprint on the desk. Nothing in the office was without purpose and most of the items served multiple purposes. Including the toy train set up on the coffee table in front of his desk. The custom train set was sleek, elegant and modern. The city buildings around the train were also made of Lucite and served dual purposes of entertaining and impressing his guests, but also provided a temporary respite for the CEO of such a large company. Everybody wanted a piece of Doug’s time, but he treasured his privacy and savored the few minutes a day he took in peace watching the train go around in circles. It gave him a sense of inevitability.

It was near midnight and Doug hadn’t watched his train yet when the phone rang. After a few seconds, Doug began to speak.

“Yes,” said Doug. “I’ve made the acquisition offer. I gave him two days to think it over. But I think he’ll take it.”

Doug paused. “Of course he’ll take it. This is the best thing that has ever happened to the kid.”

Doug took a breath. “No, he didn’t give any indication, but I told him I would put him in charge of the entire programming division. People love hearing those kinds of things. It plays to his ego. But he has no management experience, so he’ll hate it and beg me to let him be a programmer again within two weeks of coming on board. I’ll look like the good guy and ‘allow’ him to be demoted, and we’ll all be happy.”

Doug released his breath and filled his lungs again. “I am not trying to be overly clever. This is just how these things work. You stick to your strengths and let me do mine. I am the chairman and CEO of this company and I have done plenty of acquisitions. I fully realize how important it is that we close this transaction quickly. I assure you this is the best chance we have to make it happen.”

Another pause. “Look, you are going to have to trust me. And this may not be the only thing I do that you won’t agree with. You have to understand how people tick to get them to do what you want. And sometimes opportunities arise and you just have to take them. In the meantime, my team is preparing to take over the code as soon as the ink dries.”

Doug hung up the phone gently and walked over to the train set. He turned it on and snuggled into the chair next to it. He stared at the circling engine intently, like a hawk gazing at prey.

“
I
want
to talk to you about something important tonight. After you,” said David as he held the door to the restaurant open. “Ladies first.”

Earlier in the day, David saw shock and surprise on Megan’s face when he told her they were going out. It had felt like forever since he had both the time and the money to take her on a proper date. He had promised to take her somewhere special a few months ago, but code bugs and hackathons got in the way.

But there they were, at Andina’s, a Peruvian restaurant and the place he had taken her on their first date. It seemed so long ago, but it had only been three years. While walking in, David remembered that their anniversary was coming up in less than a month. He realized it would have probably made more sense to just wait until their anniversary to splurge, especially considering their finances. But after the kidnapping he had such an overwhelming feeling of love for her that it didn’t matter. He needed to tell her how special she was to him. He needed her to know right then. What was the point of this startup if it wasn’t to improve the lives of those around him?

“David, are you sure we can afford this right now?”

David smiled. “That’s why God invented credit cards.”

“I thought yours were all maxed out.”

“Not completely.”

Megan frowned but David ignored it and flagged down the girl at the front desk to check in.

“Two for Alexander. David Alexander.”

David had dressed in the fanciest clothes he owned: a blue and white striped button-up shirt, a boxy old black blazer that his dad had left behind, and a pair of dark denim jeans.

David looked at Megan with big loving eyes. “Did I tell you how good you look tonight?”

Megan did look good. Great, in fact. Her soft white features seemed to glow in the little black dress. Megan usually wore nude lipstick, and David would always ask her what the point of that was. But that night, she wore a bright red lipstick. David loved when she wore bright lipstick, even though he knew it made her feel uncomfortable.

The waiter brought a thin loaf of warm fresh bread dotted with quinoa, and three dipping sauces. Even though they had been there before and heard them explain the sauces a few times already, they let the waiter describe them.

“We have three
ajíes
, or chili dipping sauces to choose from. First is
ají de maracuya
. That’s the bright yellow sauce, and it’s made from a purée of passionfruit that dances a fine line between sweet and hot. Second is a peanut sauce, or
ají de huacatay
. It combines toasted peanuts with an aromatic herb from the marigold family. Last, but not least, is the green jalapeño cilantro sauce. It’s the spiciest of the three and my favorite. Enjoy!”

The waiter left with a flourish.

“Megan, I know we have been at odds a bit lately.”

“Yeah, you could say that.”

“But I need you to know that I love you.”

“Okay, you’re freaking me out a little bit,” said Megan.

The waiter came up to them again and interrupted to explain the special.

“Our ceviche of the day is a
mango verde con langostinos
,” he said with great pleasure, exaggerating the accent. “It’s a delightful combination of green mango, passionfruit, and butterflied prawns cooked in lime.” He looked over at David with a wink. “It’s my favorite thing on the menu.”

The waiter walked away.

“Everything on the menu is my favorite thing on the menu here,” said Megan with a soft smile. “So what is this big important thing you want to talk to me about?”

“All in good time. Let’s look at the menu first.”

