Family History Capitalized, by Christopher B. Booth (ePub/pdf)

In the frigid winter of Prohibition-era Chicago, a master con artist and his faithful sidekick eye a dilapidated mansion with a legendary past. Once home to the notorious Van Kessler family, the crumbling estate is rumored to hide a fortune in pre-Prohibition liquor. With a clever scheme, they resurrect the long-absent Van Kessler heir, convincing the city’s elite that a reformed rake has returned to pen a moralistic book on temperance.

As the staged homecoming draws gawking reporters and wealthy curiosity-seekers, the con men’s planted servant whispers of a vast, forgotten cellar brimming with rare wines and whiskies. A syndicate of eager millionaires quickly scrambles to buy the property, confident they can snatch the liquid gold before the old man destroys it. But as the deal nears its climax, the tricksters discover that their fictional treasure may be more real than they imagined—and that the law is closing in faster than a Chicago winter.

With wit and razor-sharp scheming, they must navigate a plot where the line between bluff and reality blurs, and the biggest score could prove the most dangerous.