“We’re all in the running—me, Su Beng, and Su Khoon. Dad’s giving himself till the end of the year to decide. Nothing’s set in stone, but the fact he’s even considering putting me forward as CEO of Chahaya…” Renee let out a breath. “I never even dreamt of anything like this. My brothers are older, they’ve been working for the company for years, and—they’re his sons.”
“You’re his daughter.”
“Right, only a daughter. Not even a good one. Dad was so mad when I left home.” Renee tried to smile, but she could feel it had come out wrong, so she stopped. “He said all these things, when we spoke this morning—things he’s never said before. He told me I’ve shown I can make it in business. I have good judgmentand I know how to work hard. But I’m too stubborn, he says. He wants to see if I can work with my brothers.”
Ket Siong raised his eyebrows. “These are the same brothers who tried to sabotage your business.”
Renee shrugged. “Dad’s got a point. My brothers are going to remain involved in Chahaya one way or another. If I took over, I’d have to make it work with them. The company’s pitching for a big job at the moment, to do with a development here.”
She paused, wondering whether to mention Low Teck Wee’s involvement in the project. No, better to avoid it. She didn’t want to slip up and talk about something she shouldn’t—a lot of the detail was commercially sensitive. Besides, why would Ket Siong care?
“My second brother, Su Khoon, is coming over to the UK for a few months to try to seal the deal,” she continued. “Dad’s asked me to help him. That’ll be my test.”
“Su Khoon’s test is to win the deal?” said Ket Siong. “And your eldest brother?”
“We’re—Chahaya’s divesting its retail interests,” said Renee. Warmth rose in her face. It had been a long time since her family and Chahaya had been “us” rather than “them.” “Su Beng’s in charge of that.”
If Ket Siong noticed her gaffe, he didn’t mention it. He took a sip of his beer. Renee could practically hear him processing what she’d told him.
“This is something you want,” he said.
“Yes,” said Renee. Even thinking about the possibility of taking over from her father made her chest clench, with anticipation and terror mixed together. “It’s not only getting to be in charge of one of the most successful companies in Southeast Asia. Chahaya is my dad’s life work. I can’t tell you how much it means.”
Renee could pinpoint the precise moment when she’d realised what Chahaya Group meant. She had always known of it, of course, as the thing that took her dad away from home, hadbought them their houses and cars, paid the servants and her school fees. But it was more than that.
Aged twelve, home from school and bored, she had come across a business magazine on the dining table, left open at a feature analysing Chahaya. She read the article over dinner, for lack of anything better to do. Renee had most of her meals alone, since her nanny had gone back to the Philippines.
It took a while to work through the piece, with its arcane references to “adjusted EBITDA” and “operating leverage.” But she had no difficulty understanding that it was talking about the most important thing in the world—money.
That evening, she waited up in the nice living room by the main entrance, with the Austrian-crystal chandelier and glass sliding doors looking out onto the swimming pool. The family only used the room when they had guests, so no one noticed her. One of the maids even turned off the air-conditioning without realising she was there.
Renee lay on a leather sofa, getting stickier and stickier as the cool air turned warm, entertaining herself by pressing her foot against the marble floor to feel its chill before jerking it up again.
It was technically past her bedtime by the time she heard the bustle at the door heralding her father’s return, but he wouldn’t remember a minor detail like that. She popped up over the sofa before he could disappear into his study or bedroom and said:
“Dad, can I ask you something?”
Dad had been out at a function. His navy blue mandarin-collar shirt was creased, the sleeves rolled up. He barely glanced at her as he took off his shoes, the smell of alcohol and cologne wafting from him. “If you’re having problems with homework, better ask your teachers.”
“Was the SB Permata acquisition really a bad idea?” said Renee. She held up the magazine. “I looked them up online and they sound like a good investment. But this says nobody’s going towant to go to all the malls they’ve built. Is that true? Should Chahaya not have bought the company?”
Dad put his shoes on the rack by the door and looked her in the face for the first time. “You researched it online?”
Renee felt abashed. “I wanted to find out more. I didn’t know if this guy was right, or if he was making stuff up.”
Dad kept looking at her. It was already the longest conversation they’d had that week. Renee became conscious that she was sweaty, her T-shirt sticking damply to her back.
Her parents expected her to be presentable. She should have taken a shower and changed, but she’d been worried about missing her father.
Dad let out an amused puff of breath.
“That’s the right attitude,” he said. He lumbered to his feet. “Come.”
Renee followed him to his study and he explained the SB Permata deal, taking her through the figures and strategy. Talking to her like she was a person, someone he respected.
It was hard to explain all this, even to Ket Siong.
“It shows Dad takes me seriously,” she said finally. “That everything I’ve done matters.”