The Daath Chronicles- The Complete Series

by Eliza Tilton

Like some writers, I have a full-time job, and there are two people who helped shaped characters (Jonas and his weird sneezing fit), and create landscapes (Stormwood)—the Lagalante brothers! And no, I’m not listing names in order because there will be no fighting! Thanks for keeping work interesting.Everyone at CQ who has continued to believe in me and my stories. You guys are a great team and I appreciate all the hard work you do.

  To Sylvie Camps at Peyote Bead Art, thank you for answering my questions about beading and giving me great insight into the art itself.

  And of course the man who spends more time than anyone helping me with fight scenes, plot, magic, and creating art for the series, my husband. You are insanely talented, and I’m blessed to have you in my corner.

  For my readers out there who write and don’t write, whatever passion you have, go after it full speed, and remember this—with

  God all things are possible.

  xoxo

  Deadly dance:A Daath Short

  Contine on to Crimson Tides or stop and see what Derrick and Lucy are up to in the Daath novelette Deadly Dance.

  Talk of war has reached Lakewood and Derrick is busy day and night crafting weapons and armor for his father, which keeps him from thinking of Jeslyn and how she left. When Lucy shows up at his shop, smirking, and talking about Jeslyn’s mysterious disappearance, he’s ready to slice off her head; instead, he decides to see if her claims about Jeslyn and Lucino vanishing together are true.

  As Derrick and Lucy embark on a hunt to find Jeslyn and Lucino, their hatred will turn into mutual acceptance as the trail will lead them into Nomad’s land and straight into war.

  Chapter One

  Talk of war reached Lakewood before the first snow hit. Order after order for weapons rolled in as the soldiers made camp outside our borders. There hadn't been a battle of this size in centuries. The blade hissed as I dumped it into the basin. Having slaved away over the scorching forge since the suns rose the day before, by now, my mind and body moved on instinct. Father had left soon after sundown, but not me. Work kept me busy, and staying busy kept my mind off Jeslyn.

  Sweat dripped off my forehead, splashing the blade. With this last sword cooling, I could finally close shop. I stretched, flexing out the muscles in my arms. When Avikar returned home, I’d put him in a chokehold he’d never be able to break free from.

  I left through the backdoor, and locked it closed. When I turned around, a girl dressed in tight black breeches and a matching cloak leaned against the shop’s outside wall. With clouds from the early rain blocking the moon, and her black hood up, her face stayed in shadows.

  “I don’t think we’ve ever been formally introduced,” she said.

  “Do I know you?”

  “You should.” She stepped forward and let her hood fall to her shoulders.

  I grabbed the great sword from my back. Sorceress …

  “Oh, you’re not still mad about that silly kidnapping are you?” Lucy grinned.

  Lucino’s sister, a girl we should’ve killed long ago. A wicked smile played on her full red lips that contrasted with her alabaster skin. Her long black hair blew with the midnight breeze, matching the darkness of her heart.

  “Put your sword down, Derrick,” she singsonged.

  “No.”

  Her brow twitched. Her grin vanished.

  “Your voice won’t work on me.” I charged forward to push my blade tip against her rib cage. “No magic will ever put me to sleep again.” If she was confused as to why her songspell had no effect, she didn’t show it.

  And of course, I was no more inclined to share that after the battle in Daath I had blood crystals tattooed into my skin. The magical stones warded me against any of these creatures’ tricks. I bit back the sting as they pulsed; stealing them from my father was more than worth it.

  “I come in peace.” With the tip of her fingers, she pushed the blade away from her chest. “Stand down. I have a proposition for you. One that includes your dear Jeslyn.”

  Jeslyn … she’d left over three months ago to stay with her grandfather in Luna Harbor. She wouldn’t admit she left because of me, but I knew the truth. She had refused my proposal. After Avikar and I had risked our lives to save her, she’d said no, and I still didn’t understand why.

  “Talk and talk quickly.” I stepped back, but kept the blade between us.

  Lucy straightened. “That’s better … see … I have a bit of a problem. My brother is missing, and I have a feeling he’s with your little sweetheart.”

  I gripped the blade tighter, controlling the river of anger threatening to sweep me under. Jeslyn’s and Lucino’s names should never be lumped together. “Lucino’s dead.”

  Lucy laughed. “Did you really think you killed the Reptilian Prince? Silly boy.” She laughed again while her words sunk in.

  Lucino’s not dead. Reptilian? Prince? “Even if he is alive, why would you think he’s with Jeslyn?”

  “Because Jeslyn’s not in Luna Harbor anymore.”

  “Goodbye, Lucy.” I pushed her aside. If I didn’t leave now, my sword would land in her heart.

  “That’s it? Aren’t you worried?”

  “Jeslyn can take care of herself.”

  Lucy laughed again, and I left her by the shop. Jeslyn was no longer my problem.

