Chapter 27
Chapter 27
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Luxury Warehouse Auction (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Soon the auction began.
It was such a big event that nearly a hundred people had gathered.
"Today is a special auction. A total of fifteen warehouses are up for bid."
Marcus grabbed the mic and addressed the crowd.
Warehouses one through four were pretty ordinary.
Victor snagged number two for three thousand dollars.
And then came the fifth warehouse.
It was the turn of the one packed with luxury boxes.
As soon as the door swung open...
"Oh! My! God! Victor, look at that!"
Victor's girlfriend Tiffany practically screamed.
"Hermes! That orange box! And the purple one too! Birkin bags, no doubt!"
She shook Victor's arm frantically.
"Louis Vuitton, Chanel... even Gucci and Prada! Victor, you have to buy it! Please!"
Victor draped an arm around her shoulder with smug confidence.
"Haha, if that's what you want, of course I'll get it for you. Just sit back and watch."
"Really? Oh, Victor! You're the best!"
She planted a kiss on his cheek.
Victor's face flushed red.
"Starting bid: one thousand dollars!"
Victor shot his hand up right away.
"Ten thousand dollars!"
The room erupted in murmurs. It was ten times the starting bid.
But with goods like those, plenty of competitors jumped in this time.
The dealer from Dallas was first to raise his hand.
"Eleven thousand dollars!"
Another from Houston joined the fray.
"Twelve thousand dollars!"
"Fifteen thousand dollars!"
The price skyrocketed in seconds.
Victor scowled in irritation.
"Tch. Twenty-five thousand."
The bids kept climbing fast.
But the Dallas dealer showed no signs of backing down.
"Twenty-six thousand dollars!"
The competition was way fiercer than expected.
Tiffany tugged at Victor's sleeve, glancing around nervously.
"Victor, we're not gonna lose out on it, are we?"
"Ha! You forgetting who I am? Just watch me work."
Victor smirked and raised his hand.
"Thirty thousand dollars!"
A few bidders tsked and dropped out at the big jump.
Even the Dallas guy seemed to hesitate.
'Damn, it can't end here.'
At this rate, Victor would walk away with warehouse five for a measly thirty grand.
I eyed the fired-up Victor, weighed my options, then thrust my hand high.
"Thirty thousand one hundred dollars."
All eyes snapped to me, the new player.
Victor shot me a pissed-off glare.
"...Who the hell is that guy? Victor, do something!"
Tiffany yanked at him, patience gone.
She wasn't even trying to keep her voice down anymore.
"Ignore him. Total rookie."
Victor brushed it off.
Right then, the Dallas dealer raised his hand after some thought.
"Forty thousand dollars!"
Whistles filled the room.
This was rare territory for a storage auction.
I sized up Victor and tossed out a taunting bid.
"Forty thousand one hundred."
Victor's face turned beet red as he watched the price climb without his control.
His pride was properly bruised.
"Hey! Fifty thousand dollars!"
This was straight-up insanity from here.
If I pushed higher and he bailed...
Bill was across the way, shaking his head at me desperately. Same thought.
'But Victor's still got plenty of slack.'
He looked more annoyed than anyone.
And Tiffany next to him wore a frantic expression.
Yeah. Could squeeze a bit more.
'Sorry, Bill.'
I apologized in my head and raised my hand.
Eyes squeezed shut—one last crazy bid.
"Sixty thousand dollars."
"Son of a bitch!"
Victor spat the curse.
The mood soured. Tiffany clung to him, glancing around.
"Um... Victor, the price is getting too high. Maybe just get something else..."
"Damn it, Tiffany. What're you saying? You think I can't swing sixty grand?"
Her reaction only egged him on more.
Nearby staff tried to intervene...
"One hundred thousand dollars!"
They couldn't stop Victor's flushed rage.
The room went pin-drop silent at the insane sum.
'No point thinking about it.'
I raised both hands slowly and stepped back.
Signaling I was out.
"One hundred thousand dollars! Sold!"
Cheers and gasps exploded.
Tiffany screamed and threw herself around Victor's neck.
"Kyaa! You're amazing! Can we check the Hermes boxes now?"
We headed to the next warehouse, leaving the ruckus behind.
We passed a few more until finally, number nine swung open.
Furniture draped in gray cloths.
And the mold stench hit hard.
"Ugh... what is that smell?"
Tiffany pinched her nose.
Victor grimaced and backed away.
"Starting bid: one thousand five hundred dollars!"
A dealer who'd been eyeing it called three thousand right off.
Bill jumped to five thousand like he was waiting.
"Hmm..."
Victor gave it another glance.
Cloths hid the shapes.
Nothing but that brutal mold reek.
"Victor, you've spent a ton already. Skip this one! The smell's disgusting... it's so damp, I don't even wanna get close."
He ignored Tiffany, eyes glued.
The bidding rolled on.
"Eight thousand dollars!"
Another dealer upped it.
Just as Victor went to raise...
"Twelve thousand dollars!"
Bill bid again.
The last hanger-on dropped out.
