Chapter 68: An Unexpected Opportunity

Damian had barely finished breakfast when his phone rang.

Maya Patel.

He answered while clearing his plate.

"Morning."

"Are you busy?"

"Depends. Is this about Meridian?"

"It is."

Damian put the plate down.

"Go ahead."

"The attorney has finished an initial review of the documents Michael sent last night."

"And?"

"We have a clearer picture of the problem. Not the whole picture, but enough to know what needs to happen next."

Damian pulled out a chair.

"Tell me."

"The original agreement gives Rachel certain rights over parts of the software architecture. Meridian has a license to use that material, but the language around modifications and future commercial development is ambiguous."

"So buying the company doesn’t automatically give me unrestricted control over everything."

"Correct."

Damian rubbed his forehead.

"Can we fix it?"

"Possibly. But we need Rachel’s cooperation, and we need to understand Northstar’s position before discussing a final purchase agreement."

"Has Michael agreed to that?"

"He has agreed to provide more documents. He hasn’t agreed to anything beyond that."

"At least he’s cooperating."

"For now."

Damian glanced at the clock.

"What do you need from me?"

"Nothing immediately. The attorney wants to speak with Rachel. We also need updated financial statements and a breakdown of the costs required to modernize the software."

"All right. Get those moving."

Maya paused.

"Damian?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you’ve been looking forward to this acquisition, but don’t let that make you impatient."

He smiled.

"Daniel already gave me that speech."

"Then perhaps you’ll listen to one of us."

"Very funny."

"You’re welcome."

The call ended.

Damian sat back.

The deal was still alive.

That was something.

But he had a feeling the next few weeks would determine whether Meridian became his first major acquisition or an expensive lesson he was lucky enough to avoid.

He finished his breakfast and headed to campus.

Ethan was waiting outside the lecture hall.

He looked at Damian’s face and frowned.

"Why do you look like you haven’t slept?"

"I slept."

"How long?"

"Enough."

"That’s not a number."

Damian walked past him.

"Good morning to you too."

Ethan followed.

"Is it that company again?"

"Yes."

"Then stop thinking about it for five minutes."

"I can think about two things at once."

"Can you?"

Damian glanced at him.

Ethan grinned.

"Sorry. That was unnecessary."

They entered the lecture hall.

For the next hour, Damian did his best to pay attention. He even took notes, although he caught himself checking his phone twice.

Ethan noticed the second time.

He leaned over.

"Bro, if the company hasn’t disappeared in the last ten minutes, it’s probably still there."

Damian closed his phone.

"Focus on the lecture."

"I am. I’m studying your symptoms."

"What symptoms?"

"Rich-person disease."

Damian laughed quietly.

"You’re an idiot."

"Your idiot."

"Unfortunately."

When the lecture ended, Ethan packed his things.

"Come on. We’re getting lunch."

"Again?"

"Do you have a problem with eating?"

"No."

"Good. I was worried your millions had made you forget how."

Damian shook his head and followed him.

The restaurant was crowded, so they found a table outside.

Ethan ordered first, then spent several minutes complaining about an assignment he hadn’t started.

Damian listened while checking his email.

A new message had arrived from Daniel.

Subject: University Follow-Up

Westbridge had received another inquiry from a university interested in its software. The institution wanted more information about the onboarding process and the results of the existing pilot.

Damian smiled.

The expansion was beginning to move faster than expected.

He called Daniel.

"Hey, I just saw your email."

"Good. Sarah’s putting the information together."

"Are they looking at a full rollout?"

"Too early to say. They want to understand what we’ve done so far."

"Fair enough."

Daniel continued, "The existing pilot is helping. Completion rates are holding, and the support team has been handling the workload better than we expected."

"That’s good."

"It is. But don’t start counting revenue that hasn’t arrived."

Damian laughed.

"Was I about to?"

"You were thinking about it."

"You’re getting good at this."

"I’ve had practice."

They discussed the inquiry for a few more minutes before ending the call.

Damian put his phone away.

Ethan was staring at him.

"What?"

"You’re smiling at your phone again."

"It’s business."

"You used to smile at your phone when Emily texted you."

"I still do."

Ethan nodded thoughtfully.

"So now you have two girlfriends."

Damian nearly choked on his drink.

"What?"

"Emily and capitalism."

Damian burst out laughing.

"Please never say that again."

"I’m serious. You look at those emails with the same expression."

"You’re actually insane."

Ethan looked pleased with himself.

"Thank you."

That afternoon, Damian visited Westbridge’s office.

Sarah was in the meeting room, arranging documents for the new university inquiry. Daniel sat nearby, reviewing the latest pilot report.

"You’re early," Sarah said.

"I was nearby."

Daniel looked up.

"Good. We have something else to discuss."

Damian took a seat.

"That sounds expensive."

"Not necessarily."

Daniel turned his laptop around.

The report showed the university pilot’s latest results. Student completion remained strong, support requests had declined, and feedback on the simplified onboarding process was improving.

