The Auction Part II

[hazlogs]

[The continuation of the Demilune estate auction, December 20th 1995.]

Katrina arrives a little bit early and takes her seat in the second row. This
time, two men accompany her.
Brittany takes a room towards the center of the room, briefcase occupying a
neighboring chair.
Tasha takes a front row seat again; Gideon's absence is conspicuous.
Nathan returns promptly at the designated hour. He, also, is accompanied this
time.
Adele comes in with, once again, Tomais at her side, and an unobtrusive man
who looks entirely too bulky to be anything but a bodyguard trailing her. All
three take the seats earlier arranged for Sandrego Enterprises.
Dewey Pedersen moves comfortably into the room, tanned-leather briefcase held
to one side of him, his thin companion off to the other. They settle down in
seats near the ones claimed the previous evening and quietly shuffle a few
papers and notepads about while they wait.
Eochaid floats in and finds a place to sit in back.
Oaken enters at the heels of Ms. Briar, doffing his scarf and hat and
unbuttoning his overcoat.
An unknown man dressed in an impeccable dark blue suit sits in the chair for
Blue sky Logging. He holds a briefcase in his lap and seems to take no notice
of the buzzing conversation around him.
Nathan rifles through some papers in his briefcase. Taking a moment to scan
the room, he nods slightly to Oaken as he enters.
Mary Kaftan slips into a seat at the back, her expression faintly worried.
This time, the thin young man from Monday has been replaced by a sober woman
with tortiseshell glasses. She steps onto the stage and taps lightly in the
microphone for attention.
Tasha doesn't stir in her seat; her posture is perfect, but not rigid.
Rigidity is not perfection, after all.
Gareth comes in entirely too quickly, his companions more calm than he.
The woman begins without preamble, flashing the slide of 17b onto the screen
and saying calmly "Last bid was 180 million. We will begin with that figure."
Thena walks in unobtrusively, and finds an unclaimed seat in the back.
Brittany adjusts her wrist-gloves, slightly, tapping away on a laptop
computer.
Adele glances down at the console in front of her, moving her fingers to tap
something, very lightly.
Oaken, from his seat near Brittany, watches the screen and carefully types
something in.
Two bids, one for 185 and another for 190 flash across the screen in quick
sucession. Sandrego Enterprises placed the highest, and the name remains on
the screen until another bid from Blue Sky Logging--205 million--displaces it.
Tomais glances around the room thoughtfully, gaze lingering for some time on
the new representative from Blue Sky.
Nathan looks from Oaken to Brittany, an eyebrow raised.
Brittany quietly closes her laptop, placing it into her briefcase. After
latching it, eyes still on the auctioneer, she extends a hand for the device.
Adele glances up and around as well after the bid goes in, giving the main
bidders and their companions a single intense look.
Oaken gives Brittany a quiet nod and slides the console over to her.
Katrina turns and fixes a midly displeased look at Adele. Then she too taps in
another figure onto the keypad. $215, another bid for $215, and finally her
bid--$245.
Tasha cocks her head for a moment, as if hearing something, then returns to
watching the auction. As two days ago, she makes no bid.
Brittany taps three buttons, unwavering.
Nathan hands a folded paper to the man beside him who delivers it to Brittany
with as little disturbance as possible.
Dewey Pedersen watches the bidding progress with no input of his own, the
console resting lightly on his knee. Next to him his companion writes the
occasional line or two while glancing between bidding display and the survey
results.
A bid from Precision Products tops Katrina Durant's offering, and the bid now
stands at $250.
A flash of confusion flicks over Adele's face, as she gazes down at the
console in front of her.
Steve Campbell prowls about the perimeters of the room, taking a few pictures
of the people, and of the bidding display itself.
The woman at the front of the room glances across the bidders as the frantic
pace slows down. Then a flurry of numbers hit, winding up with a bid of $266
from Blue Sky Logging as the highest total.
Eochaid folds his hands on his knees, watching the display with casual
interest. His attention wanders to the photographer, and he begins to watch
him with more interest than the bids.
Tasha turns in her chair, and looks from high bidder to high bidder with a
thoughtful frown.
