Chapter 25: Duke
"What took you so long?" Argent asked when Matthew came back to his seat.
Matthew only shrugged in response. He looked at where the ghost was standing, but this time, he didn’t see him.
"It’s about to start," Argent said. "Go, check the brochure real quick so you’ll know if you want to buy something."
Matthew complied without saying another word. He opened the brochure while observing his surroundings. The ghost was no longer there. This time, he let out a sigh of relief. "Why was he able to touch me?" he asked himself. Does that mean there are ghosts that could touch the living?
Matthew flipped through the brochure again. A new section had been added—newly mined, unprocessed stones. Some were rough, unpolished, and barely shaped. The notes beside each image said they had been scanned using advanced spectrometry. The results hinted at something valuable inside, raw gems, rare metals, and sometimes even meteorite fragments. But the scans couldn’t determine size or quality.
Still, that was the point. It was a gamble.
Argent leaned closer. "Good eye," he said. "A lot of valuable stuff tonight. Those rocks? They’re not random. They’ve already been checked. They wouldn’t be here if there was nothing inside."
Matthew looked at the images again.
"They won’t tell you how big the good part is," Argent continued. "That’s where the game comes in. Could be a small shard. Could be a full core. Businessmen love this. Some guy once pulled a fist-sized blue diamond out of a rock that looked like trash."
Matthew turned the page again, but before he could read further, a woman’s voice interrupted them.
Two women stood beside their booth. Both were wearing dark, form-fitting clothing—similar to what belly dancers might wear, but stripped of any decorations that made sound.