“Why? We always get the same things.”

“Today’s special. Recent events have given me new perspective on life. I realize there are things I take for granted, things I do just out of habit. Like ordering the same thing at our special restaurant. How do we know if we’re really happy with the status quo if we don’t change things up a little bit now and again?”

David hadn’t told Megan about the interrogation. Shawn had made a big deal about it being a matter of national security. But the main reason he didn’t tell her was so she didn’t worry. For all the threats and accusations, if Shawn had any real evidence, he would be in jail by now.

“But I think it’s romantic that we always order the same food as our first date,” said Megan.

“Sure, of course that’s romantic. But isn’t it also romantic to try something new?”

“I guess.”

They ordered wine and two entrées they had never tried before. They also ordered the shrimp ceviche special. The ceviche was as good as the waiter claimed, and they were so engaged with the food that they didn’t say anything to each other for a while.

“Did I tell you what Andrew said to me yesterday?” said David.

“No, what?”

“He said if we don’t go on
Pitch Deck
, that he was going to quit.”

“Jesus,” she said. “Why?” She dipped a piece of bread in the green jalapeño sauce.

“Apparently he’s almost out of money and doesn’t think the acquisition will come through.”

“I can understand that,” she said.

“What?” David looked disgusted for a moment.

“Don’t be an idealist, David. You have to know when enough is enough sometimes. Like my dad, for example. To him there was never enough, and look where it took him.”

“Why is it that every time things go sideways even a little bit, you start comparing me to your deadbeat dad?” David lost his appetite.

“Sorry, David, I didn’t mean to compare you to him. I know you hate that. I’m just trying to say that if we were running out of money, if we were in a situation like Andrew’s, I would seriously want us to consider giving up too. So we could do something that actually paid the bills.”

“Is that right?” said David with a scowl.

“David, don’t go sour, we were having such a nice time. Let’s not ruin it.”

“Do you even believe in me at all? It seems like no matter what I try to do, I can’t please you. First, you hated the jellyfish site. Then you hated when I gave up on the jellyfish site. Now you want me to give up on Cryptobit. What do I have to do to get your support?”

“Calm down. You are going way out of bounds and I don’t appreciate your tone of voice. I didn’t hate you giving up on the jellyfish idea. I just couldn’t stand walking away from all that money. I wanted you to get the money back before making a change. When you started Cryptobit, I was happy. I just wanted to be part of the decision-making process. I hate it when you make decisions without me and I hate it when you lie to me.”

“Well then, I guess I should let you know that we’re just about as broke as Andrew.” David hadn’t wanted to bring up this topic tonight, but it came out of his mouth like verbal diarrhea. He was filled with regret the moment he heard himself say it.

“What?”

“Can I bring you two any more wine or dessert?” said the waiter with a cheery smile. “Maybe a coffee?”

“No, we’re good,” said Megan with a snarl.

“Do you want to at least check out the menu? Let me tell you about our dessert special.”

“No. We. Are. Good.”

“Yes, ma’am.” The waiter sulked to the next table.

“Tell me again,” said Megan. “I don’t think I heard you right the first time.”

“We’re out of money.”

“But I just checked our bank account yesterday. It was low, but there was a little cushion.”

“We owe far more in credit cards than we have in cash, and I have to start paying back the credit cards soon.”

“Soon?”

“Next week.”

“But we’re barely getting by with what we have.”

“This is all just a temporary situation. Once the acquisition is done we’ll be rolling in cash. More cash than you have ever seen before. This is why we made these sacrifices, this is why we took on the risk of a startup. Why can’t you and Andrew see how close we are to achieving our dream?”

“Because that’s all you do: dream. Dream, dream, dream. You don’t have a pragmatic bone in your body. Correction, dream and lie. Why can’t you just be honest with me for once? You lied to me when you stole from our savings without even asking me to help pay for your stupid jellyfish idea. You—”

“That was not a lie, just an omission.”

“Like when you omitted to tell me you were opening new credit cards? How were you planning on paying for dinner? With more lies? Or were you planning to dine and ditch? When were you going to let me into your little cunning plan this time?”

“I am not a con man.”

“You’re right, you’re nothing like my dad. At least when he lied—” Megan stopped herself.

“What?” said David with as much venom as he could muster. “Finish your sentence. I want to know what you really think of me.”

Tears began streaming down Megan’s face. “David, I love you. And God knows why, but I am still in love with you. But I can’t do this anymore.”

“Good, me either, let’s get the check and go home.”

“No, David. I can’t do us any more.” Megan’s mascara started streaking. “This roller coaster has too many ups and downs for me. I need more stability in my life. I need to be able to go to the grocery store and not worry if my card will be declined.”

“What are you saying? Are you breaking up with me?”

“I don’t know, but I need to go.”

Megan got up from the table and walked out. David wanted to get up and follow her, but the waiter had taken the only credit card that still worked.