“Exposure.”
[The Illumination Antiques sign shines brightly – but the store itself has seen better days.]“As a store owner, I always believed this meant that more people would be interested in all of the fabulous things that I have for sale – that I would have people of all different levels coming here to see what unique items I have to illuminate them.”
“Not only would I capture the intrigue of many, but I would also be able to carry on the Lamplight legacy just as it should.”
“Until today, when I realized what happens when you’re exposed to the wrong people.”
[Inside of the closed front door, Lamplight stares through the slits between the window blinds.]“They aren’t interested in playing patron to your services. Once they’re interested, they take as much as they want.”
“Once they get word of something special, our typical understanding of business ceases to exist. They simply approach – not with credits…”
[Albert’s eyes squint as he shutters the blinds. Inside now, Albert surveys the space in front of him – which seems far lighter with inventory than ever before.]“But with force. And from that insistent force, everything that they wanted becomes theirs – even if it’s everything you’ve ever worked for.”
“I look at myself see a ransacked man that’s found himself strangled by the strong arm of failures. I see a man whose picture of life felt clear and evident, only for it to be turned upside down once the exposure fell into the wrong hands.”
“I see you, Mr. Attano.”
“Which is why I’m relieved they haven’t found this yet.”
[Lamplight makes his way to the front desk and picks up a piece of equipment – a video camera.]“For as much as my apparent exodus seems continuous – yours has the ability to be temporary with my help.”
“With proficient tools on hand, exposure doesn’t necessarily have to fall into the hands of the wrong people – especially if you have a way to safely contain it so that the big, bad wolves can’t sniff it out and get their dirty hands on it – like that delightful pen of mine that’s now in the hands of the entirely wrong person. Boswick…”
[Lamplight shakes his head in disappointment but focuses back on the camera.]“This one-of-a-kind instrument will not only provide you with video recordings, so that you can kindly do away with hanging your pictures up to dry out like laundry, but it also comes with something called cloud storage. This way, even in the event that the wolves pick up a scent on this lovely piece of equipment – guess what? This thing will send the video across a remote server to ensure the security of your data – to protect in case of any sort of breach or, in our cases especially, when exposure finds its way into the wrong hands.”
“Taking into consideration that from your breach, you’re now left without the things that illuminate your identity the most, I’d say that we’ve likely captured a deal on our hands.”
“However…”
[Lamplight places the camera on his desk and smiles.]“Everything has its price. The question is… are you willing to pay?”