บท 246: Can you handle the truth?

Ford waited impatiently as Mia stared into his eyes.

"A tree," She finally answered.

The man frowned. "Trees can't grow underground."

The map had shown a tree, but he thought it was a metaphor. Mia swallowed and he tilted his head slightly.

"Do you mean there's a sculpture of a tree down there?" He tried to clarify. A physical tree with jewels would be trouble to disassemble and sell, but he was up to the task. He did have his pickaxe and things in his bag, like he always had.

It couldn't be too much trouble, could it?

"I don't think it's a sculpture," Mia looked confused for a moment, and Ford resisted the urge to run a hand through his black hair in frustration. Why couldn't this girl just blurt out everything so he could make a decision and move on?

"So what is it?" He tried to make his voice more gentle, more coaxing.