The Hidden Master

Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Twenty remained calm, showcasing the exact nonchalance he was known for for.

“What are you waiting for?! Beat the thief up!” Someone urged from the crowd, but Fred knew better than to attack the one man he had seen beat up tough-skinned men who were more buff than he could ever be.

He took a step back, choosing caution over his ego.

Twenty scoffed, then he turned to the Chief Auctioner with a straight face.

“I don’t feel safe with them here…” He pointed, causing the man to nod.

Sarah’ eyes widened the moment she understood the gaze from the Chief Auctioner.

“You are not seriously considering sending us away, are you?”

“I am so sorry. But you have to leave. The both of you…”

“Don’t make me get the guards…” He said, turning to his right.

“You will regret this…” Fred pointed Twenty to the face, then he turned to Sarah.

“Let’s leave this place…” He grabbed her and they both left.

“This way, Sir…” Kean said to Twenty with a smile.

“There are a lot of wonderful things I think you may like. Cars especially…”

Twenty nodded. “I love cars..” He said, moving to take a seat.

“My name is Kean Cameron, and I will be your host for today. Today, we have amazing deals for you! So many choices just to satisfy you. We took note of all the reviews and demands you made on the secret website, and we decided to adjust the amount of goods to be purchased.”

Kean was elated, as he spoke to his audience, moving from one corner to the other, displaying his brief stature. There were two bodyguards in similar white suits just like the man at the door, and they looked as though they were robots, standing at the two ends of the large curtain behind the stage.

“We know you will be wondering why we had to push the time for the auction closer. Well, you will get to find out really soon. We couldn't wait to show you the juicy deals we have for you tonight! I am sure you are gonna love them!”

There was a little murmuring from the people seated at the various tables in the hall, as gestures and utterances of expectations filled the air.

“I hope they are going to have what exactly I want, I came prepared.” Said a lady to Twenty’s hearing. She sat at a table close to his and had her blue purse on the table, with a bodyguard standing behind her.

Slowly, she grabbed the glass of champagne from the table and took a sip before she returned it to the table, and smacked excitedly.

“She looks like she has a lot of money,” Twenty thought to himself, looking at the young lady who was definitely not so much older than him, even though the difference of about seven years was glaring.

“Now! For the reveal, the moment we all have been waiting for! It’s time to show you all what we have in stuck for you. Drumrolls!” Kean said excitedly, and his words were followed by loud applause from some of the guests in the hall who were all dressed in elaborate attires. The men had expensive suits on, while the ladies wore either elegant gowns or suits as well.

“Ladies and gentlemen, the moment of truth is here! I reveal to you the latest collections we have! Ta-da!” Kean said loudly, pointing at the curtain behind the stage with both hands, as the bodyguards standing behind him pulled two long ropes beside them, causing the curtain to pull up to reveal everything behind the stage.

There was another cheerful uproar following the sight of the cars carefully exhibited behind the curtain.

“Whoo!”

“Damn right!”

“Bring it on!” Some of the men in the hall said excitedly, clapping their hands as soon as they saw the exquisite cars parked behind the stage.

Twenty marveled as well, as he saw the colorful cars parked behind the stout man who clapped his hands and laughed in so much excitement.

“Where do they get these cars from?” Twenty whispered to himself, looking at the cars that had unique physiques and colors which definitely proved that they were rare to find.

There were Fords, Jaguars, Audis, Chevrolets, Porsches, and Ferraris, and they were all sports cars of different colors, glittering from several corners.

“Ladies and gentlemen, these are the finest cars in the entire world, shipped all the way from Asia, Europe, and Australia just to make sure that we meet your tastes. Now I must warn you all, these cars do not come cheap at all, but I trust you all came prepared for today.”

Twenty looked around for a while, but none of the people in the hall seemed concerned about the words Kean said about the cars being expensive.

“I wonder how people spend so much money at auctions.” He thought to himself, as he had never thought he was going to be in such a place of high value in his entire life.

Meanwhile, the ladies beside him were still running their hands all over his body, chucking as they did so. One of them poured some wine into the glass on the table and pushed it to Twenty’s mouth, but he kept his mouth shut, gesturing to her not to bother.

“I am okay, I am fine. You don’t need to worry.” He said calmly, but the lady wasn’t ready to budge, as she pushed the glass forward to his lips, until he was forced to open his mouth to gulp down some of the champagne from the glass.

The lady chuckled as she poured the wine into Twenty’s mouth, holding his head with her left hand, and caressing it gently. At first, Twenty was enjoying the taste of the sweet wine, until he suddenly began to feel choked, and had to pull out from the glass, coughing at once.

The lady dropped the glass on the table, grabbing the napkin, which she used to wipe off some of the wine that had trickled down Twenty’s lips, almost spilling on his jacket.

“Thank you, that’s okay,” He said to the lady, but she continued until she was satisfied.

Twenty felt so uncomfortable with the ladies running their hands all over his body but had seen a middle-aged man in blue suit, seated by a corner with four girls all over him, and he didn't want to seem like he was not part of them.

“Why won’t they keep their hands to themselves?” Twenty thought to himself, trying so hard to fake a smile.

“Ladies and gentlemen! It’s time!” Kean said loudly, causing Twenty to look up toward him, still struggling with the awkwardness from the ladies’ hands all over him.

“Before we begin, I would like to use this special medium to welcome a new member of the family. He is a continental entrepreneur, who has risen to the hierarchy of wealth and power!”

Hearing the words from Kean, most of the people in the hall started to look around to see who the stranger and new member was. Some of the men and ladies who saw Twenty seated at the back kept their eyes on him, but he looked down, avoiding their stares.

“Ladies and gentlemen! I give you, Mr. Twenty!” Kean announced, pointing at Twenty, with his eyes staring at him amidst the chuckle on his face.

“What? Why would he do that?” Twenty whispered only to his hearing, struggling with the sensation that suddenly cringed into his body.

“Mr. Twenty, please wave to the rest of the family!” Kean said loudly, and Twenty felt a sudden tension rising in his body.

He took in enough air, and then he let it out at once, gathering enough momentum to do as Kean had demanded.

“Alright, here we go.” He whispered to himself, and then he stood up slowly, waving to everyone in the hall with a forced smile on his face.

Some of the ladies in the hall admired him, making silly remarks, while some of the men began to whisper some words amongst themselves, wondering how he was able to get into the auction.

“He is so fine! Gosh! And he must be really rich, just my kind of man!” Said the lady seated in front of Twenty, as she gawked at him, not minding if he heard him or not.

“He is too young, how did he manage to get into this place?”

“How come I haven’t heard of him? Is he some kind of secret billionaire or what?”

Some of the men continued to make remarks at Twenty, who quickly sat down as soon as he was done waving, and kept his face to the ground while the ladies beside him continued to rub their hands all over him, chuckling and licking their lips as though they were about to eat him up.

“As a part of our welcome package for Mr. Twenty, we are willing to offer him a special discount on the first purchase he is going to make,” Kean said, and some of the people in the hall clapped in agreement, while some others began to murmur.