Victor tsked at the number.
"Twelve thousand dollars! Sold!"
Oh my god. We did it.
We actually got warehouse nine!
After the auction wrapped, folks scattered to their winning warehouses.
Victor's number five drew a huge crowd.
All because of that record-breaking hundred grand.
"Alright, Tiffany. Let's check out those luxury boxes you wanted."
Victor said it with swagger and beckoned two staffers.
The burly guys eased into the unit.
"Boss, Hermes box first?"
One hauled out the orange Hermes box, ribbon pristine.
Tiffany's eyes lit up.
"Open it quick! Gotta be a Birkin!"
Victor grinned wide, undid the ribbon himself, and flipped the lid.
Silence crashed down.
"Wha... what the hell?"
It was empty.
Tiffany blinked in confusion.
"Check the others!"
Victor barked orders.
Staff dragged out three Louis Vuitton boxes.
First one... empty.
Second... nothing.
Third... a single sheet of white paper.
"Goddamn it!"
Victor hurled the box to the floor.
"Chanel! Get the Chanel boxes!"
Five black Chanel boxes emerged.
One by one— all empty.
Gucci, Prada, Dior... over fifty luxury boxes.
Not a damn thing inside any of them.
"What the actual fuck!"
Tiffany shrieked, on the verge of tears.
"Victor! A hundred grand for empty boxes? That's all there is?"
Onlooker dealers started whispering.
"Hundred K for empty boxes..."
"Worst deal in history?"
"Victor got played."
Victor's face burned crimson. Fists balled tight.
His guy ventured carefully.
"Boss, maybe something deeper in..."
"Shut it! Check every damn item!"
Thirty minutes of tearing the place apart.
Just empty boxes.
Tiffany lost it completely.
"What is this crap! I was expecting real Hermès bags! A hundred grand! A hundred grand!"
"Ha... calm down, Tiffany."
"Calm down? Everyone's laughing at us!"
They really were— snickers all around. Some straight-up howling.
Victor's jaw clenched, but he forced a casual smile for her.
"It's cool, babe. Empty boxes ain't the end of the world. Hit the store tomorrow, buy the real deal. We'll pick out whatever you like."
"...For real?"
"Obviously. Five? Hell, make it ten."
With Tiffany settled, Victor scanned the crowd.
His eyes locked right on mine.
'...Shit.'
I'd looked away feeling guilty, but he marched straight over.
Figured he'd blow up, but his face was surprisingly even.
"Not bad."
Low rumble of a voice.
"...Pardon?"
"First one's ever stuck to me till the end in an auction. Jake Winch, right?"
"Yeah, that's me."
Victor fished a business card from his suit pocket.
Black stock, gold-embossed— fancy as hell.
"Victor Hamilton. CEO of Hamilton Antiques Chain."
I took it. Flashy print.
[Hamilton Antiques - Texas's Premier Antique Chain]
- CEO Victor Hamilton
- Houston Main Store / Dallas / San Antonio / Austin
"We've got the biggest antique network in Texas. Pull in about fifty million a year."
He looked me up and down.
"Staff said you're a trucker. Ballsy move. Dropped twelve grand on that moldy trash heap?"
He flicked a glance at our number nine and snorted.
"Good luck. Odds are you won't even break even."
"Hmph. We'll see about that."
Bill grumbled from beside me.
Victor turned to him with a mocking look.
"Bill Anderson. Still scraping by in that dump?"
"What's it to you?"
Bill bristled.
"Just wondering. Place looks one bad day from folding."
He shifted back to me.
"If anything decent turns up in that mold pit, hit me up. I'll pay at least double what a local broker like Bill coughs up."
"Bill and I've dealt for years."
"Ha! Buddy system? Cute. But business runs on cash, not feels. Stuff Bill grabs for five hundred? I pay twelve."
He nodded at the card in my hand.
"Think it over smart. A big chain like us buying you out? Could change your life."
Tiffany muttered from the side, face sour.
"Sick of this junky antique bullshit! Can we bounce already?"
"Oh, yeah. Let's roll."
Victor turned to go but tossed one last line.
"Oh, and whatever you dig up from that unit— offer stands. My cell's on the card. Call anytime."
He headed off with Tiffany.
Three Cadillacs peeled out in a row.
"Arrogant prick."
Bill muttered.
"It's fine, Bill. Don't sweat it."
"Still burns. 'Hole-in-the-wall' my ass."
Marcus chuckled.
"We came out on top though. Victor torched a hundred K. We might strike gold for twelve."
"Right. Let's see what we got."
We made for number nine.
Curious dealers trailed us.
"Wonder what's in a twelve-grand unit."
"That mold smell was no joke."
"Bet they don't break even."
Door creaked open, and the mold hit like a wall.
Gray cloths blanketed the whole place.
"Ugh, that's rough..."
A few onlookers pinched noses and bailed.
Bill slipped on gloves and eased up the first cloth.
"Huh?"
Beneath it sat a stunning chair.
Dark walnut Victorian, carved with exquisite detail.