Chapter 273 - Distractable Devastation (1/2)
”Face it, the bastards ditched.” Russ growled as he studied another antique candlestick. ”I mean how much useless shit does one palace need?” He tossed the candlestick over his shoulder to Ry.
Ry chuckled as he handed it off to Poseidon. ”Good question... dad, how much useless shit does one palace need?”
Poseidon rolled his eyes as he made the candlestick disappear. ”Most sensible people would call this 'useless shit' priceless family heirlooms.”
”I hope not too priceless.” Russ muttered as his gaze moved up to one of about 40 chandeliers on the bottom floor of the palace. ”How much do you think one of those would go for?”
Poseidon shrugged, ”It depends on the quality of crystal and metals.”
”And these?” Russ asked as he pointed to the many pieces of old art that lined this part of the palace.
Poseidon let out a heavy sigh. ”Considering they look like mid-century Baroque...”
”Broke or not, you think they would sale?” Russ asked as he lifted the bottom of one elaborate frame away from the wall.
Poseidon rolled his eyes causing Ry to snicker beside him. ”Baroque, B.a.r.o.q.u.e, not broke. Copies would sell for hundreds, sometimes thousands. If they are originals some could be worth millions, again priceless heirlooms!”
”There's only way a palace full of useless shit is going to help my people, and that's by selling it to the highest bidders.” Russ tugged the painting from the wall, leaving behind a discolored square where it had hung. He held the back out toward Poseidon. ”What do you say?”
Poseidon let out another heavy sigh as he held out his hand. ”It's an original Rubens...” Poseidon rolled his eyes as he watched the young wolf pull over an antique accent table and climb on top of it to inspect the crystal of the light overhead. ”I don't know why you're doing this; I've already told you I will front whatever finances you need for the restoration of this town and its people.”
”And have them owe you for life? I'd rather do this on my own.” He unhooked one of the hanging dew-drop crystals and tossed it to Poseidon. ”Well?”
Before he could answer his phone rang. ”It's Chary, let's give it a break on the selling off of all the palace valuables... just for a few minutes...” He tossed the crystal to Ry as he turned away pressing the phone to his ear. ”Hello dear, any news?”
[What the hell is going on there?! The antiques room is literally spilling out into the main floor of the library! Did you guys rob a damn museum or something?!]
Poseidon shot a glance over his shoulder as he continued down the hall. ”Just store it in one of the upstairs bedrooms out of the way for now... I'll explain later.”
[Dad, there's a ten-foot wolf statue in the f.u.c.k.i.n.g center of the library! How the hell am I supposed to get that big bitch upstairs, let along through the doorway to one of the bedrooms?!]
He let out an irritated sigh. ”You'll figure out something, I'm sure...” A crash from down the hall brought his attention around. The delicate table Russ had been standing on was now splintered under the boy as he leaned to one side rubbing his a.s.s. ”I have to go; we'll talk about this later.” He didn't wait for her to reply as he hung up the phone and headed back to his son and the kid. ”That table was probably worth a good amount as well... With that being said, how about we try to at least find proper tools to remove the rest of the shit you plan on taking down...”
Ry chuckled as he held out a hand to Russ. ”Here kid, get up, dads got a good point.”
Russ dusted off his jeans, brushing particles of wood away. ”So, how long should the sales take to be final and the money to come through?”
Poseidon ran a hand over the tight bun of his hair. ”Payments will be instant as soon as they sell and ship. That was Chary on the phone, some of them have already sold.”
Ry arched a brow toward his dad over Russ's head. He gave the kid a pat on the back. ”See kid, nothing to worry about. What do you say we take some supplies down and help out those we can now and let this most recent batch of antiques sell first.”
Russ nodded as he made his way down the hall toward the kitchen.
***
Irritation slammed against the back of Russ's various emotions as he handed out the last basket of goods to a pair of young orphans. ”Isn't there something else we can do? Can't they stay in a room of the palace or something until we can work something out?”
Ry frowned as he watched the children scurry off. ”I mean you could try, but they most likely wouldn't stay. You have to keep in mind the palace has been nothing but a beacon of fear and destruction for them their entire life.” He nodded toward a small group of skeptical onlookers. ”These people don't trust you enough yet to take any offers past this simple kindness. Hell, some of them would rather starve than accept a loaf of bread... that has to tell you something about the hells they've been through over the past 16 years.”
Russ nodded. ”This time last year the only thing on my mind was confessing my feelings to Jos and keeping the both of us as far away from this island as possible. It had never occurred to me that the people here were suffering so much... but I guess she must have known...”
Ry nodded. ”As your guardian, Raven had been kept up to date with the situation here. She and the council had argued often enough about the island's state and your return to it.” He shrugged. ”I can imagine it's why she supported the idea of you and Jos so much... she saw it as an answer to both your problems.”