There were still complaints, especially from students who struggled with certain features, but the team had begun addressing them.

Damian studied the figures.

"How many universities have contacted us now?"

"Three have made inquiries," Sarah answered. "One is still preliminary. The other two have asked for more detailed information."

"That’s encouraging."

"It is," Daniel said. "But we need to make sure we can support another institution before agreeing to anything."

Damian nodded.

"Then let’s not promise what we can’t deliver."

Sarah smiled.

"Daniel said you’d say that."

"Does everybody know me now?"

"You’re becoming predictable," she replied.

"That’s unfortunate."

They spent the next hour discussing support capacity, implementation costs, and what Westbridge would need before accepting another large contract.

Damian asked questions and listened to the answers.

He still wasn’t an expert in software operations, but he was learning to recognize the difference between an opportunity and a commitment.

By the time the meeting ended, he had a clearer picture of Westbridge’s next steps.

The company was growing.

Slowly, carefully, and with fewer problems than he’d expected.

For now, that was enough.

Damian was halfway back to his apartment when his phone rang again.

This time, it was an unfamiliar number.

He answered.

"Hello?"

"Good afternoon. Is this Damian Cross?"

"Yes."

"My name is Olivia Grant. I’m calling from a business advisory firm. We work with privately owned companies considering expansion, restructuring, or a change in ownership."

Damian slowed his pace.

"All right."

"We came across your name through a professional contact who mentioned your interest in technology acquisitions."

He immediately became cautious.

"Which contact?"

"I’d rather confirm that with my colleague before giving you the wrong information. I can send you our company details and explain why I’m calling."

"Please do."

"Certainly. We’re currently advising a small software business whose founder is considering a sale. It’s an established operation with recurring customers, and the owner would prefer to speak with a buyer who intends to continue developing the business rather than simply acquire its customer list."

Damian stopped walking.

Another software company.

He almost laughed.

"What’s the company called?"

"Brightpath Systems."

"How long has it been operating?"

"Just over five years."

"And why is the owner selling?"

"That would be something to discuss with the owner. I can tell you that the company is profitable, but growth has slowed, and the founder is considering his next move."

Damian looked toward the road.

"Do you have financial statements?"

"We can arrange access to preliminary information after an initial discussion and the necessary confidentiality arrangements."

"What’s the asking price?"

"That hasn’t been formally established."

That answer interested him more than a number would have.

"Send me the details."

"I will. Would you be available for a short introductory meeting later this week?"

"Send the information first. I’ll review it and get back to you."

"Of course. Thank you for your time."

The call ended.

Damian stood there for a moment.

Then he laughed.

He’d spent weeks investigating Meridian, and now another company had appeared out of nowhere.

He wasn’t going to jump at it.

He wasn’t even going to assume it was a good opportunity.

But he would look.

That was the point of searching in the first place.

When Damian got home, the email was waiting.

Brightpath Systems — Initial Information

The document was brief.

Brightpath provided scheduling, invoicing, and customer-management software for small service businesses. Its customers included maintenance companies, cleaning services, independent contractors, and a handful of regional service providers.

The company had been operating for just over five years.

Its founder, Oliver Grant, had built the software with a small team and grown the customer base through referrals.

Revenue was recurring.

The business was profitable.

Growth had slowed during the previous year.

There was no asking price yet.

Damian read the document twice.

Brightpath was smaller than he expected, but that wasn’t necessarily a problem.

It also operated in a different segment from Meridian.

He opened a new folder on his laptop.

Brightpath Systems — Initial Review

He added the company profile and wrote down the questions he wanted answered.

How many active customers?

What was the monthly recurring revenue?

How much debt did the company carry?

How much would it cost to maintain and improve the software?

Were customers renewing because they liked the product, or because switching was inconvenient?

And why was Oliver considering a sale?

Damian saved the file.

Then he opened the Meridian folder.

The two companies weren’t competing for his attention yet. He hadn’t even met Brightpath’s founder.

But he had learned enough from the Meridian process to know that a business could look attractive on paper while hiding expensive problems.

This time, he would take his time from the beginning.

The golden System screen appeared above his desk.

[NEW INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY DETECTED.]

A second line appeared beneath it.

[EVALUATION REQUIRED.]

Damian smiled.

"Yeah. I know."

The screen disappeared.

He leaned back in his chair and looked at the two folders on his laptop.

Meridian had potential, but its legal problems remained unresolved.

Brightpath was an unknown quantity.

Neither company had earned his money yet.

And that was fine.

He had more than five million dollars, but he didn’t need to turn every dollar into another investment.

He needed to find the right opportunity.

His phone buzzed.

Ethan:

Football tomorrow?

Damian:

Yeah.

Ethan:

Good. Bring money.

Damian:

For what?

Ethan:

Food.

Damian shook his head.

Damian:

Get a job.

Ethan:

I have one. I’m your friend.

Damian laughed and put his phone down.

Tomorrow, he would review Brightpath’s numbers.

Tonight, he was done thinking about companies.