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Chapter 137: The Performance of Sound
Carlos looked at the painting, then at the crowd around them, then back at Logan with an expression that had settled into something resigned.He understood the position he was in. If he refused to hand it over now, after Mr. Holt's casual endorsement had shifted the room's mood, it would make him look defensive, possibly even like he had something to hide. That was worse than letting Logan look and being proven right.He picked up the painting carefully and held it out.“Here,” he said, his tone flat. “Go ahead.”Logan took it with both hands, the same careful grip Charles had used earlier, and turned it slightly to catch the light.Carlos crossed his arms. “Take your time. We’re all very interested in what the great Logan Mitchell is about to discover that a professional missed.”Alex smirked. “Yes, please enlighten us. I’m sure this will be worth every second.”Charles Green watched with tight lips. “Be my guest. But the brushwork and composition speak for themselves.”A woman in th
Chapter 136: The Calculated Interest
The silence that followed Alex's words stretched just long enough to become uncomfortable for everyone except Logan.He looked at Alex, then at Carlos, then let his gaze move briefly across the crowd that had gathered, taking in the expressions, the barely concealed anticipation, the sense that everyone present was waiting for him to either back down or stumble.He did neither."I'm not questioning Mr. Green's skill," Logan said simply.His voice was calm, almost conversational, and it cut through the murmuring crowd without effort. A few people who had been mid whisper stopped, caught slightly off guard by how unaffected he sounded."I have no doubt he's very good at what he does," Logan continued. "That's not why I asked."Carlos's smirk held, though something behind it had started to falter. "Then why ask at all?""Because I'm interested in buying it," Logan said. "And before I make an offer on something, I like to look at it myself. That's all this is."For a moment, nobody respon
Chapter 135: The Baiting of the Amateur
Carlos let out a light laugh, shaking his head with an expression that was meant to look like concern but carried something sharper underneath.“With all due respect,” he said, glancing around at the crowd as if inviting them in on the joke, “Mr. Green here just finished his appraisal. The great Mr. Green. I’m a little worried that your unqualified eyes might go blind staring at something this fine.” He gestured toward the painting with mock seriousness. “Wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself.”A ripple of laughter moved through the small crowd.“Who does he think he is,” someone murmured, just loud enough to carry. “Asking to look at something Charles Green already appraised.”“Disrespectful, honestly,” another voice added. “Charles has been doing this for thirty years. What does this man think he’s going to find that an expert missed?”“Some people just can’t help themselves,” a third said, with a small, satisfied shake of the head. “Always need to make themselves the center of attenti
Chapter 134: The Challenge of History
The murmuring stopped.Heads turned, one by one, toward the voice, and the small crowd parted slightly to reveal where it had come from. Logan stood near the back, tall and composed, dressed simply but well, his expression carrying the same calm, unhurried quality it always did.For a moment nobody said anything.Then Charles Green's eyes found him properly, and something happened to his face.It was not subtle. The careful, regretful expression he had been wearing for the benefit of Carlos and the gathered crowd dissolved completely, replaced by something closer to shock, the kind of shock that came from seeing someone in a place you had never expected them to be.“You,” Charles said.He said it quietly, but in the silence that had settled over the group, it carried.Carlos turned to look at where Charles was looking, and his own expression shifted through confusion into recognition, and then into something more pointed.“Wait.” He looked at Logan properly now. “Logan? Logan Mitchell
Chapter 133: The Market Consensus
Charles Green straightened slowly from the painting, setting his loupe down with the deliberate care of a man choosing his next words carefully.“Well.” He let out a small breath, his expression settling into something carefully regretful. “The brocade detailing is genuinely fine work. Whoever framed this understood preservation. But the artistic execution itself.” He shook his head slowly. “I’m afraid it’s mediocre. The brushwork lacks the consistency you’d expect from the masters of this period. It’s a competent piece, but not an exceptional one.”Carlos’s expression didn’t move for a moment, as if the words hadn’t fully landed yet.“What does that put it at?” he asked.“Realistically?” Charles glanced at the painting again, then back at Carlos with an apologetic tilt of his head. “Two hundred thousand. Possibly a little above, depending on the buyer. But I wouldn’t go higher than that in good conscience.”Carlos stared at him. “Two hundred.”“I’m sorry.”Carlos turned to Alex, and
Chapter 132: The Unwrapping
The brown paper came away in careful folds, Carlos working methodically, and beneath it the painting emerged.It was framed simply, the wood dark and unadorned, but the canvas itself caught the gallery lighting in a way that drew attention from several directions at once. The colors had the muted, layered depth that came only with genuine age, the kind of patina that couldn't be manufactured convincingly. The subject was a quiet landscape, mountains rising through mist, a single figure small against the scale of the scenery, rendered with the kind of brushwork that spoke of technique developed over a lifetime, centuries ago, by someone whose name had likely been lost to time even if their work hadn't been.A few people nearby had already turned to look. Even without expertise, the painting had the unmistakable presence of something old and significant, the kind of object that made a room quieter the moment it was uncovered.Charles Green stepped closer immediately. His earlier poised
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