Annihilate Me 2: Vol. 1 Read Online Free PDF

You
deserve better than that.”
    “Actually, it’s me who doesn’t
deserve you.”
    I watched him move into the
kitchen, and I tried to sense his mood.   He seemed to be his usual self, but I knew him so well at this point
that I sensed an undercurrent.   Was
something wrong?   I wasn’t sure, but
I wasn’t about to jump in now and ask him where our stock was or what was being
said about him and Wenn online.   Now
wasn’t the time.  
    I watched him as he pulled a cup
from one of the cupboards and filled it with coffee, cream, and sugar.   He gave it a quick stir and then walked
over to me with a smile.
    And that’s when I knew—his
smile was strained.   It wasn’t
real.   It was a smile meant to set
me at ease.
    I took the cup when he offered it
to me and sipped.
    “You’re up early,” I said.
    “Couldn’t sleep.”
    “How long have you been up?”
    “About an hour.   Would you like some breakfast?   I’m not hungry, but I can make you some
eggs if you’d like.   Or whatever you
want.   Just name it.”
    Alex and I had never been big on
small talk.   So, I sat down at the
breakfast bar and brought my coffee to my lips.   “What’s going on, Alex?”
    “How about if you finish your
coffee first?”
    “There’s no need to—I’m
awake.   What’s the news?”
    “It’s a mix,” he said.
    “So pro and con?”
    “That’s right.”
    “What’s the ratio?”
    “More con than pro.”
    “Sit with me?” I asked.
    He did, and when he did, I wrapped
my arm around his bare shoulders.
    “Where is Wenn’s stock now?”
    “We fell two points since
yesterday’s close.   And so far in
early trading, we’ve lost another three points.”
    I knew what that meant, and I
braced myself for it.   Investors
would see that five-point decline as additional unrest.   More could bail when the markets opened
at nine-thirty.   But that could turn
around depending on what the press was saying.   So I asked him.
    “Let’s begin with the big ones,” I
said.   “What is the Times saying?”
    “Fair and balanced, as you’d
expect.   It’s an in-depth article
that ends on a positive note.   As
far as they’re concerned, the initial numbers for the SlimPhone are beyond impressive, but they worry about it going forward in a market that’s
‘overcrowded with other phones’—as they put it—which, of course, it
is.”
    “What else did they say?”
    “That Wenn was diverse, which is
good.   The reporter, Michael Hayes,
did his homework, and he obviously listened to me at the press conference.   There was a lot of positive information
in his article.   He touched on
everything, including Wenn Pharmaceutical—and the potential billions our new
drug could make for Wenn.   He even
mentioned Wenn Publishing and noted that it saw a large spike last quarter due
especially to Lisa’s book.   In the
end, he wrote that the correction in our stock was overstated, and that he
considers Wenn a strong buy.”
    “Well, that’s great,” I said.
    “The problem is that he’s just one
reporter.”
    “What did the Journal have to
say?”
    “They were more critical.”
    “How critical?”
    “They actually reviewed the phone
against our competition, and, as much as they liked it, they think we didn’t go
far enough.   They think we should
have given it more memory, and a more robust chip, and a larger screen, even
though we bested what the top phones are offering.   They wanted to see more.   They wanted a game changer, which they
believe the market needs right now.   They liked the design and the interface, but their concern is that we
have only one phone on the market, while others—such as Apple and
Samsung—have several.   They’re
worried about that.   We have only
one entry point into the market—our competition has several.   They also think our phone is pricey,
which it isn’t—the number of units we’ve moved tells us that.   They wondered if our price will slow
sales going