Overdue Scrutiny [Ivy]

Posts : 22 Join date : 2017-09-07

"Ah. Well." Bruce paused, fighting back a grin; it wasn't appropriate. He was beginning to realise the weight of what he'd done, and he knew that his statement of Henry killing him was an understatement. He was never supposed to act before consulting the man unless he had no choice -- and he most definitely had a choice. Perhaps he could spin it so that it sounded like a more demanding situation than it had been? "It wasn't too much," he said, slowly; this was true. Somewhat. It wasn't much for him. "Just a million or so. A million six hundred, to be specific."

He'd actually bargained it down from two and a half million, arguing that the place was a dump and he'd spend that amount refurbishing it anyway. His father made for a hard bargain, and as always, people caved to his demands. All in all the place actually had potential, Bruce could tell; it was just in the wrong hands. He'd have to hire someone he trusted and keep a close, constant eye on it if he didn't want a repeat of Tom, but he was willing to put the legwork if it meant no other child would suffer in this orphanage.

He glanced at Ivy and offered her a slight smile. "Tom won't get a cent, of course. I bought it from the man who owns -- owned -- it. Tom was just someone he hired. Did you know each month he's given three thousand for upkeep and food? I'll have to include that in the report when I get da-- my lawyers to go after him and make him give it all back."

The tour was quick and proved to Bruce that very little, if any, of the money Tom got went to it. Already he was compiling a list of things that needed to be done. As they stepped into the yard, he glanced at the ground; it was dirt, and hard, and already he was envisioning a Hogwarts-esque remodelling, with grass and trees (although not the Whomping Willow) and perhaps a small playground, too. He made a mental note to check if the small parking lot directly behind the orphanage was for sale, and if he could buy that, too; it would give them more space to run outdoors.

Ivy's comment made him smile. "Money is of no question, my dear," he said, not keeping his tone down; he was speaking as Peter, and not Bruce. "I can host a gala and raise funds. My partners would not shy from the opportunity to be seen doing good; it is always beneficial to a company to have some dealings in charity. Now, I have a task for you, if you think you are up to the job? Bruce tells me you are resourceful. Do you think you can gather a list of things the children most need, in order of priority? Bedding, mattresses, food... They would know best, for they live here. I will make a few business calls. Shall we say half an hour? Would that be sufficient for you to find the information?"

Posts : 23 Join date : 2017-08-25

Ivy almost stopped in her tracks "You spent a million? On this?" she gestured around her "Seriously? You got ripped off," she shook her head. Though in the grand scheme of what Bruce owned, it probably wasn't much at all. Still, to Ivy, a million was a lot. And so definitely not worth this place. It seemed as though Bruce just genuinely did want to make it better for all the other kids, which she could definitely respect.

"Yeah, I know he got money each month for the place," she shrugged "I just never knew it was to like fix walls and stuff, I thought it was just his paycheck or whatever," she debated whether or not to tell him she'd swiped some of it a few times, only when she was desperate. He seemed to have a strong moral compass when it came to that sort of thing, so she kept it quiet for now.

She nodded as he gave her the task "I can definitely do that. Make the first thing you do be putting in a new kitchen, the one now has mould or fungus or something crappy growing there," she shuddered "But yeah, I'll go and ask around." she nodded before she decided to approach a group of kids that looked to be roughly her age that she seemed to know, and started to talk to them, not wasting any time with small talk, but getting straight into it, talking about Tom being fired and asking what they needed.

It didn't take too long at all for Ivy to get a list up, majority of the things she could have thought of herself, but there were a few mentioned by her friends, things like soap and hot water. After a while she decided to make her way back to Bruce.

Posts : 22 Join date : 2017-09-07

He smiled at her. There were things she didn't know yet, things she might never need to know, that Bruce did. Truth be told he shouldn't have known those things either, but life hadn't been kind or fair, and so he did know. "Foundation is strong," he said, simply. "Good land. Good building, too, if it had been taken care of." He paused, and looked around. "It's actually worth just under three, but the owner was willing to settle for less after he heard what Tom did. It's still a loss for what he's paid all in all, but it's better than losing it all; I would have gotten it one way or another, and he knows that."

Bruce smiled a little at the statement. "He had his paycheck. Not as much as the money given for maintenance, but enough nevertheless. He had no reason to take the excess money except for greed. We can get him on theft, too, but that's more for the police. It might be best if we just sue him for negligence and mistreatment of minors -- that could technically be an abuse charge. He'll pay back everything he's stolen and then some."

He was talking as though he'd already won, of course, when it hadn't even started, but that was how Peter always talked. Henry had made him painfully aware that his father was arrogant and somewhat pompous; he truly believed he was untouchable.

As soon as Ivy went off, Bruce took out his phone and started the tedious process of making calls. First was to Henry, and after Bruce had soothed the man (as much as he could), he turned his attention to other matters. Within twenty minutes he'd already secured a whole kitchen remodelling, starting the next day, and catering in the meanwhile. There were five cooks lined up for interviews for the position, and he'd made sure they knew that he expected only the best.

He also had his secretary arranging for a meeting with some of his partners and friends from other companies, and a cleaning crew was scheduled to arrive later that day. (He'd forked out an extra thousand for them to bump him up to the top of the waiting list; what was a thousand after just spending over a million and a half to get the orphanage?) He also had contractors coming out first thing the next day to look at the walls and floors to see what they could do.

IKEA was delivering two hundred mattresses in a few hours, and Bed and Bath Beyond would be sending new comforters and sheets around the same time. A team of removers would be arriving in an hour to remove the old beds, just in time for the new ones to arrive. Once more, a little donation had been enough to make him their priority, and everything was done quickly and easily; now all he had to do was wait for Ivy to arrive.

As he saw Ivy returning, he offered her a slight smile. "Well?"