Precision Products enters a bid of $275 million.
Adele keeps her eyes, now, on her console, while Tomais takes up the
observation of the others. The bodyguard beside her watches everything with
an impassive indifference utterly unlike Tomais's controlled curiousity.
Oaken glares at the back of the Blue Sky flunkie.
The suit from Blue Sky Logging looks up abruptly, frowns, and taps at his
laptop.
Thena watches the display for a little bit, then lets her attention wander to
the others in the room.
Sandrego Enterprises bids another five million, bringing the total up to 280
before St. Claire Bank and Trust adds in another twenty mill for an even
three hundred.
Nathan once again sends his man to Brittany with a sheet of paper folded twice.
Brittany adjusts the brim of her hat, then taps into the keypad, using no more
than the minimum of effort.
Dewey Pedersen leans in to whisper to the thin man beside him, pointing out a
spot on the papers in his lap and then flipping forward to another page. The
man nods, and Dewey settles back in his seat, penning a few more notes to
himself on the legal pad.
Another bid--this one for 303 million from Precision Products.
Brittany quirks a brow at the note, drawing forth a fountain pen from her case
to ink a reply. She sends the lad back from whence he came.
Adele taps again at her console, fingers sliding along the numbers without
giving an indication of which she's pushing until the bet comes in.
$315 from Sandrego Enterprises, and then a bid of $345 comes from Blue Sky
Logging. The suit looks a bit surprised by his bid, but makes no motion to
change it.
Oaken pats his forehead with a handkerchief and straightens his tie.
Nathan looks across the room to Brittany and nods once.
Brittany glances to the suited man, tilting her head, quizzically. Action
needed, she enters a counter-bid.
Tomais leans in to murmur to Adele, whose hands move again on the console.
$350 comes the bid from Precision Products and both Blue Sky Logging and St.
Claire Bank and Trust enter in quick responses--355 and 356 respectively.
At the bid of $365 from Sandrego Enterprises, the gentleman from Blue Sky
Logging sits back with a shake of his head. Katrina glances over angrily at
Adele and taps in $385.
Brittany taps three keys, then reopens her briefcase to replace her pen.
An answering bid of $400 comes from Precision Products--Katrina Durant scowls,
but sits back.
Adele's fingers move again, smoothly.
Brittany leans over to her companion, whispering.
The woman at the front seems slightly stunned by the bidding. $415 flashes up
onto the screen--a bid from Sandrego.
Tasha turns around again, eyes specifically on Nathan this time. She has the
smallest moue of displeasure on her lips.
Adele's head comes away from the console abruptly, snapping around to stare at
Oaken. Her eyes narrow, and the woman's eyes glare in a bit of anger before
she turns back to her console.
Dewey Pedersen slowly tears the bottom half of the sheet from his notepad,
folds it into neat quarters, and slips it to the man beside him. A whispered
comment passes.
Ian is, as on Monday evening, an unassuming non-presence to one side of the
rear door, his arms folded across his chest.
Brittany taptaptaps a finger atop her bidding machine, glancing to Oaken and
the third member of the group. Finally, she enters a bid.
After a long pause, during which the woman begins to move towards the
platform, Precision Products offers $420.
Adele's fingers move almost automatically, right after the Percision Products
bid shows up.
$430 from Sandrego Enterprises.
Ian's stance shifts slightly; his jacket falls open the slightest bit,
revealing the heavy automatic pistol snugged into its holster in front of his
hip.
Katrina looks over towards Adele and frowns again. This time she seems to be
concentrating on something.
Adele keeps her gaze stubbornly on the console in front of her. She frowns,
and then lifts her voice to break her silence of the evening. "Auctioneer, I
believe my console is malfunctioning."
There is a pause as $440 flashes onto the screen. The auctioneer points to the
seat next to Adele and says "Use that one then."
Oaken watches Brittany type in a new bid.
Adele shrugs, and indicates Tomais with a sharp gesture. He types something in
on the console in front of him.
The bidding has come down to Sandrego Enterprises and Precision Products.
