The event was going better than Lenae expected. "Okay, I know we're sitting in the midst of billionaires," she told Janette during a wine break session, "but I never expected that they'd buy art pieces at those prices."
Janette laughed. "There's no competition yet actually," She replied. "Just you wait till an art piece most people truly desire is presented. You would be amazed at the amounts you would hear, my friend."
Lenae's eyes shone in delight, "then our greatest desire should be that our artwork be desired by this audience. Janette, I'm so elated." Tears gathered in Lenae's eyes, and she blinked them away.
Janette laughed, "wouldn't want to ruin your makeup, would you?" Janette asked, referring to how swiftly Lenae held back her tears. They laughed about it again.
Ray took another sip of wine, watching Lenae and Janette have a good time together. "If only this Lenae knows her friend's true desires for her," Ray thought. His view of women grew more solid, and he resented women even more.
The auction continued after some minutes. "Ladies and gentlemen, we're back. Thank you for staying with us." The audience gave a round of applause, welcoming back the anchors.
"Our next item is a one-of-a-kind piece of art. Let us welcome, Tyler Gray."
The artist made his way to the front with a big smile on his face. "He's so confident he'll sell," Lenae thought. "That's a plus."
A mannequin on a dress was wheeled on the stage, and the audience gave another round of applause for the artist and his art. "Thank you everyone. I'm Tyler Gray." The artist said. "I have here with me a magnificent dress made from real fur." He added.
What the heck is that? Lenae thought as she stared at the supposed dress, even as the artist continued his speech. "It doesn't even have any particular style or even shape to it." She looked at Janette and they both held back laughter.
Why did the management approve of this? Lenae thought. She made herself focus on what the artist had to say.
"I was inspired to make this dress from my daughter's need to always hug her mother." The artist said. "She'd always say that she finds comfort whenever her mom hugs her. So I designed this dress to represent an unmistakable mother-daughter bond. One where safety is guaranteed. Thank you."
Ray held back laughter, "no such bond exists," he thought. "Women, especially mothers, do not have a place if security in them." That he had learned from his experience with his mother.
The audience gave a round of applause. "Alright, with a starting price of four hundred thousand dollars. Do we have our first bidding?"
There was a short pause, then someone raised her placard. "Four hundred thousand dollars!" The female anchor announced, pointing at a lady in red.
"Going for four hundred thousand dollars. Do we have another bid?" The male anchor asked. "Four hundred and seventy thousand dollars!" He announced as a man raised his placard at the front.
"Sixty thousand dollars!" The female anchor announced. "Going once!" She added.
"Seven hundred thousand dollars!" The male anchor announced. "Going once! Going twice!"
"Sold to the man in velvet!" The female anchor announced. A round of applause followed and Lenae and Janette shared glances.
Lenae whispered to Janette. "These people are crazy rich, they'd buy anything stupid. We have a fat chance."
"Sure we do," Janette said, bubbling inside. "I'm sure they are not stupid enough to buy a destroyed artwork though." She thought as she smiled back at Lenae.
The anchors continued, "Now on to our next art piece. An original, by Janette Cruz." The audience gave a round of applause.
Janette gasped, and Lenae patted her knee, nodding in encouragement. "Go get them," Lenae said.
Janette gracefully made her way to the front as her painting was wheeled on stage. She had a bright smile on her face as she took the microphone.
"Hello everyone. I'm Janette Cruz and this is my painting called Living Wonder. I was inspired to paint this after my grandmother passed away. She was a big supporter of my dream. When she passed, I realized that every one of us is a Living Wonder. You never know how beautiful people make your life until you're all alone and have no one to hold. So every color on this canvas represents each one of us. Without your wonder, the world is more grey than it should be. Thank you."
The audience gave a round of applause, some gave a standing ovation as Janette walked back to her seat. Lenae was elated, "I always knew she was a star." Lenae thought.
"Amazing," The anchors said. "This painting goes for four hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Any first bidding?" The male anchor asked. "Alright, we have a bid of four hundred and fifty thousand dollars," He announced.
"Five hundred thousand dollars!" The female anchor announced.
Janette settled down and Lenae hugged her. "We made it!" She shrieked. Janette laughed and hugged her back. Ray wasn't buying any of Janette's acting. "For all I know, she'd rather see her friend's end than support her." He thought.
"Six hundred thousand dollars!" The anchors announced. "Going once!"
"Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars!" they announced and Lenae locked hands with Janette.
"Going once! Going twice! Sold to the beautiful lady in pink!" the male anchor announced. The audience gave another round of applause. Janette was excited. "Money in the bag!" She said to herself.
"Congratulations Janey." Lenae squealed.
"Thank you. We did it!" Janette said. "I'm buying dinner."
"Of course, you should," Lenae replied, squeezing Janette's arm slightly. "You could also fly us to the Maldives. Invest in a firm. We're soaring from now."
