Two months later, the ring went under the hammer at a regional auction house in Chicago. The room was packed, but bidding was cautious. The gem was extraordinary, but economic downturns had quieted the high-end jewelry market.
When the wooden gavel finally fell, the hammer price landed at $58,000—below the optimistic $70,000 estimate, but still a formidable sum.
After paying the auction house commissions and legal fees, $46,000 remained. Per their signed agreement, Hannah and Maeve divided the net proceeds equally. Clara waived any claim to the funds, embarrassed by her mother’s past actions and relieved to avoid a public scandal.
Maeve received $23,000—the exact inflation-adjusted value of her unpaid wages from 1968.