The Elder Stones Saga Boxset: Books 1-3

by D. K. Holmberg

  “The Binders were brought together by someone of great power who saw the need for specialized protection. Because of her, women all over have been safe.”

  “Why the name?”

  “Because we are bound together by a common purpose.”

  “And what purpose is that?”

  “Information.”

  Daniel proceeded to perform two more Slides before pausing. “What sort of information?”

  “The kind that’s valuable.”

  “You sell your information? Like spies?” Something like that would be valuable in Elaeavn. He could imagine using it when he sat on the council.

  “We bargain for information. What did you think was going on in that tavern?”

  “I thought the men were buying the women.”

  “The men were foolishly sharing information. They often think to build themselves up by talking about themselves. Now that tavern isn’t the most useful. The clientele who come through there don’t often have the most valuable information. But as a means of corroborating other sources of information, it is valuable.”

  “Corroborating?” Daniel asked, frowning.

  “You don’t think that my women are able to accumulate information and analyze it?”

  He shook his head. “That’s not what I was saying at all. All I was suggesting was that—”

  Rayen chuckled. “You’re far too easy to unsettle. You have to work on that. And yes. The women of every tavern are capable. I know you didn’t ask it, but I figured I would tell you regardless. Every place has a collection of women, and every place has someone like Kasha, a woman who coordinates and organizes, who brings it all together and meets with others within the Binders to help ensure that we have a flow of information.”

  “Why are you telling me this?” They paused with a forest off to their right. From here, the forest was an enormous expanse of trees, but trees of a much different sort than those found within the Aisl. Shadows lingered within the forest, seeming drawn toward Rayen. The air smelled different here, earthier, with an undertone of something unpleasant.

  “Your friend has agreed to remain a part of the Binders. I figured you had some need to know.”

  “She was staying with the Binders for protection, nothing more.”

  “If she’s staying, then she will have to become more involved. There’s no harm in that. She doesn’t have to go and attack thief masters. All she has to do is acquire information.”

  Daniel thought of the way the women in the tavern acquired information and didn’t think that Lucy would be at all willing to participate in that. He’d seen the way she looked at everyone who had come to the tavern over the last few days. There was pain in her eyes, and more than that, there was a resolute expression there, a determined look to the way that she watched everyone, and a set to her jaw that suggested how very resolved she was to help.

  Lucy hadn’t shared anything about what she’d gone through other than the poisoning, but the longer he had been with her, the more certain he was that something else had happened.

  “What do you do with all that information?”

  “What is necessary,” she said.

  They continued to Slide, and Daniel felt a growing fatigue, but it wasn’t nearly as tiresome as he would’ve expected. Maybe the effort of Sliding the bed out of Tern’s home had helped him. Supposedly, that was part of the key with strengthening his connection to Sliding. The more he strained, the more he tried to use it, the more powerful it would become.

  “How long will it take to find what we’re looking for in Asador?”

  “Asador was one of the first places the Binders were established. The network there is as solid as any place. All I need to do is put out word, and if your friend is still in the city, we’ll know.”

  “Friend might be a bit strong.”

  “You don’t care for this man?”

  Daniel clenched his jaw in between Slides.

  “Ah. He is your competition. That’s healthy. If you win, you’ll know you’ve earned her affection.”

  Daniel grunted, saying nothing, which only made Rayen laugh again. The horizon in the distance changed. No longer was there the same rolling landscape. Now there were trees and smoke. Smoke meant people. People meant the possibility of the city.

  “Is that Asador?”

  “It’s taken us long enough,” she said.

  “I’m sorry that I’ve never been there.”

  “I am too. Otherwise, I imagine this would have taken quite a bit less time.”

  “Once I’ve been someplace, I can Slide there more easily.”

  “So, if we need to return to Eban, you think you will be able to do so easily.”

  “When we return, I should be able to simply focus on it and Slide.”

  “Excellent.”

  They continued their Slide toward the city. As they did, Daniel watched the buildings grow closer and closer. Rayen held on to his arm, gripping it lightly, seemingly unperturbed by the jerking motion of the Slide. After a while, Daniel sort of forgot she was with him. When they reached the outskirts of the city, she patted him on the arm and released him.

  “That’s probably enough.”

  “You don’t want to Slide further?”

  “I think it’s safer if we walk.”

  “I thought I could—”

  “You thought. That was your first mistake.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Trust me. Now that we’ve reached Asador, everything will be a little bit different from what you’re accustomed to.”

  Daniel took a moment to look around. The city was at least cleaner than the last one, and while there were plenty of people moving along the street, it wasn’t quite as crowded. Asador was supposed to be an oceanside city, but he didn’t hear any sound of the sea. Occasional gulls flew through the sky, soaring and dropping out of sight. It was the only thing that suggested they were near the water. The air didn’t even smell of the sea the way it did in Elaeavn.

  As they wandered through the streets, a cat meowed distantly.

