Illusion Town Read Online Free PDF

bad.”
    â€œDid your aunts try to find any of your blood relatives?”
    â€œYes, but they gave up after a while. Mom and Dad were alone in the world. So Clara and Bernice made a pact to raise me themselves. It was either that or put me into the foster care system.”
    â€œThat is an amazing story,” Elias said softly. “No wonder you’re worried about losing that necklace.”
    â€œIt’s all I’ve got left from my mother. In her note to my aunts she said that it was important and that if anything happened to her and my father, they should hide it until I was old enough to understand that it was my inheritance.”
    Elias nodded but he didn’t say anything.
    â€œI know what you’re thinking,” she said. “You’re thinking it was just a cheap crystal necklace. But you’re wrong.”
    â€œYeah?”
    â€œIt turned out to be exactly what my mother wrote in hernote—the key to my inheritance. The problem was that it was missing a single crystal. Two weeks ago I finally found that stone. A week later it led me to my inheritance.”
    He gave her a considering look. “Something in the Underworld?”
    â€œYes. Naturally, I kept quiet about it until I could file a claim on the sector where it’s located. But the paperwork was completed a few days ago.” She smiled with satisfaction. “My inheritance is safe. I plan to sell it to the highest bidder.”
    Elias startled her by coming to a sudden halt. He turned to face her, eyes narrowed. “How many people know about this discovery of yours?”
    â€œJust Aunt Clara and Aunt Bernice.” Belatedly she started to wonder if she had made a serious mistake—make that another serious mistake. “And now you, of course. But you’re a Coppersmith. My inheritance is penny-ante stuff compared to your family’s mining empire.”
    â€œYou’re sure you’ve only told three people?”
    â€œPositive. Why do you ask? You’re starting to make me nervous.”
    â€œGood. Because if you’re nervous, you’ll be careful. Take some advice from a man who grew up in the mining business. Don’t tell anyone else about your claim until you’ve figured out exactly how you’re going to sell it. And then move very, very fast to close the deal.”
    â€œI told you, I filed a claim. It’s all signed, sealed, and legal.”
    â€œIn the Underworld, a claim is only as strong as the person who files it. Why do you think they invented theterm
claim jumping
? And why do you think Coppersmith employs a very large and very well-equipped security team? There will always be claim jumpers and pirates, so keep your secrets close.”
    A chill of dread whispered through her. Elias sounded unnervingly knowledgeable about the security issues.
    â€œOkay,” she said. She took a breath. “I’ll be careful.”
    â€œGood. When this is over, I’ll check out your claim if you’d like. Set up some good security for you.”
    She chuckled. “Don’t worry. For now, it’s safe enough. Locked up nice and tight and I’ve got the only key.”
    â€œThe necklace? But you lost it.”
    â€œNo. The necklace was a map. It led me to my inheritance. Technically, I no longer need it, but it has sentimental value.”
    Elias glanced at his ring. “I understand.”
    â€œEnough about my inheritance. It’s safe for the time being. We’ve got more immediate problems. Like why did we get married last night?”
    â€œI’ve been thinking about that,” he said. “I can’t be sure but it occurs to me that there is one very plausible reason why we stopped off at the Enchanted Night Wedding Chapel long enough to file an MC.”
    She looked at him, startled. “What?”
    â€œWe knew or strongly suspected that we were going to crash. We would have realized that we might wake up with