Chapter 41
Phoenix
At his request, I walk into Clark’s office. It’s shadowy in here, as always. He keeps the temperature low. Not cold, but cool enough I won’t sweat in my long-sleeved shirt. He’s sitting behind his desk again.
With the thunderstorms outside today, it’s dark and grim and there’s no need for the blackout shades.
As I step closer, turning the chair, he usually instructs me to sit.
I see a reflection off the window behind him from his computer screen.
He’s engrossed in whatever he’s doing because he still hasn’t acknowledged my presence.
I can’t tell exactly what profile he’s on, but I recognize the window as the MostlyFool’s website. He’s got some sort of chat window open, but I can’t see which one. There’s an extensive back-and-forth happening. He taps ‘enter’, then he stretches out his arm to turn off the monitor. I pause.
“Good to see you.” He fills the air with false niceties when he finally speaks, and I return his bullshit in kind.
“You as well. I understand you’d like me to install the newest updates on your computer. Is that right?” I ask.
“Yes.” His reply is sharp. “You’re always whinging about maintaining our updates and upgrading security filters whenever possible.” He’s not wrong. It makes my primary responsibilities much easier if I don’t have to install forty-three updates every time I sit down.
“Absolutely,” I say with a smirk like I’ve won something. “But I’ll need to come over there to access your system. Is that a problem?” I hesitate, tilting my head, watching him as he contemplates this information.
“No problem at all.” He clicks his monitor back on.
In the reflection again, I see him, only now he’s furiously closing windows, clearly not wanting anyone to know what he was doing.
I can’t say I’m surprised, given how private The Sect is, but I’m also not sure he realizes how easy it would be for me to dig up everything he does online.
Not just today, but every day he’s ever been connected to The Sect’s server. The one I built and operate.
“Any idea how the latest extension is working?” I offer a simple inquiry, though I don’t actually care. I already know it’s doing ten times better than the prior installation.
“The boss is very pleased.” He pauses, standing up from behind his desk and gesturing for me to come take his place.
“The immediate profit boost when your original software went live was impressive. But since you’ve done whatever magic you did last time you were here, we’re seeing nearly double what you estimated.
” I knew it would do better than I suggested, but I hate to oversell and have it come in short.
Guys like the boss don’t take kindly to misleading information, and I don’t want anyone thinking I owe them money.
“I saw the guys laying into a couple of the ladies downstairs. I see lessons are still taught the old way.”
He lets out a giant belly laugh before responding to me. “It’s effective,” he says. “You should come back and join the auction. We both know how much you loved it.”
“I don’t have the stomach for it anymore,” I lie. “Besides, Roni and I couldn’t be happier.”
“You know, her friend, that redhead you brought us a couple years ago—”
I take his momentary pause as an opportunity to speak. “Mercy. How is―”
“The Boss received an offer that was too good to refuse.” He cuts me off. “Sufficed to say she will have every chance to realize her full potential in her new home.”
Fuck.
I can’t afford to push further, but I know it doesn’t mean anything good.
“Before I go any further with this installation, have you backed up all your files?” I try to return to my reason for being here.
“Yes, yes.” He waves his hands at me like I’m a gnat, in triplicate. “Same as always.”
“I am a creature of habit,” I add, plugging in the thumb drive I brought with me and sitting back while the program I’ve loaded automatically goes to work updating The Sect’s entire network. Not just here, but across its entire server and out to every other device it connects to.
“Do you want to try out this new tracking software I created?” I offer, not knowing exactly how involved he is in that part of his business.
“I don't know. Tell me about it.” He takes a seat opposite me, the leather of my usual chair exhaling under his weight. He tips his half-filled glass of amber liquid between the serrated teeth of his mask and takes a sip.
“It’s another extension to the program The Sect is already using that would help you analyze the profits and losses for each of your products.
Nothing too drastic.” My voice unintentionally softens to a confidential hum.
“I coded something similar for another client.
And Trent hasn't touched physical currency in quite some time. No cash. No credit cards. Nothing that leaves a digital footprint or paper trail. Nothing that connects him to any transaction whatsoever.”
“Interesting,” he says without conviction. “But how would that work for us?”
I take a deep and steady breath before unloading my pitch.
“Before auction day, or even in those electric moments before bidding starts, a participant loads funds into a digital wallet we establish. A ghost account floating independently from anything tied to The Sect but invisibly tethered to secure decentralized server only the boss can access. Picture a wealthy collector willing to drop two million dollars on a single fevered night. They transfer the digital funds into an account we’ll establish for them, and it materializes in your fund like magic.
” I wave my hand like some two-bit hustler of a magician, then pause for dumb dramatic effect.
“Everyone on site that night keeps their hands clean. No raised paddles. No shouted numbers. No sweaty cash changing hands. They simply watch their screens and tap, tap, tap while you orchestrate your spectacle as always.”
“Really. That would work?” I love when I outthink Clark.
“I could arrange a meeting. You. Me. Trent.
A bottle of his favorite booze. And we could hammer details out, since he technically owns the rights.
But let's be honest—” I tap the table with my fingernail, “—all that really matters is his account swells by the exact amount bid, without a single breadcrumb leading back to its source. Completely untraceable.” I take another breath, letting the weight of the concept sink in.
“I feel like every time I have you in here,” he starts, and I can’t help but wonder if this is going to be a patronizing speech, “you have some new magical toy that makes our lives easier. I’m shocked more people haven’t come screaming for your services.
” He chuckles as he sips from his glass again.
“The Sect has taught me to keep my circle small,” I admit, “which is another benefit to this software I thought he would like. We don’t have to tell another living soul about it.
Just you, me, and Trent. Well, and the boss, of course.
I install it. It goes live. It’ll tell us whatever we want to know.
Nobody else will have a clue. All they’ll know is their bidding now occurs through an app into which they must load funds prior in advance.
If their funds are insufficient, the app won’t let them bid. ”
“I’m sure he’s going to like this news very much.” Clark’s eyes bore through me from behind his white mask. “We’ve been growing uneasy with some of the increases we have seen in attendance and wondered if changes were needed.”
This is why they keep me around. I already knew they were clueless about dealing with the level of growth. They would have to come to me for a fix eventually.
“Since you’ll be the one in control of the show, this will allow you to adjust for scale before or even during the auction.” I can’t keep from tossing him a proud sneer.
“By all means, if you have it with you, set it up before you go. In the meantime, I’m going to go take a leak.
” He rises from his seat and walks to his giant metal door, pressing his palm on a scanner on the wall.
The door opens, but before he exits, he turns back to tell me one final thing.
“We’re going to expand the product levels in the near future.
The boss needs to know your software will be ready to handle a diverse inventory. ” And then he heads down the hall.