Shadow Hunted (The Collector Chronicles Book 1)

by D. K. Holmberg

  At the edge of the village farthest from the river’s edge, Carth paused, drawing the shadows around her so that she could listen to the night. There was a stillness in the air, and though she heard the distant sound of waves crashing on the seashore, she also heard the occasional sound of animals crawling across the branches in the trees. She noted a hoot from an owl and considered that a measure of good luck. In her homeland, owls were often considered lucky.

  Was there any way for her to follow the smugglers if they hadn’t traveled by sea? Carth made a steady loop away from the village, searching for signs of others who might’ve passed through here. She found tracks in the dirt and wished that she had better skill with tracking. She could follow them, but that wasn’t her gift.

  As she prepared to turn back toward the ship, she noticed a path leading through the trees and away from the village. Had that been there before? She hadn’t spent enough time looking to know whether it had or not. Possibly, but it was also possible that it had been made by people moving away from the village to escape from her attack.

  Carth moved along the path, keeping herself quiet as she did, surrounded by the night.

  The path led gradually up the slope, and Carth suspected that it would lead all the way to the city. After following it for a while, she noticed a path branching off it, which she took. There was evidence of recent traffic along here and she moved more cautiously, not wanting to draw too much attention. After a while, she heard voices.

  Carth slowed, being more careful with the shadows to keep herself concealed. As she approached, she counted the figures in the camp. There were no more than a dozen, though that was all she could identify. She reached for her connection to the S’al magic and pressed out, looking for others who might be here that she didn’t see, but found no sign of them.

  Kiara was here.

  She stepped forward, revealing herself. The voices in the camp died out. One by one, the people in the camp began looking at her, and several jumped to their feet.

  “I’m not here to attack you.”

  The man nearest her, who had unsheathed his sword, sneered. “One versus twelve? I think you’re more than outnumbered.”

  “Ask Kiara if I’m outnumbered.”

  The man jerked his head around to look over at Kiara, but she stared at her hands as if not wanting to speak.

  “What is this?” he asked.

  “She’s the woman who came to the village.”

  “She’s the one?”

  One of the men nodded. Carth recognized him from the ship. Eran. “She’s the one who freed them.”

  Carth snorted. “I wasn’t about to stand by while you slaughtered more of your captives.”

  The man looked over at her, sword still clutched in his hand, seemingly unconcerned to learn Carth was the one who had attacked the village. “You think we slaughtered them?”

  “That’s how it appeared.”

  The man grunted. “They were our captives. We had them on board our ship and brought them to the village. That’s it.”

  “That’s it? How do you explain their deaths?”

  The man didn’t answer. He glared at her.

  “How much is he paying you?” the man asked.

  “I don’t work for the Collector.”

  “No? Then you freed his operatives for free.”

  “His operatives? They didn’t work for him.”

  “Are you so certain?”

  Carth sighed. “They told me you brought them here thinking they worked for him, but they didn’t. They had no reason to lie to me.” She met his glare with one of her own. “And you’re the one who attacked my ship.”

  He blinked and glanced at the others. Had they not known the women weren’t with the Collector? “We attack any ships we don’t recognize. Most of them work for him, and if we’re able to prevent him from getting access to the outside, then we will do it.”

  “Why?” Carth asked. Were they trying to create some sort of blockade to prevent the Collector from reaching other ports? Why would they care?

  “You wouldn’t understand. You’ve never lived in a place quite this isolated.”

  Carth allowed herself to smile. “I might understand better than you realize. I’ve lived in many places, and traveled many more. Why is it that you attack the Collector’s ships?”

  “We attack because we have no choice,” the man said.

  Carth looked around, surveying the people gathered here. This was an unusual location to have smugglers, especially after what she had seen at the village. At least in the village, there was the possibility of getting the ships—and whatever they intended to smuggle—out. In a place like this, there would be nothing that they could move.

  Strangely, these people were saying something similar to what Talia had said. They didn’t feel as if they had a choice. Why would that be? Could it be that they didn’t have a choice?

  “What did the Collector do to you?”

  The man glanced at the others before looking at Kiara. “I thought you said she worked for the Collector.”

  “I thought she did. She broke into the village, and you saw what she did to the building.”

  “Only because you attempted to trap me there,” Carth said.

  The man looked over at Carth, studying her for a moment. “You don’t look like anyone he’s sent after us before.”

  “What do you mean by sent after?”

  “When we defy him. He takes that as an insult, and then he becomes even more angry. He wants nothing more than to destroy us.”

  “Why?” None of this made any sense. If the Collector was attacking these people, there had to be a reason more than the fact that they defied him. Talia had been afraid of the Collector and had been unwilling to go against him.

  “Why? Because we are determined to keep him from gathering the one thing he wants the most.”

  “And what is that?”

  “We don’t know. Not with certainty.”

  “But you suspect.”

  The man met her gaze silently.

  “I can’t help you if you don’t share. What is it?”

  Kiara stepped forward. “He wants an Elder Stone.”

