The old guy behind the counter had one of those glasses that had thicker lenses that could be flipped into place and he studied the collar he had been given through them.

" Well? " David's voice was impatient.

" Well it's gold all right...I've never seen anything like this..." He took it to the back shelf to weigh it. He whistled through his teeth. " Heavy solid all the way through. Old too. In fact it's so old it really ought to be in a museum."

" But how much is it worth?!" David snapped.

The old guy gave him a look. " Priceless...more than I can afford to pay you but if you like I can set up an auction for it..."

" Man fuck that what can you give us? " David asked angrily. Daniel stirred slightly when he heard the word auction but a hard look from David shut him up.

Brian was also fidgeting. Didn't you get like millions from auctions? He thought so.

The old man fiddled with he collar until he broke it into three pieces. The heart shaped lock and the a pair of braces. He knew he could give these fools a thousand dollars and then reap God knew how much at an auction but he wasn't that kind of man. He spread out the pieces.

" I'll give you 7,000 dollars right now for this lock. The other two pieces you can take off to other thrift stores and pawn brokers but I tell you young man...an auction might bring you close to a million with those pieces."

" I'll take it. " David said eagerly. Even the others looked thrilled. " Where can I set up an auction? How long will it take? "

The old man frowned buffing the lock. It really was a gorgeous piece of work. " Well it's museum quality so the nearest auction house is at the Downtown museum of Antiquity...they might be able to get an auction going in about a month or so."

David frowned " A month? What kind of shit is that? "

The old man shrugged working to open a large iron safe. He put the lock inside then pulled out a stack of hundred dollar bills. He began to count them out. He'd be out the ready cash true but once he auctioned the lock he'd be paid back 10 times over and unlike these young fools who had the look of drug users on them he didn't mind being patient to reap the reward.

The big man with the tattoos and bald head eagerly scooped up the money and the two braces. The four of them went to the van and once in side as promised David split the money between them.

" Jesus I'm going to buy a car! " Brian crowed. " We still got two more pieces to unload!"

Kat was already making plans to go shopping at the mall. She stuffed the bills into her black spiked bag. " I think we should do...you know what the old dude said...let's auction one...maybe we'll wind up with a million!"

David who had finally calmed himself now that he had money in hand nodded. " Yea...yea I think your right. Let's pawn this last piece...we'll go to the big ass fancy pawn store on 5th avenue and then to the museum to set up the auction thing."

" Yea! Maybe we can get 10,000!" Brian said enthusiastically " I'll tell you right now man tonight...we're gonna party!"

As the sun went down the Leprechaun worked the last of his magic. The caves he dwelled in looked very different then it had before. Everything was destroyed or shredded. The only thing he had been unable to bring himself to destroy was the great throne. The last place he had his love had sipped good aged Irish whiskey.

In the middle of the room now sat a great stone coffin. The top was carved into a woman with her hair spread around her with sprigs of flowers here and there. Her buxom and form where raised in base relief all the way down to the details on her dainty shoes.

He reached out and stroked the stone face sliding a claw down her nose, stroking her full cold stone lips before running his hand down her face over her breasts until he reached her stomach. Her hands had been carved cupped together to form a shallow impression. It was in this impression he would place the eyes and hearts of the ones who had dared take her from him.

" Soon my dear, soon. I'll wring blood from the blackguards who harmed ye and rip their insides out you'll see. Tonight my dear I'll make 'em scream! "

He stepped back and with a wave of his hand he disappeared.