  Daniel tensed. He had been taught that cats were unlucky by themselves, but lucky when they came in pairs. There wasn’t another sound.

  Unlucky, then.

  He tried to push away that sentiment, knowing that it did no good.

  “What is it?” Rayen asked.

  “Nothing. Just a superstition.”

  “Let me see. Your kind believe in the Great Watcher, and they also believed in power coming out of the forest and worship trees.”

  “We don’t worship anything.” That wasn’t quite true. There were plenty of people in the city who worshiped the Great Watcher, even though they no longer viewed the Great Watcher as they once had. Lareth had changed all that. Now they viewed the Great Watcher as one of many gods, though perhaps the one who looked out over them.

  “I remember hearing that you had some sort of hang-up over cats, too. Is that what it was? Did you hear kitty meow?”

  “It’s not a hang-up.”

  “It’s not normal, either.”

  “You wouldn’t understand.”

  “I’ve visited plenty of places, so I think I would.” Rayen laughed.

  “What’s your story? You know all about me, but I still don’t even know anything about your abilities.”

  “And you won’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because there’s really nothing to know about them.”

  “Where’s home for you?” He had a sense that home wasn’t the city they’d just come from. She had been all too eager to leave, which suggested to him the city was little more than an assignment. More than that, it suggested that whoever was in charge of her had enough authority to hold Rayen within the city.

  That surprised him as much as anything.

  “Home is wherever I make it.”

  “That’s no sort of answer.”

  “It’s what you’re going to get.”

  “Are you from Asador?”

 
Rayen glanced over at him. “Do I look as if I’m from Asador?”

  “I don’t know. What does someone from Asador look like?”

  “Not like me.”

  “You have a distinctive look to you. Your dark hair, dark skin—”

  “You can keep pressing, but I don’t intend to share anything more.”

  “You don’t have to intend to do it, I just intend to get you to talk.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not from Asador. I’m not from Eban, or Cort, or Thyr, or Ragan.”

  “You named most of the northern cities.”

  She glanced over, grinning. Daniel still didn’t know whether to be annoyed or amused. Sometimes it was both. “At least you know your geography. I wasn’t sure whether you did, especially considering how you completely missed your intended target when you were Sliding toward Asador in the first place.”

  “What if we didn’t miss it at all? What if we were pulled to Eban?”

  Rayen studied him for a moment. “What makes you think you could have been pulled somewhere?”

  He shrugged. “There are stories of some with the ability to influence a Slide. It’s rare, even among those from Elaeavn, but it exists. I’ve heard Sliders talk about how they intended to appear in one building and they were pulled to another. It usually takes someone of significant power, but…”

  “Do you believe that’s what happened with you?”

  Daniel didn’t, not really. They had appeared within the city because they had headed toward it, not knowing exactly what it was or where they were heading. If they’d had a better sense of where they were going, they would have continued traveling straight north. And maybe they should have followed the coastline. That way they wouldn’t have run into trouble. But had they done that, he wouldn’t have encountered the Binders, and somehow, he suspected that connection could be valuable. If they traded in information, and if Rayen was able to obtain that information in every city, there would be a use for it, especially when he was raised to the council.

  They passed storefronts. This part of the city looked a bit run-down, though the buildings were fairly new. There was nothing clean about it. When he said something to Rayen, she only shrugged.

  “Most of the wealth is in the center of the city.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Because there’s a university here, and they draw the wealth to them. It’s like that in many places. Doesn’t your precious Elaeavn have a palace that contains most of the wealthy families?”

  Daniel nodded. “The Elvraeth—my family—live within the palace.”

  “All of them?” she asked, arching a brow.

  “Not all of them. There was a time when everyone who was Elvraeth lived within the palace, but that’s changed over the last few decades. Most of the Elvraeth still prefer the palace to the alternative. It’s more prestigious than venturing out into the city.”

  “What about you?”

  “My parents live in the palace.”

  “And Lucy?”

  “She’s Elvraeth, but a different family.”

  “I thought you were all part of the same family.”

  Daniel shook his head. “It’s complicated.”

  “Clearly.”

  “There are five separate families that live within the palace. Five families that make up the council. All are descended from the first Elvraeth who held—”

  “Ah. Your crystals. Interesting. So you would marry your cousin?”

  “We’re not actually cousins. And we’re just friends.”

  “Which makes it better?”

  “It makes it what it makes it,” Daniel said.

  Rayen laughed softly, looking over at him with her dark eyes. “I saw the way you looked at her. I saw that you were willing to sacrifice for her. That’s more than just friends.”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Complicated. Bah. Only complicated because you choose to let it be. There’s nothing complicated about affection. If you care for her, all you have to do is tell her.”

  “I think I did.”

  “And what?”

  “She’s still back there.”

  Rayen paused. In the distance, Daniel became aware of the steady crashing of waves. They had been walking for a little while but generally heading in a straight line. The city was enormous, bigger than Eban and possibly even Elaeavn.

