Illusion Town Read Free Page A

start with the basics,” she said. “Where, exactly, are we?”
    â€œThe Shadow Zone Motel.” Elias plucked an old brochureoff the nightstand and handed it to her. “‘A luxurious retreat and spa in the heart of the Shadow Zone. Every amenity designed with your privacy in mind. Honeymoons are our specialty.’”
    â€œHoneymoons, hmm?” She surveyed the room, taking in the shabby furnishings, yellowed walls, and worn carpet. “Looks like a hot-sheet kind of place.”
    â€œYeah, that pretty much describes it. But it seems clean. Probably why we chose it.”
    She started toward the bathroom. The room shifted on its axis and then settled back into place. She stopped abruptly and massaged her temples, trying desperately to recover some memories. The harder she tried, the more elusive the fleeting images became.
    â€œDamn it, what happened to us?” she asked.
    â€œI don’t know.” Elias went to the window. He used the barrel of the strange weapon to ease the curtains aside. “Best guess is that we got psi-burned sometime last night. Somehow we found this place, checked in, and crashed.”
    Psi-burned. That was not good. She tried to remember what she knew about getting burned. The effects were notoriously unpredictable and could vary from temporary amnesia to serious trauma or even complete destruction of the paranormal senses. A really bad psi-burn could kill.
    â€œWe’re not dead,” she said.
    â€œThere’s that,” he agreed.
    She groped for memories and got only fleeting, meaningless flashes.
A dark street. The full-throated roar of a big motorcycle engine. A cupcake iced with white frosting.
    A cupcake?
    Another little rush of panic flickered through her, tightening her breathing. Maybe she was hallucinating. She told herself to process things slowly.
    â€œI need to wash up,” she said. “Maybe some cold water will clear my head.”
    â€œGood luck with that. Didn’t do much for me. Just make it quick.”
    â€œWho, exactly, do you think is after us?”
    â€œI have no idea,” he said.
    â€œOh, hey, don’t try to sugarcoat your answer.”
    â€œSorry. Figured you’d want the truth.”
    â€œI do.” She paused. “I think.”
    She started toward the bathroom again, automatically rezzing a little talent. Overwhelming relief snapped through her when she felt her para-senses stir in response. Between one breath and the next the room was suddenly illuminated in a range of colors that she had not been able to perceive using her normal vision.
    Not that the place looked any more attractive when viewed in light from the paranormal end of the spectrum, she thought. It was still a hot-sheet motel.
    â€œYeah, I’ve still got my talent, too,” Elias said. “Whatever burned us didn’t wipe out our para-senses, just our memories of last night.”
    She stared at him. “You could feel me rez my senses?”
    â€œSure. Hard to not notice. You’re strong.”
    That was true. But it took a powerful talent to sense that sort of thing from across the room.
    Well, she had known that he was a high-end talent, she reminded herself. She hurried toward the bathroom.
    â€œI’ll be out in a minute,” she said.
    â€œBy the way, one more thing you should know about our current situation.”
    She paused in the doorway and looked back at him. “How bad is this
one more thing
?”
    â€œDepends on your point of view. We’re married.”

Chapter 3

    â€œWhat?”
    Up until that moment she thought she had been coping quite well with the whole waking-up-in-a-low-rent-motel-room-with-a-man-who-was-virtually-a-stranger thing. But now she felt as if she had stepped off a very high cliff.
    â€œFound the license in my wallet when I woke up,” Elias said. “I wasn’t able to get online with my phone to access the official