Chapter 6 - PREPARE THE CONTRACTThe suitcase had belonged to Daniel Cole.
Before it carried cash, it carried tools.
My father bought it at a pawnshop when he was nineteen.
He reinforced the corners with black tape.
Added metal brackets.
Replaced the handle twice.
When a garage hired him, he carried wrenches in it.
When the garage closed, he carried those same tools to his next job.
It traveled through five states and nine repair shops.
By the time I was born, one wheel was already damaged.
He refused to replace the suitcase.
“Still rolls,” he would say.
Click.
Click.
Click.
The sound followed me through childhood.
When he repaired the Ferrari now standing in the gala, I sat on that suitcase and watched.
I was not allowed near the tools.
My father had received strict instructions from the owner.
No children.
No unnecessary contact.
No photographs.
But the owner visited unexpectedly and found me in the garage.
I expected my father to lose the job.
Instead, the man asked whether I liked the car.
I said, “I like the engine.”
He laughed and allowed my father to show me the rear compartment.
That night, my father placed one dollar in the suitcase.
“For our Ferrari fund,” he said.
It was a joke.
Then it became a ritual.
One dollar after a difficult repair.
Five dollars after overtime.
Ten on my birthday.
We never accumulated enough for a Ferrari.
Not even close.
When rent increased, some of the money disappeared.
When I needed textbooks, more disappeared.
My father apologized every time.
I never blamed him.
Seven years after he died, I found the suitcase in the back of his garage.
Under the tool tray was a sealed envelope containing $4,800.
The final Ferrari fund.
I deposited the old bills into a memorial account.
Over time, I added investment returns and a small portion of my company dividends.
The $300,000 inside the suitcase came from that account.
Not all my father’s money.
But all connected to the promise.
Olivia listened without interrupting.
Richard looked uncomfortable.
Sentimental histories confused men who understood only price.
“The remaining balance will come from my primary account,” I said.
Janet confirmed the cash count.
Every bill was legitimate.
Every record matched.
Olivia opened the purchase file.
“The vehicle’s owner requires a formal offer,” she said.
“I’ll pay the listed price.”
Richard leaned forward.
“There may be an opportunity to negotiate.”
“No.”
He looked surprised.
“You don’t want a better price?”
“I want a fair transaction.”
I turned toward Olivia.
“Prepare the contract at the listed price, subject to inspection and title verification.”
She nodded.
“I’ll also include the conditions concerning service records and delivery.”
“Good.”
Richard stood.
“I should present the offer to the owner.”
Olivia looked at her tablet.
“The assignment is registered to me.”
“I can override it.”
I closed the suitcase.
“Then I withdraw the offer.”
Richard stopped.
I continued.
“If you remove Olivia from the transaction, I leave.”
He looked at her.
The contempt returned.
Only briefly.
But I saw it.
Olivia did too.
“Very well,” he said. “She can prepare the paperwork.”
As he reached the door, Janet’s computer chimed.
The dealership’s private client system had completed its identity match.
A red notification appeared.
PRIOR CONTACT FOUND.
Olivia opened it.
The first record was dated twenty-one years earlier.
Client contact: Daniel Cole.
May you like
Reason: complaint regarding manager conduct.
Manager named in complaint: Richard Hayes.
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