[Chapter 420: All the Baby Nas Are Already Picked Out]
A blonde woman strode briskly toward them. She was tall and slender, with perfectly applied makeup that highlighted her beautiful face. The parts of her skin exposed by her evening gown revealed a strikingly fair complexion.
Hawke had seen many Russian won and could recognize this one right away -- she was slightly older. Today's banquet was hosted by Condoleezza Rice in her capacity as Secretary of State. The Secretary handled foreign affairs and had invited many foreign diplomats and their entourages.
Clearly, the woman was here for Hawke. Approaching, she gave Elon Musk a slight nod before addressing Hawke: "Hello, Mr. Osnt, I'm Yelena Danilova, a civilian secretary at the Russian Embassy."
Hawke lightly clasped her outstretched right hand and politely replied, "Nice to et you."
Yelena's smile was as dazzling as the northern lights. "May we have a private word?"
Hearing this, Musk started to step away.
Hawke was straightforward. "No need for private chat, if you have sothing to say, say it here."
Musk spun his head quickly and paused his step.
Seeing Hawke was firm, Yelena abandoned the idea of a private talk but maintained her diplomatic smile. "My father, Mikhail, works at the Moscow headquarters of Kaspersky, where he is a deputy director at a top-tier lab. He has strong opinions about Twitter."
Hawke feigned confusion. "I don't quite understand."
Russian thods were typically blunt, and this woman was no exception: "Twitter and the FBI have fabricated accusations against the Kaspersky lab, severely damaging its international reputation. My father is very angry. If your side does not proactively clarify this matter, Kaspersky will take resolute action."
Every word revolved around 'Kaspersky,' but Hawke knew that the Kaspersky she referred to was not the real one.
Hawke smiled, "I think you have the wrong person. Twitter is just a business. I'm a businessman; I don't have the authority to define a wiretapping case."
Yelena said, "Kaspersky will file lawsuits against Twitter simultaneously in Moscow and Los Angeles. You will pay the price."
Hawke said seriously, "I believe that whether it's Russian law or Arican law, Twitter will receive a fair outco."
Once the Manhattan AI Project passed funding committee review, billions of dollars would be at hand, and two legal teams could be deployed, one handling the Russians in court, the other daily following the Russians around, making noise and singing Katyusha.
Yelena's smile never faded: "It seems we cannot reach an agreent on this."
Hawke said, "You can go through official channels and protest to the FBI."
'If official channels worked, I wouldn't be here,' Yelena was tempted to slap him.
These Aricans were ugly-faced, untrustworthy liars. Even when caught red-handed, they weren't ashad and argued their case.
Hawke Osnt was the perfect example.
Yelena felt many politicians had more morals than this guy.
Her smile suddenly took on another aning. "You refuse to settle with Kaspersky."
Hawke asked, "Secretary, does your work involve information gathering and transmission?"
Yelena's smile faded.
Hawke seed not to notice and continued, "A spy trained for over ten years, undercover nearly as long, sent on a ridiculous suicide mission because so big shot wants to grovel to Arica -- that's really pathetic."
Yelena retorted, "Russia has never sent any spies to Arica."
Hawke ignored her and went on: "Maybe after today, your side's big shots still won't care about frontline operatives and will send them near ti after ti... Oh, almost forgot to tell you, the FBI has many agents inside Twitter and around ."
"Well, then," Yelena said, turned around and left.
...
Musk, watching her swaying hips, said, "Why do you have to do this?"
Hawke misunderstood and said, "You think what I say to her matters? Unless I declare everything false, Russia's attitude won't change. But that's impossible. The spy is real, and my company and project are seriously damaged."
He sighed, shaking his head. "I can't lie against my conscience, especially to help the Russians."
Musk agreed, "You have a point." He stared after Yelena, "But the approach could be gentler: get close to her, try to extract useful info from her."
Hawke got it, "That's your plan? You want to get close to her and get DNA info?"
Musk was serious, "Exactly. Now that I'm an Arican citizen, when national interests are at stake, I should be at the front line, turning enemy spies."
Hawke frowned, "You sure you can turn her?"
Musk said, "Make her have my baby, and definitely turn her."
Hawke patted his shoulder, "Buddy, you only t her once, and you're already picking baby nas."
Musk said, "I can't help it. She's exactly my type."
"Stop daydreaming." Hawke changed the subject, "What about Tesla? I heard you fired the entire founding team?"
Musk focused, "We couldn't reconcile visions about car design and launch. They wanted to plug electric systems directly into the MG cars -- which would be no different from traditional cars. Tesla's electric cars have to be revolutionary."
He shrugged, "I negotiated multiple tis with the founding team led by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning but couldn't reach an agreent, so I used my majority shareholder rights to remove them."
Hawke had invested in Tesla last year, with shares originally held via West Coast dia Entertainnt Studio, now transferred to West Coast Investnt Foundation.
Before Tesla's shareholders' eting, Musk had approached Hawke. Both Hawke and Peter Thiel temporarily delegated their voting rights to Musk.
"Hope you build a groundbreaking new car that shocks the market," Hawke said. "When's Tesla's next round of funding?"
Musk replied, "Soon. You're a major shareholder; you'll be notified in advance."
...
Hawke noticed Hearst signaling nearby with John McCain close.
He said bye to Musk before walking over, shook McCain's hand, and said, "Senator, thanks for supporting Twitter and the Manhattan AI Project."
McCain smiled, "The Twitter internal data models have helped collect frontline voter data and refine my lab models."
Hawke smiled, "Wishing you success in your campaign."
McCain added, "And success for Twitter's Manhattan AI Project."
They chatted briefly before going their separate ways.
Hearst accompanied Hawke to et the British and Australian ambassadors.
...
The banquet ran until 10 p.m. Hawke left and returned to his hotel.
Musk waved from a distance, escorting a woman, clearly not Yelena.
Musk talked a big ga but didn't dare try.
Many embassy officials, military attaches, counselors, and secretaries often doubled as housing liaisons.
This was an open secret.
...
Hawke's trip to Washington was nearly over. He planned to return to Los Angeles.
Before leaving, he asked Hearst's recomnded property manager to find a suitable residence.
Hawke would frequently visit Washington, and if Erica had ti, she might co too, so they needed a permanent ho.
The manager suggested two hos. Hawke visited but wasn't pleased. He'd wait until his next trip.
New luxury hos kept being built.
---
Back in Los Angeles, Hawke found ti to et Aziz and Utaybah.
One could disrespect their people or beliefs but never their money.
Aziz ca from a top Malaysian governnt family, while Utaybah was close to a 'real prince' from Abu Dhabi.
To Hawke, they wore their wealth like a shining crown.
Aziz, who invested in Hollywood, was new to Hawke's knowledge, but he recalled another Malaysian billionaire investor.
That was Jho Low, a real cash king who collected female stars. He had almost engaged to Miranda Kerr and spent huge amounts on Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian.
Hawke didn't use his money to make movies, but the industry's influence was massive. He needed so movies like The Los Angeles Fires for public impact.
"Gentlen, Hollywood movies are popular worldwide," Hawke said thinking of leveraging for benefits. "An outstanding film not only yields profits for investors but also shapes public opinion."
Aziz didn't care; his money wasn't ant for promoting Malaysia.
Hawke's main target was Utaybah. "For example, my friend Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible series films shoot in world-class cities. I think Abu Dhabi would be a great location."
Utaybah, knowing that promoting the city was more important than just investing, said, "I will contact His Highness the Prince and convey your cooperation proposal."
*****
spatreon/Sayonara816.
Reviews
All reviews (0)