The Bill

The waiting room was an elegant, soundproof box lined with mahogany and smelling of lemon polish. Two security guards—men with necks as thick as tree trunks—stood by the door.

The auctioneer walked in, beaming. He bypassed Liam entirely and walked straight to the table where the phone proxy sat. The proxy handed the paperwork to the auctioneer, who then turned to Ben.

"Congratulations to the seller," the auctioneer said smoothly. "And, effectively, the buyer. A unique strategy, bidding up your own item via proxy. We see it occasionally. Risky, but it keeps the market hot."

Ben was sweating profusely now. "I... there was a mistake. My friend here was supposed to buy it."

"He didn't," the auctioneer said, his smile not reaching his eyes. "Your proxy won. Which means the transaction stands."

He slid a ledger across the mahogany table.

"The house takes a standard twenty percent commission from the seller. And, since you are also the buyer, you owe the twenty percent buyer’s premium. That’s forty percent of two point one million."

The auctioneer tapped a calculator. "That comes to eight hundred and forty thousand dollars. Payable immediately. We accept wire, diamonds, or deed transfers."

Ben made a choking sound. "I... I don't have that. The money... the money was supposed to come from the sale!"

"The sale to yourself?" The auctioneer’s face hardened. The two guards took a step forward. "We provided a venue. We provided security. We provided the market. You wasted our time. We don't like wasted time."

Ben turned to Liam, desperation clawing at his face. "Liam. Liam, you have to help me. You have the loan. Buy it from me. Please. I’ll give it to you for the two million. Just pay the fees."

Liam stood up slowly. He checked his watch.

"I don't think I want it anymore, Ben," Liam said.

"What do you mean? It’s six million dollars!" Ben screamed, grabbing Liam’s arm. "The keys! The crypto!"

Liam gently removed Ben’s hand from his sleeve.

"Actually, that’s the funny thing," Liam said, his voice conversational. "I woke up early the morning of the robbery. I had a bad feeling. So, I transferred the private keys to a decentralized cloud shard. I wiped the hardware."

He looked at the silver drive sitting on the table.

"That drive is empty, Ben. It’s just a paperweight. A very, very expensive paperweight."

Ben stared at him, his eyes hollow. The realization hit him like a physical weight. He had just purchased a useless piece of plastic for nearly a million dollars in debt to the mob.

"Liam..." Ben whispered.

"Gentlemen," Liam nodded to the guards. "I believe my business here is concluded."

The guards stepped aside to let him pass, then closed ranks around Ben, whose knees were beginning to buckle.

Liam walked out of the heavy steel door and climbed the stairs to the street level. The Seattle air was crisp and cold. It was raining, but he didn't mind. He pulled out his phone and checked his balance. The cloud shards were secure. His fortune was safe.

He hailed a taxi, sliding into the backseat.

"Where to?" the driver asked.

"Anywhere," Liam said, leaning back and closing his eyes. "I need to find a new apartment. preferably a studio."