"A very clever play, Marko," a familiar voice whispered. "But now, I’m making you the real best offer: your life in exchange for the Archive."
The item was a tattered canvas titled The Veiled Truth . It looked like a mediocre 19th-century landscape, but the tipster claimed it hid a map to the "Black Archive"—a legendary collection of stolen historical documents.
Marko didn't run for the exit. He ran to the Restorer's Lab. He knew something no one else did: the painting on the block was a decoy he had prepared himself. The real Veiled Truth was already in his possession, hidden behind a false wall in his studio. Najbolja Ponuda(Krimi-Misterija)/The Best Offer...
He realized the "anonymous tip" was a test. The Ghost wasn't after the map; he was after the man who could decode it. As Marko turned to leave, he felt the cold press of a barrel against the back of his neck.
Marko watched from the wings. He noticed the bidder’s hand; it bore a unique scar—the mark of "The Ghost," a thief who had vanished a decade ago after a botched heist. "A very clever play, Marko," a familiar voice whispered
The bidding escalated rapidly. "One hundred thousand!" shouted a woman in red."Two hundred!" countered The Ghost."Five hundred thousand!" she screamed.
At the auction, the atmosphere was thick. The bidding started at a modest five thousand euros. Then, a man in the back row, his face obscured by a low-brimmed hat, raised the price to fifty thousand. The room gasped. Marko didn't run for the exit
But as the woman stepped forward to claim her prize, the lights flickered and died. A muffled struggle echoed through the hall. When the emergency generators kicked in moments later, the lady in red lay unconscious, and the painting was gone.