  14

  Carth sat in the corner of the tavern, listening to music playing softly. It was a different tavern with a different ambience then the one they had first come to, searching for information. This one was quieter, calmer than the other. A few people sat at other tables, but it was early in the day, so Carth wasn’t surprised to see the tavern mostly empty. Perhaps by later in the day, it would pick up activity and there would be more people.

  “Have you ever heard of an Elder Stone?” she asked Linsay.

  Linsay’s eyes narrowed. “Are you sure that’s what you heard?”

  Carth nodded. After spending a little longer in the smugglers’ camp, she had departed, but with no better understanding than she’d had going in about what the Collector wanted. The man had said that the Collector wanted an Elder Stone, as if Carth would know what that meant.

  “It’s little more than a rumor.” Linsay leaned forward and lowered her voice. “There have long been rumors of items of power, artifacts that those who study these things believe would carry great strength. An Elder Stone is one of the oldest items rumored. I’ve heard of them, but never heard of any place where they could be found.”

  “And why would they matter?”

  Linsay smiled. “If you believe the rumors, the Elder Stones are among the most powerful creations handed down by the first gods.”

  Now Carth smiled. “First gods?”

  Linsay shrugged. “You’ve traveled. You’ve seen how each nation, sometimes each city, has their own beliefs. In some places, they believe in one god, while in another, they believe in many. Think of Alayna and the Great Watcher. In her homeland, the Great Watcher is the highest being of power. The people there feel as if everything they’ve been given—all the abilities that are found throughout her homeland—is a gift from the Gre
at Watcher.”

  Carth frowned. “Are you saying that the Elder Stone is something like that?”

  Linsay laughed. “I can’t believe we’re even having this conversation. There is likely nothing to these Elder Stones, Carth. They are rumors, nothing more than that. Treasure hunters go searching for them and think that they will bring power and prosperity.”

  “How is it that I’ve never heard of these before?”

  Linsay shook her head. “Because rational people don’t believe in the presence of the Elder Stones.”

  “Would rational people believe in the things that I can do?”

  Linsay stared at her. “I don’t know what to make of it, but if the stones are real—and I’m saying if—they are rumored to be incredibly powerful. So if the Collector is trying to get his hands on one of these stones, it’s more than the people of the city are in danger. Anyone that he comes in contact with would be in danger, especially if he is the kind of person we think him to be.”

  Carth looked around the tavern. How many of these people worked for the Collector?

  “What have you learned of the city?”

  “Other than that there’s a ruling tribunal?”

  “A tribunal? Not the Collector?”

  Linsay shook her head. “Not the Collector. A tribunal.”

  That surprised Carth, especially with what she’d seen. Someone like that would have been in a position of power, but maybe he worked for a different sort of power.

  “I saw his compound. He had plenty of power.”

  Linsay shrugged. “That might be, but the tribunal rules in the city. Now, it might be that the man you saw has influence on the council, which might be why he is left alone, but he doesn’t lead the city.”

  Carth found that surprising, especially after what she had heard. “Would Boiyn know anything about this Elder Stone?”

  Linsay shrugged. “He might have heard the same stories I’ve heard, Carth. They’re just stories. Let’s focus on finding Jenna rather this.”

  They fell into silence, each of them eating. The food was decent. It had more garlic than what she preferred and was much more heavily salted, but it was not unpleasant. Carth would occasionally take a sip of ale, drinking deeply before setting the mug back down. She listened to the music, letting her mind wander. They were no closer to finding what had happened to Jenna. Linsay had learned nothing about where she had gone, which left Carth to think that perhaps Jenna had been captured by the Collector.

  She sighed and set down her mug as the tavern door opened. Alayna entered and glanced from Carth to Linsay. She took a quick seat and grabbed Linsay’s mug, pulling it over and taking a long drink before wiping her mouth. “Well, I found her.”

  “You found her? Where is she?”

  “Linsay told you that there is a tribunal ruling over the city?”

  Carth nodded. “And surprisingly, the Collector isn’t a part of the tribunal.”

  “No. It doesn’t appear that he is. But I think he has someone on the tribunal he works with, a woman by the name of Esther.”

  “How did you find Jenna?”

  Alayna grunted. “It wasn’t that difficult. She was brought to the local stockade.”

  “Stockade?” Carth repeated.

  Alayna nodded. “Apparently, she resisted the effort of the gentleman who was trying to escort her out of the tavern. It was the same man who you had argued with over dicing. He remembered you. He remembered the fact that Jenna had come with you.”

  Carth frowned. She didn’t like the idea of drawing attention like that to herself—or to her friends. “Who was he?”

  “I haven’t been able to determine that entirely. He has some connections on the council and when the brawl started, he tried dragging Jenna away before she attacked the Collector’s man, but she continued to resist. When they got out in the street, the local constabulary brought her to the stockade.”

  That was a better outcome than what Carth had assumed, and surprisingly, even more unlikely than her getting captured and dragged off by the Collector.

  “What will it take to get her out of the stockade?”

