Chapter 49
The room went absolutely chaos.
“823 is still fucking bidding?! What’s her endgame?”
“Nathan went no–limit and she’s still raising?”
“Is she trying to blow up Nathan’s no–limit bid?”
“We’re at 5 million now! That tanzanite’s only worth 1 million originally. If it sells, that’s 5x markup!”
“What the hell is really happening here?”
“Is this about the stone or the drama?”
Everyone was looking around at each other, then someone dropped the key question:
“If two people go no–limit on the same piece, how does that even work?”
Dead silence for two seconds, then someone answered: “It’s about who breaks first.”
“Four years ago there was a double no–limit war. That piece went for absolutely insane money.”
“One night, just because of that single item, young Mr. Spencer in Seattle torched most of his family’s fortune. Knocked the whole Spencer family from Seattle power players down to basically nothing! The ripple effects were brutal. Took them years to recover. It’s still legendary in Seattle.”
“That’s fucking terrifying.”
.“Yeah, when it’s double no–limit, egos take over. You can’t back down–just gotta ride it out. You never know who’ll fold first or if the final price will bankrupt you.”
“Holy shit.”
“But 823 hasn’t actually declared no–limit yet, right? She’s just bidding. What’s her angle?”
“Beats me.”
“Wait, didn’t someone start a betting pool? About how many rounds 823 would last after Nathan went personal? She’s at one now–everyone who bet zero, pay up!”
“It’s not over yet–hold your horses!”
While chaos reigned below, on the second floor, Vivian–who’d felt so confident moments before–jumped up when she saw the counter–bid.
“What the fuck is she trying to pull?” Vivian’s voice turned razor–sharp.
Given Nathan’s power in New York, when he went no–limit, it meant game over–he’d win. So what was the point of raising?
Did Elena actually think she could outgun Nathan?
If not, then what was this bullshit?
A power play?
Was she challenging Nathan or her?
While Vivian couldn’t figure it out, reactions around the second floor varied wildly.
20:22
Mr. Harrison, Wake Up Your Wife’s Gone
21.1%
Louie had no clue what Amelia was doing.
He might have a short fuse, but he was sharp underneath. When something was impossible, he wouldn’t push it.
Sure, that tanzanite was the birthstone Amelia had picked for her baby, but right now all of them combined couldn’t blow up Nathan’s no limit bid. So why the hell bother?
From what he knew about Amelia, she wasn’t this reckless. So what was this?
Had Vivian and Nathan’s stunt pissed her off enough to lose her mind?
Louie lowered his voice: “Elena?”
Amelia glanced up at him.
“Do you trust me?” she asked.
That one look made Louie’s pulse spike.
Those ice–cold eyes behind the mask were lethally magnetic.
Enough to make anyone follow her into a high–stakes gamble.
Louie’s fist clenched tight.
Then he nodded.
They’d come this far–he wasn’t backing down now.
Sebastian was rubbernecking their way, eating this up.
He waved directly at Louie and said loud enough for everyone to hear: “Can’t even control your own girl–picking fights with Nathan Harrison! Grandpa’s still in this fucking building. You’re about to get destroyed!”
“Sebastian!” Louie went ballistic.
He couldn’t touch Nathan, but Sebastian? Game on.
Louie charged straight at him.
“Louie, why are you calling big brother? I’m not wrong–you’ve been simping for that Elena chick for days. Still not enough? I don’t want a fucking simp for a brother,” Sebastian shot back without mercy.
“Watch your goddamn mouth!” Louie went for him. “Say that shit again and I’ll tear it off!”
Sebastian didn’t flinch: “Ripping my mouth off won’t save you–wait till Grandpa comes for your ass!”
Total mayhem.
Half the second floor was watching the brothers go at each other like it was prime–time entertainment.
Lester tried to jump in and stir more shit but his sister grabbed his ear and yanked him back down.
“When are you gonna grow the fuck up?” the gorgeous woman said, exasperated.
Lester looked like a kicked puppy, mumbling: “Big brother’s mature enough for all of us, right? I can be whatever…”
If Lester was also mature, talented, and ambitious, the Wessex family would be a completely different beast.
He’d figured that out as a kid.
“Enough,” came a man’s voice from the shadows in their booth, and the fighting stopped.
21.3%
The auction rolled on…
At seat 888:
“Nathan, this whole situation…”
Vivian looked “hesitantly” at Nathan, like she wanted to play peacemaker.
“Does she really need that tanzanite that badly?” Vivian said with fake concer, though her words were pure gasoline on the fire.
But Nathan still wasn’t looking at her.
His dark, cold stare stayed locked on seat 823.
The woman called Elena was still hidden in shadow–just the outline of her silver gown visible–but even without moonlight, sitting there, she commanded attention.
Her “speaking out of turn” words from the rooftop kept echoing.
Her soft voice had this power to get under your skin.
Dangerous as hell, but impossibly magnetic.
He couldn’t see her face, but he could feel her watching him too.
At seat 823, Amelia calmly studied Nathan.
Watched his slightly raised right hand, still locked in that gesture.
Above the mansion, the drone palace lantern burned steadily, growing brighter.
“Bidder 888 follows! 6 million!”
The auctioneer was practically vibrating with excitement: “Do we have higher bids? Keep those paddles up!”
People downstairs were losing their minds.
Who else would be crazy enough to keep going?
A tanzanite worth 1 million tops–1.2 million was already pushing it.
Now the price had gone completely insane, plus you’d be making an enemy of Nathan Harrison. Total suicide.
So the only person who could keep bidding was that woman at 823.
All eyes turned back to the second floor.
નામ લાખા
To seat 823.
Then everyone saw that same hand.
Pearl–white nails, porcelain skin, calmly and decisively raising the paddle.
The entire venue sucked in air.
Even the auctioneer froze for two seconds before shouting:
“Bidder 823 continues! 10 million!”
(13)
