Chapter 6

Emery

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. What was he doing?? Why was he bidding on my mother’s necklace? He knows what that means to me. He has to remember.. did he forget me talking about it with him all those times?

The auctioneer called out $10,000 for the first bid and when Jasper raised his hand I had gone into a complete daze. I quickly looked around.. snapping out of it. A few other people were also bidding.

Shit.

He was up to $25 thousand now.

I raised my hand.

“25 to the lady in the back ..” the man said.

Jasper and Vivian both turned to me. Jasper frowned .. but Vivian.. she grinned. Was she doing this shit on purpose?? She had seen me looking at the necklace in the brochure. How evil are these people?

Someone else bid 30 then.

Jasper could get anything he wanted. Why did he have to go for the one thing that meant something to me? He had plenty of money… He could easily buy any of these other relics or expensive paintings or statues.

Although - how ridiculous is it to buy an eighteen year old a thirty thousand dollar birthday gift??

“35? Anyone for 35?” The announcer was saying. I raised my hand again.

This went on and on. A couple of other people kept bidding along with myself and Jasper.

But when the necklace got up to a hundred thousand .. they backed out. Now it was just between the two of us.

I had two hundred thousand from the property I’d sold. I’d put it away and kept it just for this. I suddenly wondered if Jasper knew that and would keep going until he had ran it all the way up.

“150.. 150 thousand .. to the gentleman. Do we have 155? 155 thousand - the lady in the back. 160?…” the auctioneer went on and on and on.

Jasper was now looking at me every time I’d make a bid. He knew exactly what he was doing.

We got to 200. I raised my hand , I was a nervous wreck now. I was sweating and shaking and bouncing my knee up and down.

Please please let me get this…

“200 for the lady in the back .. anyone for 205? 205? Going once …”

I couldn’t believe it! I was going to get it after all!

“Going twice …”

I let a smile slip onto my face and began breathing easy as my racing heart slowed itself finally.

“205!” Jasper yelled.

I gasped.

That asshole. He let me think I had won .. he’d done that on purpose. I flopped back on my chair and closed my eyes. I felt tears pricking behind my eyelids and willed them not to come out.

I had lost. I couldn’t believe this….

No.

I had lost my mother’s necklace, but I wasn’t giving up that easily.

Once the auction had ended I marched up to Jasper.

“How could you do that?” I asked him.

He actually had the gall to look confused.

“Do what?” He asked.

“Outbid me on my mothers necklace. You knew how much that meant to me!” I told him.

I saw a flash of something move across his features. Maybe he actually didn’t know …

“I didn’t know that was it.” He told me.

“I don’t know if I believe you.” I said.

“Look Emery I am sorry. I didn’t realize…” he was saying.

“Let me buy it from you then. I’ll give you the 200 thousand now and the other five thousand later.” I insisted.

He actually looked sorry for a second.

“I can’t do that Emery. Vivian really wanted it. She picked it out from everything and it’s for her birthday. She literally never asks me for a thing.” He said.

“She only wanted it because I did! She saw me looking at it!” I shouted .. getting loud. But I didn’t care.. not any more.

“Oh come on you’re being ridiculous she didn’t know you wanted it. You really just don’t like her do you? But this isn’t her fault so stop blaming her.” He said.

I shook my head at him… all the fight had left my body and I turned to walk out.

When I got outside I took a moment to calm down and breathe. The view was beautiful. The museum and convention center where the auction was held were connected by a large walkway and an overpass you could walk through to get between the two buildings. There were large concrete columns set up between the two. They had benches and bushes and even a big fountain.

The prettiest thing was the columns were actually made to house gas fire pits. So each one of them had large flames coming out from the middle. I walked over and began looking at one of them, trying to calm my mind.

Suddenly, Vivian was standing in front of me…. Holding my mother’s necklace in her hands.

“Emery. I’m so sorry. I had no idea that this had belonged to your mother .. Jasper just told me. When I saw it I just knew it was meant to be mine… that’s why he decided to bid on it.. he was just trying to make me happy. He’s so amazing that way.” She said - overly sweetly.

“Yeah. Amazing.” I said. I could think of so many other adjectives to describe him but .. sure.

“That’s why I decided … I want you to have it.” She said.

My head popped up .. shock filled my features.

“Really?” I asked her .. not quite believing it. She was seemingly enjoying my torment during the auction .. so I wasn’t expecting this at all.

“Yes…” she started walking toward me .. the necklace outstretched in her hand. “It should belong to you…”

I held out my hand too.. walking towards her slowly. My mother’s relic just a few feet away.

But then.. in slow motion … I saw her trip. The necklace flew out of her hand. She just happened to trip right by one of the columns and the necklace flew into the fire.

“Oh no!!” She yelled.

I tried to reach it. But the flames were too high. I would burn my hand off if I put it any closer. I panicked, looking around for anything I could get it out with. I found a stick laying on the ground and tried to pick it out with that but it was stuck down in the metal that held the stones underneath the fire.

“Help me find something!” I yelled at her.

She acted like she was looking but she also didn’t move from her spot. People were coming over and trying to help me but it was no use. It was already practically melted. An heirloom. That had been around for probably centuries.. ruined. In a gas fire pit.

I looked over at Vivian who was standing there .. trying her best to look sorry and innocent.

She was begging me to forgive her.. but I could see it in her eyes.

She had done the whole thing on purpose.