  “She might still be back there, but she is only there because she can’t come with you. I could see that she wanted to, just as I could see the way she looked at you. There was affection in her gaze. If you want, you can Slide back to Eban and check for yourself. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.”

  “No. Now that we’re here, I need to find this man.”

  “The one who’s not your friend.” Daniel nodded. “Then let’s get on with it.”

  She guided them off the street and into a plain-looking building. There was no signage overhead, nothing that indicated it was anything more than just another storefront, but on the inside, bawdy music erupted. Several minstrels played, with others dancing and clapping and singing all around them.

  The tavern itself was crowded. From the street, he would never have guessed that such a place would be quite so busy. Then again, he never would’ve guessed that such a place was even here. It was masked, as if they attempted to hide its presence.

  “I didn’t even know this was here.”

  “Asador is little different than other places. Some of the taverns have a bit of a reputation, and some of them think to play up that reputation to gain more business.” She scanned the inside of the tavern before looking over at him. “It’s better for the Binders that way. If we can get people in here and buying and talking, we gather quite a bit more information.”

  She weaved her way through the crowd, heading toward one of the women standing along the side wall. When the serving woman saw her, her eyes widened, and she turned off, heading toward a door at the back of the room. Rayen started to follow her, and Daniel chased after. When he reached her, she turned, shaking her head. “Not here. This is for Binders only.”

  “She didn’t seem all that excited to see you.”

  “Mostly because she’s a little worried about what my presence means.”

  “What does it mean?”

  “It means that I’m here for information. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

  Rayen slipped behind the door, leaving Daniel standing in the tavern watching after her. He put his back to the wall, not wanting to be surprised by anyone, looking around as he stood there. It was a strange sort of place, and he let the music pull on him, swaying with it. He watched as the women—all serving girls—weaved through the crowd, talking with the men, patting some on the shoulder, smiling at others, and getting smiled at in return. Drinks flowed freely, and many of the women carried pitchers of ale, filling up empty cups before moving on to others.

  It was a little more boisterous than the place in Eban, but it had much the same feel to it. He could see how this would be a place where information would be shared. He tried listening in, but the dozens of voices clamoring for attention made it difficult to hear anything.

  As he stood there, looking around, he glanced toward the door to the kitchen every so often, worried about what Rayen might be doing. How long would she be gone? Would she return with information they needed?

  It seemed too much to believe, but she appeared confident in the ability of the Binders, which gave Daniel more confidence in their ability, even if it was misplaced.

  He stood there for a dozen or so minutes, and still Rayen had not appeared. That didn’t feel right. What was going on in there?

  He had to go in, didn’t he? If something had happened to Rayen, didn’t he owe it to her to see?

  He was the reason she was here, and he remembered the way the woman had looked at her when she had first appeared.

  Great Watcher, but he really didn’t want to get involved in some skirmish, especially when he had no idea what was at stake.r />
  Daniel headed toward the kitchen, determined to at least poke his head in and see what he could find out.

  It was a kitchen, but there was no one in it. Where were all the servers?

  Daniel wandered through, glancing over to the counter with loaves of bread. On a tray next to the bread, he saw sliced meat and some cheeses. His stomach rumbled, and he debated grabbing some before deciding against it. He didn’t want to draw any attention to himself by eating food that he hadn’t paid for, and from what he’d seen from these people, they would be sensitive to such things and likely wouldn’t take it well.

  “Rayen?” He spoke carefully, not wanting to alarm anyone.

  There was a door on the other end of the room, and he headed toward it. When he reached it, he frowned. Voices drifted out from the other side.

  Who was it?

  “Are you sure that’s who they’re with?”

  “I’m sure.” That was Rayen. He was certain of it.

  “What would you have us do?”

  “I’m not sure. I made sure that I came with him, but there’s only so many I would trust, and I’m not sure I trust this man.”

  “You don’t trust anyone from Elaeavn.”

  Rayen didn’t?

  What was going on here?

  “Can you blame me?”

  “She does, and that’s what matters.”

  “She trusts only one person, and he’s not from Elaeavn,” Rayen said.

  “If you think he can help you reach them, then use him.”

  “I think I can. That’s why I’m here. The other one was attacked by them, and if we can get to them…”

  “I’ll send word.”

  Daniel backed away. Not only did Rayen intend to use him, but they were betraying him somehow. He reached the outside of the tavern and disappeared into the crowd. As he stood there, hunched over so as to mask his height, he noticed the door open and Rayen come out. When she saw him missing, she returned to the tavern.

  Daniel ducked down and Slid, emerging back on the street at the edge of Asador. He looked around, tempted to simply return to Eban and grab Lucy, but as far as he knew, she was safe. Rayen didn’t have a way of Sliding here. She had used him for his ability, and without any ability of her own, there wasn’t anything she could do.