Chapter 78 A Favor on the Current
Daniel's words came faster and faster, until he was practically shouting, his eyes reddening with rage and desperation.
The hand buried in his pocket wouldn't stop shaking. One thought looped through his mind on repeat: 'He has to believe me. He has to.'
"God, I can't believe I ran into her here—like this! Mr. Brooks, I'm begging you, let me have her! This is my only chance for payback! I want to watch her grovel at my feet. I want to make her feel every bit of the humiliation she put me through—ten times, a hundred times worse!"
The room fell silent. Every eye turned to Harry, waiting for his response.
Harry's eyes narrowed, his gaze sliding over Daniel with surgical precision before turning back to Caroline.
After a few long seconds, he smiled.
"Oh? Want revenge? Sure, but…" He gestured at the crowd of wealthy men watching with hungry anticipation.
"Dr. Cortes, look around. You think your little exploration data is going to cut it? Every man in this room spends more in a week than you've probably seen in your entire life. Even if you sold everything you own, you couldn't afford tonight's winning bid."
"Poor bastard thinks he can buy the girl!"
"Go home and dream about it!"
"What's a broke nobody doing at an auction anyway?"
The jeers came from all sides.
Daniel's face flushed crimson. Cold sweat soaked his shirt, making it cling to his skin.
But he forced himself to look up at Harry. "I... I want to try. Please, Mr. Brooks. Just give me a chance."
Harry studied him for several long seconds. Then he smiled again.
He bent down, picked up the barbed whip from the floor, and held it out to Daniel.
"A chance? Fine." Harry's tone was slow, testing. "I was planning to buy her tonight. Have some fun. But since you hate her so much, since you're so desperate… I suppose I could be generous. However…"
He pushed the whip closer.
"I spent money. I deserve to get my money's worth, don't I? So here's the deal. You take this whip, and you hit her."
He pointed at Caroline.
"Ten times. Let me see how serious you are about this revenge. If you do it, if you make it good, I'll buy her for you. She's yours. You can do whatever you want to her. How about it?"
Daniel stared at the black leather whip. The room tilted around him.
How could he possibly hurt Caroline?
"What's wrong? Can't do it?" Harry's voice turned cold.
"If you don't have the guts to follow through, then forget it. I'll bid on her myself. Tonight… she'll be my toy."
He started to pull the whip back.
"Wait!" Daniel's voice cracked.
His hand trembled as he reached out and took the heavy whip.
He looked down at Caroline, his lips moving soundlessly. "I'm sorry…"
Then he raised his arm high, the whip lifted above his head.
The crowd erupted in excited cheers.
The whip sliced through the air with a sharp, vicious whistle.
Caroline's body flinched violently—but the pain never came.
The crowd gasped in shock.
At the last second, Daniel had jerked his hand to the side. The whip struck the metal armrest of the chair instead.
Daniel stood frozen, his whole body shaking. Tears streamed down his face.
He couldn't lift the whip a second time.
After a few seconds of stunned silence, he let go. The whip hit the floor with a dull metallic clang.
Then, in front of everyone, he dropped to his knees in front of Harry.
"Mr. Brooks…" He looked up, tears pouring down his face, his voice raw and broken.
"I… I can't do it… Please, help me. Buy her. My team, all my future research, everything I have—it's yours! Just save her! Please!"
Harry looked down at him. The amusement faded from his face, replaced by something more complicated.
After a long silence, he shook his head and sighed.
"You say you hate her. That you want revenge. But you still love her. You can't stand to hurt her, not even a little… Dr. Cortes, you've been out in the world for years now. How do you still not get it? In this world, sincerity is the most useless, pathetic thing you can have."
Daniel pressed his lips together, not daring to speak, only looking up at Harry with desperate, pleading eyes.
Harry watched him for a few more seconds. Then he laughed.
"Fine." He waved his hand dismissively.
"You can't force these things. For the sake of your… touching devotion, I'll help you out. Consider it an investment in your future loyalty. If you ever get tired of her, you can give her back to me. I'd be happy to take that gift. And if you don't know how to handle a woman…"
He smiled faintly. "You can come ask me. I'd be happy to teach you. Hands-on."
With that, Harry turned to the stunned host and snapped his fingers, making a quick gesture.
"The woman. I'm taking her. Whatever your highest bid in history was—double it."
The host froze for a moment, then his eyes lit up with pure greed.
Double the record price? He wouldn't have dared dream of this.
And he couldn't believe he was getting rid of what had been, just hours ago, a liability he thought would lose them money.
Terrified Harry might change his mind, he shouted immediately: "The 'Scarred Angel' goes to the esteemed Mr. Brooks!"
The room erupted in whistles and applause.
Daniel sagged with relief. He bowed deeply to Harry, then rushed to Caroline, fumbling with the leather straps binding her. He wrapped his coat tightly around her and carefully lifted her into his arms.
"Thank you, Mr. Brooks!"
He threw the words over his shoulder and hurried off the stage, pushing through the crowd toward the exit.
Harry settled back into his seat, lifting his glass and taking a slow sip.
His assistant leaned down, speaking quietly. "Sir, you clearly knew Dr. Cortes was lying. Why help him? And spend that much money?"
Harry swirled the liquid in his glass, his gaze following Daniel's retreating figure until he disappeared through the door.
"Lying? Maybe. But more importantly—did you recognize the woman?"
The assistant paused, thinking hard. "She… looked familiar, but…"
"The Neville family's eldest daughter." Harry's voice was calm. "The one who supposedly killed her own twin sister. The one who married Alexander."
The assistant sucked in a sharp breath. "That's her?! But doesn't Mr. Hamilton hate her? I heard he only married her to make her suffer…"
"Oh, he hates her." Harry let out a soft, cynical laugh.
"But the more you hate someone, the more you care, don't you think? I understand how men work. Even if you despise something you own, even if you want to destroy it, you do it yourself. You don't let anyone else touch it. Especially not in a place like this, where she'd be auctioned off and humiliated in public."
He took another slow sip. "If I'd actually bought her tonight and had my fun, and the Hamiltons found out? Whatever profit I made wouldn't even cover the cost of our coffins."
He smiled faintly. "But now? I just went with the flow. Did a favor. Helped his wife escape a dangerous situation. Sure, another man walked out with her. But at the end of the day, I'm the one who paid. I'm the one who stopped that whip."