Chapter 162: A gift and a Letters
---
Louis rolled her shoulders, amused. "Six-hundred thousand dollars," she said, tone final as a bell.
No paddle lifted. Even the matriarch exhaled defeat. The auctioneer, half stunned, raised the gavel high.
"Going once, going twice, Sold! To the VVIP balcony."
Hammer cracked. Applause broke out; whispers swirled like birds startled from a tree.
Kent slumped, equal parts relief and disappointment. "We never had a chance past 310," he consoled himself but the disk was gone.
The formal closing lasted another hour. Kent and Jade signed consolation paperwork for their lost attempt, collected their bottle of thunder-pumpkin wine back, and stepped into the marbled exit foyer. Kent meant to hurry home, until a familiar voice called him from behind a pillar.
"Leaving so soon?"
Louis emerged, loosening her high collar. She offered the easy grin Kent remembered from the train carriage.
