FOUR TO THE DANCE FLOOR A Novel by Lubo DoBrev Copyright 2006 Lubo DoBrev ------------------------------------- Podnovella#1 - Four To The Dance Floor - the very first I-pod book! -> Do you have what it takes to be a Podcast star? If so, email an audio sample from a read chapter of Four to the Dance Floor to info@lubodobrev.com If selected, your voice will be heard all over the world! WWW.LUBODOBREV.COM ------------------------------------- PART ONE "Running with the Bulls" Chapter I. The night reverberated with thunder. It was after midnight, and the corporate offices that sprawled along Atlanta's edge were mostly empty. Two impeccably dressed men sprinted from a commercial building, gingerly avoiding the puddles in the parking lot. The younger of the bankers was tall, thin, and almost thirty. Holding a briefcase on his head with one hand to protect himself from the rain, he pulled a cigarette from his pocket with the other. He waited for his supervisor to unlock the rental car and exhaled a cloud of smoke. Nico Gressens looked up as a lightning bolt crossed the sky. "A perfect moment," he said to himself. "Goddamn Dutch son of a bitch," Nico's supervisor said as he approached the car, "how the hell did you come up with that tax shelter in the Caribbean?" Jacob Moore, in his fifties and well built, clicked the remote control on his keychain and the black car's lights flashed. Jacob sank in the leather seat. Nico threw his cigarette into a puddle and opened the passenger door. Jacob Moore shook his head. "Did you learn those tricks at Harvard?" he asked. Nico loosened his tie. "Oh Georgia, it's been a hard day’s night." Jacob turned on the ignition. "Our night is just beginning. Let's go and celebrate downtown, I know a shortcut from here." "So this is how the American dream really gets done," said Nico as he strapped on his seatbelt. "Yeah, and you helped underwrite it," replied Jacob. "You turned on the Amsterdam charm with those senior executives. Amazing how they bit on your idea . . . you could see it, all they were thinking about was putting on their Bermuda shorts and heading for the beach!" "They better not forget their sunscreen. My Caribbean idea may burn them." Jacob wound his way onto the highway and pressed the gas. Raindrops gently drummed on the windshield. "Now let's get this show on the road," he said. A wry smile crossed Jacob's face. "We can run with the bulls, Nico. We'll be spinning for our friends." "Spinning for our friends?" "I'll teach you. We dish cheap IPOs to influential executives, like the guys we just dealt with, after the stock has already started trading. They cash in their shares for an instant profit, and return the favor by sending lucrative opportunities our way. All we do is go from one deal to the next, spinning stocks to our circle of friends. Bankers Price Investments of New York leaves no money on the table." Nico sat up straight and made sure that Jacob could see him nodding attentively. "Remember this, Nico: you don't have to spend money to make money – you need a deal to make money. This IPO may be a good deal, but it's still not as great as when your Dutch forefathers bought Manhattan for twenty-four dollars. Unfortunately, your people then traded it for a worthless nutmeg island." Nico remained silent, his glare fixed on the empty road. In spite of the darkness and rain he could make out the pine trees that flanked the highway. "I see," he eventually replied. ----> Download the next "Four to the Dance Floor" PodNovella at WWW.LUBODOBREV.COM