  Alayna shook her head. “I haven’t been able to determine that.”

  “Typically a bribe,” Linsay said, “but I wouldn’t know who to bribe.”

  “You could try your friend,” Alayna suggested.

  Carth thought of the man she’d encountered while trying to join the dicing. At first, she would have thought him the exact right kind of person to bribe. Typically, men who were eager to gamble at dice were equally eager to accept bribes, but his reaction had been unexpected. Maybe he wasn’t the right person for this.

  “I don’t think he would accept it.”

  “You won’t know until you try,” Linsay said.

  “I’d rather go and see the stocks.”

  “What do you think that will do?” Alayna asked.

  Carth shook her head. “Probably nothing. I doubt there will be anything there that will help me, but maybe there will be some way for us to break Jenna free.”

  “If you break her free, we’ll either have to hide the fact that we did it—and hide her—or we’ll have to leave Keyall,” Alayna said. “I don’t feel strongly either way, but I want you to be prepared for the possibility that we would have to make one of those choices.”

  Carth sighed. That was a good point. Until she knew what she was going to do about the Collector—and about the smugglers—she needed to be careful. Anything that would draw unnecessary attention to them would need to be avoided. “Let’s take a look at her and see.”

  Alayna nodded. “I can show her to you. I’m going to warn you—she’s not happy that she’s there.”

  Carth actually found herself laughing. “I wouldn’t expect her to be happy that she’s captured.”

  Alayna didn’t smile. “That’s not it, Carth. She’s angry. Wild. I don’t know what to make of it, other than that she isn’t the Jenna we know.”

  Carth stood and left a stack of coins on the table to pay for the food. It was more than what they needed to pay, but she had the means to pay more than what was needed.

  Outside the tavern, the day was warm—practically hot. The air held a damp humidity that made her clothes cling to her. Alayna guided her along the street, sticking to wider thoroughfares until they reached a plaza near the center of the city. There they came upon a series of public stockades. Jenna was there, bound with her neck and wrists trapped in the stock, keeping her head up and defiantly eyeing everyone who dared get too close.

  Carth immediately understood what Alayna had said. There was a wildness about Jenna, in her eyes and the way she practically snarled at people as they passed.

  She had seen this before. It was the way Carth had found her.

  “Oh, Jenna,” she whispered. She’d managed to bring her back from this wildness once before, but would it even be possible to do again? Carth didn’t like the chances of being able to do so, not with the way Jenna looked. “How close can we get to her?” she asked Alayna.

  “There doesn’t seem to be any restriction. There are guards”—she motioned to the corners of the yard—“but they’re mostly to intimidate others from getting too close.” Each guard was dressed in a simple uniform and each carried a sword with a shield slung over his shoulder. The shield would be mostly decorative, but the sword was not. The guards’ presence was enough to keep most people back, but occasionally people would throw things at the prisoners. A pile of rotting fruit was heaped on the ground around Jenna.

  “We have to get her out of there,” Carth said.

  “Like I said, if you take her from the stocks, we need to be prepared to leave.”

  Carth looked around the city. She didn’t have a problem with that. She had been tempted to leave before, back before she’d realized that Jenna had been lost, until she had discovered that the Collector might be after something dangerous. Now… now, she wanted only to get her friend free and to safety.

  �
��If you take attempt to take her, you will be removed from the square.”

  Carth looked over to see the dark-eyed man from the tavern watching her. He was dressed differently than when she had seen him last and now wore what appeared to be much more formal clothing, with a royal blue jacket and pants that were a rich brown. Even his beard had been brushed out, making it fuller than it had been.

  “I think you misheard,” Carth suggested.

  The man smiled. “Did I? You and your friends were talking about trying to spring free one of Keyall’s lawful prisoners. I think I heard exactly what I thought I heard.”

  Carth glanced around and realized that there was suddenly a much larger contingent of soldiers in the square. Now there were enough that she didn’t like her odds. She could probably get herself to safety, but what of her friends? Would she be able to help them or would them be placed in danger?

  “As I said, I think you misheard.”

  The man nodded. “It’s too bad that your friend is here. I tried to escort her away before the activity got out of hand, but she is quite stubborn.”

  “She can be. Who had the bad luck of trying to subdue her?”

  Carth was surprised she hadn’t heard anything more about that. Even intoxicated, Jenna would have been difficult to fully restrain. She was strong and she was incredibly skilled.

  “That would have been me.”

  Carth frowned. That wasn’t the expected response. “You look surprisingly well.”

  The man cocked his head as he stared at her. “That is an interesting response. Do you think I should have had more difficulty with your friend?”

  “Knowing what I do about her? I would think so. You need to get her out of those. She’s been hurt before, and those will only—”

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that. She was lawfully placed into custody by the constabulary.”

  Carth gritted her teeth. Getting angry at him wasn’t going to get Jenna free, and though she thought she could fight her way through to free her friend, what would that do with the others? Alayna would likely be fine, but unless Linsay used enhancements, she wasn’t going to be able to get out of here without a significant fight.