Currently the bid stands at Four hundred fifty million--from Precision
Enterprises.
$460 from Sandrego Enterprises. Then $475 flashes across the screen-bid from
Precision Products.
Adele puts her hand out to touch Tomais's hand, just forestalling him from
typing another bid.
Brittany confers with Oaken, composure oddly rattled.
The thin man beside Mr. Pedersen pales slightly at the bids, flipping through
the survey report to see what, perhaps, he missed. With the folded slip of
paper still between his fingers he whispers a few words to Dewey, who answers
only with an almost distracted shake of his head, eyes on the bidding screen.
Nathan looks from the screen to Oaken and Brittany.
Adele takes her hand away from Tomais's just as his fingers move again.
$480 from Sandrego Enterprises.
Brittany reluctantly returns to her keypad, hopefully for a final time. She
takes a deep breath, pondering.
Brittany lets forth a long breath, opens her eyes... and stare? "Odd..."
Brittany taps a single key.
And the bid comes out to be $485 million.
Adele's fingers move to touch Tomais's hand again, this time resting and
staying, stilling whatever movement his fingers might have made.
Ian's brow furrows slightly as he watches, his casual disinterest giving way
to a suspicion in his eyes and expression.
"$485 going once," says the woman. "Twice. Sold to Precision Products for the
sum of *gulp* $485 million."
Brittany passes the bidder to Oaken, excusing herself for the moment, and
leaves for the restroom area.
Oaken stares at the screen, not yet seeming to realize it's over.
There is a moment of uneasy silence before the auctioneer says "We will begin
bidding on parcel 17 C in three minutes. Bidding will start at 15 million."
Flashbulbs go off in a rain of lights as Steve captures the moment for
posterity.
Brittany smiles to the cameras, familiar with their glare.
Adele's fingers move on her console again.
Dewey Pedersen settles himself fully back into his seat, but not before taking
another look between the dueling bidders. The dark grey pen adds a final line
to his notepad, and then he shakes his head slightly as he flips the page to
a fresh one.
The opening flurry of bids is quick and fairly brutal, with the price on the
screen ending at $50 million after a series of jumps from St. Claire Bank and
Trust, Blue Sky Logging, and another Paper company.
Adele's fingers move again.
Nathan takes the console for the first time this evening, tapping evenly.
Hope Publishing offers a bit of $55 million, but that is quickly topped by
Sandreo Enterprises offering of seventy-five million. That in turn, is topped
by Blue Sky logging with $110 million, and _that_ is topped with a bid of
$125 from Katrina Durant.
Brittany returns through the reporter throng, looking far better for her time
refreshing, and retakes her seat, catching up on the bids.
Nathan rifles through his papers once more, scans something, and returns to
his console.
Sandrego Enterprises tosses in a bid of $135, which is topped by $145 from
Blue Sky Logging, and then $150 by Hope Publishing. Katrina frowns for a
moment, hesitates and then offers $165 as her bid.
Adele leans slightly towards Tomais to confer briefly with him; the man has by
now returned to his study of the occupants of the room. Every so often his
gaze touches on Ian, with a faint wince.
Dewey Pedersen continues observing the bidding, leaning forward to catch a
glimpse of the new high-stakes bidder from Hope Publishing.
Nathan looks down to his console from the screen and taps again.
Blue Sky bids 170, but is outtopped by Sandrego Enterprises with a bit of
$175. Once more, Katrina frown at Adele and types in three quick keystrokes
with a resulting bid of $180 million.
Adele makes a frustrated frown at her console as the new bid slides on, and
her fingers slip again across the keys.
Brittany taps her keys lightly.
Precision Products offers up $190 million; St. Clare B&C offers $195, but
Sandrego offers $200 million and outshines them all.
Nathan's hands slide from his console, a scowl crossing his face.
Dewey Pedersen pulls a hand up toward his mouth to chew on the nail, and
readjusts his weight in the seat.
A bid of $202 million comes from Precision Products, but it is quickly
swallowed up by a bid of $225 from Blue Sky Logging.
Adele flicks a glance, very quick, at the Blue Sky representative, and taps
again at her keyboard.
