AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I wasn’t big on knowing the details of jewelry; however, I recognized that one. It was a family heirloom that cost way more than they were auctioning it for. And the real necklace belonged to Helios Karalis. If someone’s home was secured tightly, it was his.
I chuckled to myself. People here were a little too dumb, and they were spending their money on a fake. Even if it were real, and it had been stolen, Karalis would murder anyone who bought it. It was a loss, either way.
It sold for two million dollars. Laughable.
The next hour passed by way too slowly. Ancient Egyptian relics, antiques, rare vinyl players, and paintings.
The man next to me didn’t so much as move an inch for a whole hour. He sat silently, his number sign on his lap. If he hadn’t been blinking, I would’ve thought he was dead. I could hardly detect his chest moving when he was breathing.
As soon as paintings began to display, he took the sign in his hand and got ready. The first couple of them didn’t interest him; however, I saw a change in his posture once a painting of nature came up.
Truthfully, it was beautiful. It was easy on the eyes, the strokes were good, and, as someone who had no interest in art, I could still appreciate how pretty it looked. It was a painting of a forest on a stormy day, the gloomy clouds hanging above the trees. The details were great, too. I could see every single raindrop. Not only that, but the clouds were painted as faces, and their expressions held nothing but terror.
The presenter spoke into the microphone. “The artist who goes by their initials, N.K., is well known. Despite not painting for the past decade, their work is still one of the most valuable on the market. And today, we present another work of theirs that no gallery has ever seen.”
He was quiet as the pictures displayed behind him.
“The bidding will start at five thousand.”
Well, it wasn’t five grand kind of beautiful.
I raised my sign.
“I see five thousand. Is anyone offering more?”
For the first time, the man turned to look at me. I stared straight ahead with my sign raised. I could hear him chuckle and, from the corner of my eye, saw him shake his head. It seemed as if he was getting started, finding the scene hilarious.
His sign went up. “Ten thousand.”
The tone in his voice was hostile, threatening even. He didn’t need to raise his voice; all ears were listening to him. He radiated power, and he was aware of the impact he had on the entire room.
“We have ten thousand!”
“Fifteen.”
“Twenty.”
I was getting pissed, though since the limit Aleksei set was higher, I had no issues playing the game. How far was he willing to go for a mere painting?
“Twenty-five.”
“Fifty thousand.”
I suppressed a laugh. “Sixty.”
“Sixty thousand dollars! Is anyone offering more?”
It was silent for a moment.
“You might want to stop wasting your money,” he advised in a low tone. “I have no intention of losing this painting.”
Then, he spoke loudly. “One hundred thousand.”
I’d gotten his attention, and that was enough. I didn’t need to provoke him further until I found out who the fuck he was. In the meantime, he won the painting. For the first time tonight, I shifted my body to give a good look at his face. Well, his eyes.
My instincts were right, as per usual. His eyes were pitch black, which meant this wasn’t The Rapscallion.
The auction wasn’t nearly done, but he stood up and walked towards the exit. He came for the painting and was no longer interested in anything else. The guards immediately allowed him to leave without batting an eyelash. Slowly, I followed suit.
