a confident nod. It was a confidence he was not feeling in the least. “Only this time, I have some collateral... saves you having to break my knees.” Another attempted joke that fell flat.
“We will see,” Alexander responded seriously. “I may have Boris here do it anyway, just for fun.” To Alexander’s immediate right stood a mountain of a man with a gun clearly positioned on his belt for the whole room to see. He smiled a toothless smile down at Lance, as if he actually relished the idea.
“Oh... well, will you make it my left knee? My right is my favorite.” It was the third joke that Lance had tried in less than two minutes, and the third to fall flat. He cursed under his breath and reminded himself that this was a serious situation. Now was not the time for levity. “But seriously, what do you think? Do we... do we have a deal?”
Alexander remained silent for some time. He reached into his desk drawer, pulled out a large cigar and cut the end off. Next, he placed it in his mouth and slowly lit the tip as he puffed and chewed on the end. And the whole while he was doing this, he studied the vase closely, dissecting each square inch, looking it over like a true collector double checking for any sign of fault or ruse.
It was an intense moment; nerve wracking! And just like with the last time that Lance was here, he found himself wondering if he had made the right choice in coming to the Russian loan shark. Again, it seemed as if he had not. But then again, desperate times called for desperate measures.
The bank loan had fallen through, and where Kirk seemed so sure that it was just a misstep, Lance was of a different mind. He had known that he would get denied, simply because he knew that he wasn’t good enough. Banks didn’t loan people like him money. Kirk may not have been able to see that, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t the case. That was the reason that Lance had been in such a bad mood after the loan was denied. It wasn’t just that loan, but the likelihood of all future loans. Lance had hit a brick wall and no amount of kudos and hand holding from Kirk was going to change that.
The trip to the museum had turned out to be a Godsend. And yes, a part of that was Kirk’s speech; the emotion he poured into it. He truly did care for Lance, and that alone may have been enough to pull Lance back toward the light... but then Lance saw the vase.
It was the same vase that Lance had seen the first time Kirk had brought him to the exhibit. It was a white and orange flower vase that depicted Philip II of Macedon discovering the silver mines, the ones that allowed for Alexander’s famed conquests. According to the museum too, the vase was made only thirty years after that event. In regard to historical memorabilia, thirty years was about as close as it got! The damn thing was priceless... almost.
Lance knew that his business idea was a winner. He knew it! All he had to do was get the damn thing off the ground. If he did that, the money would flow and all of these ridiculous problems would feel like a thing of the past. He just needed the money first.
That vase was his way in. He knew Alexander Ivanov had a penchant for these types of things, and he also knew that Alexander Ivanov would be willing to lend Lance the money he needed if he was able to put up some sort of collateral. Surely, the vase was worth more than a measly one hundred thousand dollars?
It wasn’t Lance’s proudest moment. Not by far. But he was desperate. And, he was also so sure that it wouldn’t be a problem. He’d take the vase, he’d lend it to Alexander, he’d get the money, start his business and then pay the money back within three months. That was it. Three months was his projection – at the very longest! The exhibit was in Sydney for three more months, so he’d be able to return it all before anything too bad happened. Simple!
Even stealing the vase was a simple process, and honestly, made Lance feel less guilty about the whole thing. He literally walked into the museum with the backpack, had