"What is it?" Marcus said, not really a question. She held up a finger, listening, and then said slowly, "Can you say that again? And I want to make sure I have this exactly right. A pause.
And you're certain about the source of that information. Another pause longer this time. Okay. Thank you. I'll follow up within the hour.
She hung up and the whole garage held its breath collectively. That was my associate. Marlene said, "Digging into Precision Dine Technologies' background after the injunction got denied, trying to understand why a company nobody's ever heard of would file an emergency motion this aggressive over a viral news story." She looked at Marcus. Turns out Precision Dine Technologies is less than 18 months old.
Filed for incorporation right around the time your first specialist, Victor Cole, started making calls trying to source replacement parts for this bike. Marcus' face went hard. You're saying this is connected to Victor Cole? I'm saying my associate found something interesting, Marlene said carefully. Victor Cole consulted for Precision Dine before he ever walked through your gate.
It's buried in some old filings. Nothing he disclosed to you when you hired him. And the patent Precision Dine is claiming was violated. It was filed 4 months after Victor Cole spent 16 hours in this exact garage running diagnostics on this exact engine. The implications sat in the air like smoke, and it took a moment for everyone to fully absorb the shape of it.
"He copied it," Sal said slowly, disbelief and fury tangled together in his voice. "He came in here, couldn't figure out how to fix it, but figured out enough about the design to file a patent on it himself, and then had the nerve to threaten to sue you for using your own engine." I can't confirm that with certainty yet, Marlene said. But the timeline is suspicious enough that I intend to find out. If that's what actually happened, Precision Dine doesn't have a patent claim against you, Marcus.
You might have a fraud claim against them. Reaper let out a short bitter laugh, shaking his head. Man spends 16 hours failing to fix a motorcycle, walks away with nothing, and still finds a way to try to steal it anyway. People do strange things when they can't stand the idea of failing publicly, Marlene said. Especially people who've built their whole reputation on never being wrong, she looked at Marcus.
I'll need a few days to confirm everything properly build a real case if there's one to build, but my gut tells you you're not the one who should be worried here anymore. Marcus absorbed that slowly. The anger and relief tangled together in a way that left him feeling strangely exhausted rather than triumphant. Do what you need to do, he said.