Page 7 of The Blairville Legacies

It was a wonder there were any of those here...

One of them was a bit taller than the other and oval in shape. It was completely mirrored on the outside, and its size ensured that the other side of the city center was bathed in a huge shadow.

Ravens circled the skyscrapers, perching on their antennas, which, combined with the dark wall of thunderstorms overhead, created an eerie image.

“Those are theDeLoughreyprestige buildings.”

Thewhat? Who on earth were theLoughreys?

“Prestige buildings?” I asked instead.

I knew that a lot of rich people showcased their wealth through architectural buildings, but in such a small place? This wasn't New York...

“You see that building there?” Mum pointed to the dark-glazed skyscraper over which the next storm front hovered ominously. “That's the DLSC. TheDeLoughrey Science Center. But since they are now by far the richest family in town, they still bought up the bank building and many of the shops, and that was probably just the beginning...”

From her mouth, it sounded as if that didn't bode well. Even worse, as if these rich people were insatiable...and as if she...knewthese people.

I raised an eyebrow.

“Do you know theseLoughreyspersonally?”

Or whatever they were called...

For a brief moment, Mum looked a little spaced out. Then she shook her head quickly.

“No, not exactly. But it's been a very long time since I've had any contact with anyone here except my doctor. I’m sure the town has changed and the people with it. And I hope you'll like it here somehow, after all.”

Smiling, she stroked my smooth hair.

I didn't hope I would like it, but I hoped she would get better. We had been through a rough time, and it wasn't over yet. All I wanted was for it all to finally stop. And if I had to, I would get along with this town…in the short term, not for too long.

Mum drove further into the inner town.

“Just in case it ever becomes important, which I hope it won't...” Mum pointed at the neat facades of the houses around us. “That's the town hall there, the mayor's office.” I caught a glimpse of the Victorian stone mansion, the noblest building down here, adorned with a golden tower clock. “That is the police station. A college friend of mine works there.”

A more modern building was next to the town hall, withBlairville Police Stationwritten in gold lettering. And I really hoped I would never have to go there. The chances were low now that I was so far away from Larissa.

A blue and red font immediately jumped into my field of vision, right next to the police station, like vultures over a well-guarded bird's nest.Blairville Daily. That had to be the news station. Of course, three reporters were standing in front of it, interviewing some police officers who had probably just gone to enjoy their lunch break.

I looked across the road, past the traffic island with the statue of a man, probably from the eighteenth century. A raven had perched on its head and was pecking at the brass cylinder.

“Who's that?”

Mum followed my gaze.

“That's the merchant who discovered the island around 1790. Cornelius Copeland, an Englishman.”

Again, the nameCopeland. Either the name was common here by now, as it was in small towns, or an important family had that name.

I looked past the sailor's statue and spotted another large Victorian stone building, the only one with a restored facade to compete with the town hall.

“What is that building for?”

“The law firm of the...” Mum paused, and her worried look made an uneasy feeling rise inside me. “DeLoughreys.”

DeLoughrey. Them,again. I didn't know what was more absurd: that the DeLoughreys owned so much real estate in town or that this town had a goddamn law firm.

“Do you want me to give you a ride to the house first, or do you want to come grocery shopping?”

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