Nathan looks across the room to where Brittany sits. He watches her, and waits.
Another bid come from Sandrego Enterprises--240. Katrina offers up another
five million.
Brittany is watching the Blue Sky Representitive, now, more than the bidding
window.
Tomais looks around once more after another murmured exchange with Adele. The
woman keys in another bid, while her assistant keeps his attention on the
bidders.
The suit for Blue Sky logging leans forward again and taps a few more
keys--this time the bid jumps quickly to $275, overtaking Adele's offer of
$260.
Another $280 comes from Precision Products. It is topped by an offer of $300
even from Blue Sky. That is beneath the $305 offered by Katrina Durant.
Adele's fingers move again at last, after the flurry of other bids.
"$325--Sandrego Enterprises" flashes onto the screen. The suit from Blue Sky
fumbles a bit, but manages to type out $328.
Adele's lips compress together tightly. After a moment, she murmurs to Tomais,
who glances around again.
$335 comes the bid from Sandrego Enterprise. $338 comes the bid from Blue Sky
Logging. $340 comes the bid from St. Claire Bank and Trust.
Katrina frowns deeply, and looks towards Tasha. The other woman gives a faint
nod and Katrina looks away.
Adele's hand is, briefly, the only part of her in motion.
Nathan turns to look at the screen, then once again fixes Brittany with his
gaze.
Another bid from Adele raises it to $365. The man from Blue Sky Logging is
sweating now, but he adds in another million to rais it to 366. With an angry
motion, Katrina punches in three buttons. The bidding stands at $375.
Tomais looks over at Oaken.
Adele hears the murmur Tomais directs at her, but taps again lightly on the
keypad after studying the most recent bids thoughtfully.
The man from Blue Sky Logging sits back, fingers trembling. Adele enters in a
bid of $380 million.
Oaken tears his gaze away from the sweating Blue Sky minion to look at Tomais
for a moment, blandly.
There is a flicker across the screen, and then another bid appears. $382 from
Katrina Durant.
Adele frowns at her screen, leaning a little as Tomais bends to speak to her
again. Fingertips move across the keys once more in response to Durant's bid.
As Sandrego's bid of $400 appears, Katrina sits back with a scowl on her
normally pretty features.
Dewey Pedersen lets out a low whistle as the bidding, perhaps predictably,
approaches a level to rival that of the last plot's.
The woman steps forward. "Four hundred going once. Going twice."
There is a faint sigh of relief from the auctioneer as she says "Sold to
Sandrego Enterprises for an even four hundred million."
Nathan shakes his head in disbelief.
Adele sits back, lifting her head to look towards Durant with a curious
intensity.
Steve Campbell captures the image of the bidding board, then several of the
winning bidder as a few reporters crowd her with questions, hoping for quotes
for the news.
Oaken slowly gets to his feet, stretching his limbs to get the circulation
back. As the reporters ring Adele he quietly moves towards the exit.
Eochaid gets up quietly and leaves himself. He catches up to Oaken and
annouces, "I need a drink."
Sarah Briar follows Oaken, looking slightly bewildered but pleased.
Adele holds her hand upwards towards the reporters, a quick smile splitting
her lips to reveal only the tips of her teeth. "Please, please," her eyes
light on the Tribune reporter in particular, "I'm tired, and you needn't ask
me anything tonight." Her bodyguard, beside her, rises, not threateningly,
but the size of him is a warning.
Oaken smiles at Eochaid. "Just one? I'm in the mood for about six. Let me
check with my ride, and then the usual place?"
Nathan stands and stretches. He closes his briefcase and hands it to the man
beside him. Once again, he makes his way toward Oaken, standing silently
before him.
Eochaid nods. "Aye. The ususal place. I'll meet you there.'
The photographer continues using up a roll of snaps; the Tribune reporter
backs, made respectful of body space by the bodyguard, but the barrage of
questions continues.
Nathan clasps his hands behind his back as Oaken leaves. Disappointed, he
scans what remains of the crowd.
Dewey Pedersen gathers his belongings, still shaking his head at the figures.
He and his companion depart as quietly as they arrived.