Morning all. I woke up early which always throws me a little. I also woke up wide awake, like some one infused me with caffeine when I was till asleep. It is an oddly disconcerting feeling. But I am awake, so lets jump into the morning prompt before the feeling fades. Fifteen minutes on the timer if you are joining in.
Not quite sure where this is going but I like the mystery possibilities that an auction purchase provides. Could be the start of a murder mystery, horror, journey of self discovery or the finding of a magical artifact. Lots of paths visible from here.
Tuesday, February 25th: It was a unique find.
It was a unique find and he was surprised no one spotted it. He could see the volume in the box of books and assorted junk and did his best not to draw attention to it. ‘I could be wrong,’ he thought as he lifted a finger to bid on the collection of odds and ends. ‘It could just be a general copy.’
The book was part of a job lot and as many of the items in the lot didn’t seem worth much, Jared didn’t have much competition. He secured the lot and went to arrange payment and shipping. As he passed the crowd, others were more interested in the high end lots where there were pieces of obvious value and less junk piled around them.
He began to second guess his find.
‘I’ve spent more on worthless junk before,’ he consoled himself. He paid the fee and made the arrangements for transport. By the time he was done, there was a bidding war on an antique armoire going down. He watched it with speculation and smiled as Gergory was victorious. He knew the victory would make the man impossible, but it was a good piece. Jarod walked back into the crowd and saw another job lot coming up. There was not much interest in it either but Jared thought he saw something. Before his brain could confirm anything he signaled his bid. No one bid against him. He didn’t know if the others spent their allotted amount or if they didn’t find the lot interesting.
‘Not sure why I find it interesting either,’ Jarod thought. Something compelled him to buy it, but at the moment he couldn’t figure out what. Still, it was his, and he paid and arranged transport with the other lot.
‘Nothing more,’ he told himself.
“You will be weeding through junk for days my friend,” Gregory told him. As expected the man was elated with his victory. He knew his friend would have enjoyed both the battle and the victory.
“Probably,” Jarod told him.
The auction ended soon after and Jarod declined lunch with the others, wanting to search through his purchases.
‘At least see if that book is what I think it is.’
He drove across town and arrived before the transport. He made certain the unloading area was clear. By the time the vehicle arrived to deliver his two lots, Jarod worked himself into a bundle of nerves. He tried to ignore them as the lots were unloaded. He signed what needed to be signed and the truck left. Jarod closed the bay door. He didn’t bother keeping a regular store any more, just the warehouse with his office and apartment on the upper floors. The store had been closed, most of his merchandise easier to sell on line. Dana maintained his website and if anything worth listing was found he would take the pictures and send the information to her.
For now it was time to see what he bought. Jarod turned and looked over the two lots. He blinked and realized they didn’t look like two lots, they looked like one giant lot. ‘They must have come from the same place and just been split into two for the sale,’ he realized. ‘Maybe that’s why I felt compelled to buy them.
As he approached, he could see that purchasing both would help him.
Ten til Midnight 