Chapter 19 - Ambush on Wall Street
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The auction block at the center of the ballroom lit up as the auctioneer adjusted his microphone.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the auctioneer announced, "our premier item tonight is the historical Vance Sapphire Brooch, valued at two hundred thousand dollars. Bidding starts at one hundred thousand."
Eleanor Vance smirked from her front-row table, nodding toward a sharp-looking man in a grey suit seated nearby—Richard Hayes, the managing director of Aegis Capital.
"One hundred and fifty thousand," Richard Hayes called out smoothly, raising his paddle without looking back.
"Two hundred thousand," Eleanor’s ally chimed in.
"Five hundred thousand," I said, raising my paddle from the middle of the hall.
Gasps echoed across the ballroom. Hayes turned around, his eyes locking onto mine with icy contempt.
"Six hundred thousand," Hayes countered immediately.
"One million dollars," I stated without missing a beat.
The auctioneer paused, his breath catching. "One... one million dollars to Director Sterling. Do I hear one point two?"
Hayes stood up slightly, his face flushing red. "One point two million!"
"Two million dollars," I said calmly, taking a slow sip of sparkling water.
The crowd erupted into stunned murmurs. Eleanor Vance looked as if she had been slapped across the face.
"Is Mr. Hayes raising?" the auctioneer called out frantically.
Hayes gritted his teeth, realizing that bidding higher would drain the dark capital he needed for his Wall Street short-raid on Sterling Holdings. He slammed his paddle onto the table and sat down.
"Going once, going twice... Sold to Director Elena Sterling for two million dollars!"
I walked up to the stage under the blinding flash of news cameras. Accepting the microphone, I looked directly at Eleanor Vance and Richard Hayes.
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"Every single cent of this two-million-dollar bid will go directly to the Elena Sterling Foundation," I announced, my voice echoing through the hall. "To build brand new emergency shelters for women escaping financial and domestic abuse. Thank you for your generosity, Eleanor."
The ballroom exploded into thunderous applause, leaving Eleanor Vance and Richard Hayes trapped in a prison of public humiliation.