"Never again would we beg anyone to buy our paintings. We have Bloom's recommendation now," Janette said.
"Sure we do." Lenae agreed, and they both laughed.
A smirk remained on Ray's face as he watched from afar. "Tim," Ray called for Tim, and he drew closer to Ray. "Make sure you don't step in or prove that the lady's painting looks any different from how she submitted it. Let everything play out in their court. Okay?"
"But sir, what if the incident affects Bloom's name?"
"It won't, I won't let it go that far. For now, do nothing. Okay?"
"Yes sir." Tim replied, leaving Ray to do as he saw fit.
The anchors continued, "Our next piece of art; a woven pen. Let us make you welcome, John Beaver." The audience gave a round of applause.
"Hello everyone, I'm John Beaver," the artist said as he held the microphone. "Here in front of you is a pen, made from the finest wools. It's soft and smooth to the touch. It was inspired by my daughter. She had difficulty learning how to write with a pen because of how hard it can be on your fingers. I thought about making life easier for her and I came up with this. She has thrived ever since. So, I decided to launch this piece of art for the world to see. Thank you."
The audience gave a round of applause. Lenae's heart began to beat faster, she could feel it would be her turn soon.
"Okay," the anchor said as the artist went back to his seat. "The starting price is sixty thousand dollars. Any bidding?"
"Seventy thousand dollars!" The male anchor announced.
"Eighty thousand dollars!" The female anchor announced.
"Two hundred thousand dollars! Going once. Going twice. Sold to the couple in white!" they announced. The audience gave a round of applause.
The auction went on and at some point, Lenae wondered. "Will my name even be called?" Janette wasn't as curious as she was, but it was okay.
Ray motioned for Tim. "It's time for you to finally do something. Get us a copy of the CCTV. I need solid evidence about the art incident." He said.
Tim exited the hall, nodding in response to greetings. "This is getting even crazier by the moment."
"I need a copy of today's CCTV footage for the back of the hall," Tim asked after introducing himself and showing his ID.
"There's no CCTV there sir." The staff said.
"That's not possible, I mean, for where art pieces were received," Tim clarified.
"Right, sir. I'm sorry for the misunderstanding." The staff worked on his computer for a while. "Yes sir, we have it."
"Show me from between nine oh five to nine twenty this morning," Tim asked.
The staff did as he was told and they both watched Janette destroy Lenae's art. The staff gasped in shock. "I'm sorry about this sir, I really didn't think that would happen in that place." He explained to Tim, trying to defend his job.
"It's alright, it's not about you right now. Please copy the footage. I need a copy."
"Yes sir." The staff responded hastily and copied the footage. "Here you go." He told Tim, handing him a copy of the footage.
"Thank you very much," Tim said as he took his leave.
When Tim arrived back at the hall, the auctions were still going on. "I've got it sir." He whispered in Ray's ears as he sat on his seat.
"Good," Ray responded. "When the time is right, I'll let you know what to do next. Just stay ready." Ray said.
Tim nodded in understanding, "finally," he thought. "Evil shouldn't be watched, but stopped." He mumbled, smiling to himself. Ray kept a straight face.
The anchors continued, "Now our next piece of art, also an original, is a painting by Lenae Grims." The audience gave a round of applause as Lenae stepped forward, and her painting was wheeled on stage.
Tim looked at Ray, and Ray just smiled back at him. "What do I do now sir?" Tim asked.
"Nothing for now."
"But sir, she's about to present a ruined artwork," Tim said, perplexed.
"I know, Tim. Remember I said things should happen naturally? We're not interfering, only defending ourselves." Ray said coldly.
Tim understood Ray's detest for women, sincerely. "Sir," he said calmly. "Please, she shouldn't have to go through this. If we can do something to reveal the culprit right now, l think we should do just that." Tim urged.
"We will, Tim. But not right now." Ray said, tapping Tim on his shoulder.
Tim laid back limply on his seat. He felt bad for Lenae, but his boss had the final say. "Please be okay." He wished in his heart for Lenae as he watched her keep a smile while her art was brought forward.
Meanwhile, Janette nodded to Lenae from the audience, encouraging her. The painting is unveiled and the gasps from the audience, just as Lenae was about to make her speech, makes her turn to her painting. She dropped the microphone from before her lips. "What in heaven's name?" Lenae heard herself say.
Whispers began to fly around the hall. Lenae stared at everyone, lost for words. She looked at Janette and Janette kept a straight face and looked away. "She must be just as shocked," Lenae thought, almost moved to tears.
Tim was losing it. He tapped Ray. "No, Tim. Do nothing," Ray said flatly.
The entire hall seemed to be drawing closer to Lenae. "Am I going to faint?" She asked herself.
People in the audience began to take pictures of the torn painting. And just as the anchors were about to speak, Lenae straightened herself and with a bright smile, shocked everyone present with her words, "She is my Devil."