Ron Donaldo: Rise Of The Apex Don

Chapter 18

Marcus dropped the pictures. He fell backward into his large leather chair. His brain felt like it was spinning. 

The bomb. Ron found the bomb. Ron did not run away. He did not die. He took the bomb, threw it into a deep hole, and then stole the lithium. 

It was a total disaster. Ron Donaldo had survived the ultimate trap. And now, he had stolen the lifeblood of Sterling Tech. 

"Marcus," Theresa said loudly. She stood up. Her voice was shrill and angry. "What is going on? Who is the man with one eye? Where is our lithium?"

"Be quiet, Theresa!" Marcus snapped. He rubbed his face with both hands. He had to think. He had to fix this. 

If the factory did not run, the company would die today. The stock would crash. The investors would sue him. He would lose his cars, his house, his money. He would go to prison. 

His core struggle was always greed. He believed money could solve any problem. He believed he could buy his way out of any trap. 

"Okay. Okay, listen to me," Marcus said loudly. He stood up again. He pointed his finger at the group. "Do not panic! We are Sterling Tech. We have one billion dollars in cash in our bank accounts. We can fix this with money."

"How?" Mr. Henderson asked, wiping sweat from his fat forehead. "The factory is empty!"

Marcus looked at Sarah. Sarah was the Head of Purchasing. She was a smart woman with thick glasses. 

"Sarah," Marcus ordered. "Get on the phone right now. Call every lithium mine in the state. Call every metal supplier. Call the shipping companies. Tell them we need fifty tons of pure lithium delivered to our factory in three hours."

Sarah looked nervous. "Mr. Thorne, you cannot just buy fifty tons of raw lithium on a Tuesday morning. It takes months to mine and ship that much metal."

"I do not care!" Marcus screamed at her. Spittle flew from his lips. "Offer them double the price! Offer them triple the price! Tell them we will pay in pure cash immediately! Just find the metal!"

Sarah nodded quickly. "Yes, Sir. I will try."

Sarah opened her laptop. She connected her phone to the large speaker in the middle of the boardroom table. Everyone in the room could hear the calls. The room was perfectly silent, except for the sound of Sarah typing and the phone ringing. 

Ring. Ring. Ring. 

"Hello, Apex Mining," a woman's voice answered through the speaker. 

"Hello," Sarah said, trying to sound calm. "This is Sarah from Sterling Tech. We have an emergency shortage. We need to buy twenty tons of raw lithium right now. We are willing to pay triple your normal market price."

The woman on the phone sighed. "I am sorry, Sarah. We cannot help you. We have no lithium left."

"What do you mean?" Sarah asked. "You are the biggest mine in the state. You always have emergency reserves."

"We did," the woman explained. "But we received a phone call at four o'clock this morning. A buyer offered to buy our entire reserve. Every single pound of it. They paid in cash, up front. Our trucks are completely empty."

Marcus grabbed the edge of the table. His knuckles turned white. 

"Who?" Marcus yelled at the speaker. "Who bought it?"

"I am sorry, I cannot disclose client names," the woman said. 

"I am Marcus Thorne! Tell me the name right now!"

The woman paused. "The buyer's name was Donaldo Holdings. Goodbye."

Click. 

The line went dead. 

The name echoed in the silent boardroom. Donaldo Holdings. 

Theresa covered her mouth with both hands. She looked like she had seen a ghost. "Ron," she whispered. "He is buying the market."

"Call the next one!" Marcus screamed. He looked wild. His perfect hair was messy. "Call Blue Ridge Suppliers! They are huge! Call them now!"

Sarah quickly dialed the next number. Her fingers were shaking so badly she dropped her phone on the table. She picked it up and hit the speaker button. 

Ring. Ring.

"Blue Ridge Metal," a deep man's voice answered. 

"This is Sterling Tech," Sarah said fast. "We need lithium. Name your price. We will pay anything."

"You are too late," the man laughed slightly. "We just had the biggest sale of the decade. Three hours ago, a buyer bought every single piece of lithium in our warehouses. They even bought the shipments that are still on the boats."

"Let me guess," Marcus said. His voice was cold and hollow. "The buyer was Donaldo Holdings."

"Yes," the man said, sounding surprised. "How did you know? They paid with seventy million dollars in pure cash. We could not say no."

Click. 

The call ended. 

Marcus did not yell this time. He slowly sat back down in his chair. He stared blankly at the wall. 

"It is impossible," Mr. Henderson said. "Ron Donaldo is a broke ex-convict. He was in prison for five years. Where did he get seventy million dollars in pure cash? You cannot get a bank loan at four in the morning!"

"He did not use a bank," Theresa whispered. Her eyes were wide with pure terror. She finally understood. "He used the mob. He is working with the Voretti Crime Family."

The room erupted into total panic. 

"The Voretti Family?!" Mrs. Lee screamed. She stood up and grabbed her expensive purse. "They are murderers! They are the mafia! We are fighting the mafia?!"

"We are ruined!" Mr. Henderson yelled, waving his arms in the air. "The factory is dead! The market is bought! We have no metal, and the government is coming in three hours! I am calling my broker! I am selling my shares right now!"

"No!" Marcus shouted, jumping up. He pointed a shaking finger at Henderson. "If you sell, the market will know! The stock will crash before noon!"

"It is already going to crash, Marcus!" Henderson screamed back. "You told us Ron was a nobody! You told us you had it under control! You lied to us! He is a monster, and he is going to destroy us all!"