Chapter 321
The buyer showed up at the office with their own appraiser, ready to settle the deal from the recent live-stream auction.
That’s when they found out the enamel vase they’d won was actually a fake.
Nobody could believe it. Billy Firth had never had a scandal like this before.
They even brought in more expert appraisers, hoping for a mistake, but the verdict was the same. It was a replica.
“Nora, that item came from a collector Mr. Thompson introduced. He said it was already authenticated Anne started to explain.
Natalie interrupted her, not waiting for the rest. “The Thompson Group’s
authentication is always solid, and I trust Mr. Thompson. He wouldn’t do something like this p>
“You’ve got it wrong,” Anne replied gently. “I just mean, what if The Thompson Group’s appraiser made a rare mistake, and that collector got fooled too, without knowing it p>
Mistakes like that hardly ever happened. Still, it wasn’t impossible.
Natalie thought for a moment, then reached for her phone to call Samuel Thompson.
Before she could dial, her phone started buzzing. Samuel was calling her.
“I was just about to call you,” Natalie said, picking up.
“I already know why you’re calling. I wanted to tell you myself, there’s no issue with The Thompson Group’s authentication. Even though things were rushed, we made sure everything was real. I even brought in two national-level experts to double- check. There’s no way we missed something p>
Samuel’s voice was steady and clear, running through the whole process.
Natalie paused, thinking it over. “I never doubted The Thompson Group. But how did
you find out about what happened at Billy Firth so fast p>
The news had only just reached her. How was Samuel already in the loop?
“You haven’t seen? It’s blowing up online p>
Just then, Anne’s thumb flicked across her phone screen, and she let out a gasp. “We’re trending! Top ten, and the numbers are still climbing p>
She held her phone out to Natalie.
#BillyFirthSellsFakes
There was a red “hot” icon next to the hashtag, showing it was getting even more attention.
“This isn’t the kind of thing that usually goes viral,” Anne said,
frowning “It’s not celet
some big seand
talking about it p>
Samuel’s voice came through the phone again.
“Someone probably paid to boost the topic p>
Natalie clicked into the hashtag. An entertainment outlet had already picked up the ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ.net
story, and the comments section was exploding.
“Billy Firth, the world-famous auction house, caught selling fakes p>
“Why is anyone surprised? Big companies think they can do whatever they want p>
“I heard Cabinda is Billy Firth’s Asia-Pacific headquarters, and their VP is a woman There aren’t many women in this busmess. Forher to. get that job and run the whole region… makes you wonder if she’s really qualified p>
“Qualified? You don’t know what she did to get there. I’m done with their auctions. Imagine spending a fortune and ending up with a fake p>
Anne read the comments, her face turning red. “These people are unbelievable.
They’re just making things up and spreading rumors p>
Natalie, still on the phone with Samuel, said, “If The Thompson Group isn’t the problem, then I know where to look p>
“You have an idea?” Samuel asked.
“The vase was with us the whole time after it left The Thompson Group,” Natalie said. “If something went wrong, it had to happen inside our company p>
When the call ended, Natalie turned to Anne. “First, calm the client down. Tell him we’ll make it right. Then start checking everyone who had access to that vase p>