Page 23 of A Life Imagined
He accepted the glass and leaned back in his chair.“Is that so?”
Heylen took a swig and placed his drink down on the small table between them.“Tell me what you did before this.You’re too savvy to be some humble antiques trader.I’ve worked with plenty of people over the years, and I know talent when I see it.I ask for something, and you get it faster than anyone else.And you charge an arm and a leg for it as well.I like that.You know your worth.You let the business come to you, not the other way around.”
Mathias brought the whiskey to his lips.It was smooth and rich, the way he liked it.He gave a shrug.“Business is business, no matter the industry.”
“And is this a hobby of yours?You made it big, retired early, and now you don’t know what to do with your time?”
Mathias stared back at him.“Let me worry about the why.”
Heylen gave him an amused smile then stepped over to his desk, where he retrieved a piece of paper and handed it to Mathias.“Out of curiosity, what would you make of this?”
Mathias narrowed his eyes.“So, in exchange for the drink, I perform like a circus monkey?”
“No, no.Think of it as an information exchange between one importer and another.”
“I’m pretty sure what I import in a year, you write off on a single shipment.”
Heylen chuckled, returning to his seat.“Humor me.”
Mathias looked down at the sheet in his hand.It was a list of tariffs based on port locations.He glanced over the numbers, mildly interested.
“Well, you’re getting gouged by the Dutch, for one.And the Finns are usually open to volume-based negotiations.They’re not giving you nearly enough of a discount for what you’re bringing in.”
Heylen’s grin widened, stretching across his face.“See?I knew it.I always trust my gut when it comes to these things.”He waggled a finger in excitement.“We recently bought out a local competitor—nobody too impressive, but big enough to make a dent in our EEA revenue.Bruges is home to the second largest port in Europe.The sheer number of containers that pass through here, you wouldn’t believe.I figure, with the new business under the right leadership, we could increase regional profit by at least forty percent.But there’s the rub—finding the right person for the job.”Heylen leaned forward in his chair.“I have a feeling you’re the kind of man who could take a role like that and hit it out of the park.”
He can’t be serious.“I don’t work for other people.”
“I can understand that.I’m the same way.”Heylen picked up his glass and took another sip.“What if I made you a partner in the new business?We’re talking a fleet of three hundred, moving five and a half million containers per annum—oil, coal, timber, you name it.The commute’s not too bad.You can come in when you want and run the rest from a satellite office.I don’t need you down the hall.I need you managing—broad strokes, big decisions.The rest you can leave up to the team.And who knows?Perhaps at some point, we’ll open a branch in Calais.”
It was almost amusing how committed the man was to courting him.
“I haven’t even mentioned the pay.”Heylen pulled a pen from his breast pocket and jotted a number down on the back of the tariff sheet.“That’s an indication of the kind of money you can expect.”
Mathias glanced at the figure.That many zeros, and it might as well be play money.He gave a low laugh.“You don’t know me.You’d hand over half your business to a man who sources your furniture?”
“I’ve had nine prospective CEOs come through my office in the past two weeks, and not one of them picked up on the fact that we’re overpaying close to twelve million in tariffs—you being the notable exception.”Heylen’s expression turned contemplative.“You get to where I am, Mathias, and you realize you don’t have to do everything by the book.I’m sick of dealing with people who look good on paper but can’t deliver.Do you know what we used to do back before it was all about keeping the shareholders happy?Take a gamble and see how it panned out.Hell, it’s my business.I can go out on a limb if I want to.”
Mathias downed his glass and got to his feet.“I appreciate the drink, Heylen.You go on and bring that home to your wife.Give me a call when you’re after another cabinet.”
“Think about it, Mathias,” Heylen called out as Mathias walked to the door.“It’s there if you want it.”
Despite his purported lack of interest, Mathias found himself mulling over the offer on the drive back to Calais.He didn’t give a shit about the money, but Heylen’s clout was impressive.JFH Logistics held a twenty percent share of the international container-shipping market, and Heylen would have connections that spanned the globe.The idea of partnering with the man played to Mathias’s ambition, the part of him that had always wanted to see how far up in the world he could move.
His phone rang, and Elise’s number appeared on the screen.
“Chief, there’s been a small problem,” she said when he picked up.
“What kind of problem?”
“They’re holding the shipment from Dubai.”
Mathias sucked his teeth.“Which shipment?A little more information so we don’t have to sit around playing twenty questions.”
“The pair of Bronze Age vases.The dealer in Dubai dispatched the order three weeks ago, and I received confirmation that it landed in Calais yesterday, but the freight company won’t release it.When I called, the ship’s master was gone, and I couldn’t get a clear word from anyone.We’ll have to go down in person to sort it.Otherwise, they’ll probably send the whole shipment back.”
Mathias knew that by “we,” she meant him.Elise struggled to navigate the delicate workings of bureaucracy at the best of times.
“I’ll stop by the port when I’m back in the city,” he said and hung up without waiting for a reply.