  As soon as the suns entered the sky, I rode to Avikar’s. Talking with his father would clarify Lucy’s outrageous claim. I could never believe anything that witch said, but if Jeslyn was missing…

  Mr. Desdar was walking out the front door when I arrived. His normally short dark hair had grown since Avikar and I had first left, and gray sprouted throughout his beard. While Jeslyn and I had returned months ago, Avikar had stayed in Daath.

  I dismounted. “Morning, Sir.”

  He nodded. “Morning, Derrick. Early for you to be out this way. Everything all right?”

  “Yes, sir. I had some time before the shop opened, and wanted to see if you had any news from Avikar or Jeslyn.”

  I had been stopping by regularly so the question wasn’t completely out of character.

  Mr. Desdar’s shoulders sagged. “Still no word from Avikar. I wonder if he’ll ever return.”

  “He will. I know it. And Jeslyn?”

  This time he grumbled, standing straighter. “That girl is living a fantasy working for Harold. She belongs here with her family.”

  “I guess she’s enjoying Luna Harbor?”

  “Who knows? She hasn’t written in weeks. As soon as this last horse is trained, I’m heading south and bringing her back home. She needs to marry and stop this beading business.” He shook his head. “Sorry, Derrick …”

  “Please, Sir, it’s fine.”

  “I’m frustrated, and with Avikar gone, things are … difficult.”

  “I know. How about I take a few days off and head there? I’ll check on her, make sure everything’s okay.”

  “You can’t leave the shop now.”

  “I finished the last big order last night. It’ll be fine. Maybe some time away has helped.” I didn’t want to elaborate anymore.

  “Hmm, maybe.”

  It was no surprise Mr. Desdar was unhappy when Jeslyn refused my proposal. As a blacksmith, I had a nice station in Lakewood. I’d provide a good home and I loved her. At one point, she had loved me too.

  Mr. Desdar clamped a hand on my shoulder. “You’re a good lad. She’ll come around.”

  I prayed often that she would.

  Chapter Two

  The fastest way to Luna Harbor was down the main trade route that paralleled the Great River. With soldiers and war about, the rode would be packed with both friend and foe. Keeping my cowl tight, and my great sword visible on my back, I rode the horse as hard and fast as I could without running him dead.

  Three long days it took to reach the seaside village. I had only vi
sited the harbor once, as a boy. My father had to deliver a delicate order that he refused to send with a carrier. I remembered visiting Harold’s shop near the beginning of town. The years hadn’t done much to change the place. The windows were cluttered with more displays of beaded necklaces and sparkling bracelets, but the old wooden sign that read open matched exactly.

  I tied my horse to a rail outside and entered. “Hello?”

  A man with red hair and pale skin walked out from the back. Too young to be Jeslyn’s grandfather.

  “I’m looking for Jeslyn.”

  “Who are you?” He eyed me with caution.

  “Derrick Blackstone. Here at her father’s bidding. She hasn’t sent word home in weeks. He wanted to make sure she was okay. Is she here?”

  “I’m Beckett.” The man flipped the wooden sign to closed and waved me away from the door. “She’s been missing for weeks.”

  “And you didn’t think to tell anyone?”

  He held his hands out, urging me to lower my voice. “I returned from our last run, and they were both gone. At first, I thought Harold had left for another voyage and took Jeslyn with him. She’s been begging to go for months, but when I asked Ms. Gen—”

  “Who’s Ms. Gen?”

  “The baker. She and Harold are close. She said Jeslyn left with a boy named Edward.”

  I shook my head. If that were true, I wasted all this time. Once again, Jeslyn didn’t need saving. “I’ll let her father know.”

  “Wait. I don’t think she did, and I think something happened to Harold.” Beckett scratched his head and squinted. “After a week or two, I decided to come in here. Harold wouldn’t have let his granddaughter go off with some boy, and he wouldn’t leave the shop closed without telling me. It didn’t sit well.”

  “What do you think happened?”

  “I checked upstairs and found a small bloodstain on the floor in Jeslyn’s room. Since then, I’ve been reaching out to my contacts—not a word on either of them.”

  Lucy was right.

  “I need to close shop and return home. You’re welcome to stay the night. We can talk more in the morning.”

  “Thank you, but I’m going to stay at the inn. Someone must know something.”

  Beckett nodded. “Goodnight then.”

  I left the shop, questions chasing each other in my mind. Where would they have gone? Jeslyn cared about her family, and she wasn’t reckless. She never would’ve run off, especially after her kidnapping.

  “Believe me now?”

  Lucy leaned against the building, her dark cloak hiding everything but her wicked smirk.

  “What are you doing here?”

  She pushed off the wall and walked beside me. “Looking for my brother.”

  “Why don’t you use magic?” I wanted this witch away from me.

  “Do you have a handy locator spell? If not, I’m stuck searching the more traditional way.”

  “Hmpf.”

  “We should speak with the baker.”

  “We?”

  “Whether you want to admit it or not, ‘we’ are on the same path. No reason to fight it.”

  The piercing blue in her eyes shimmered beneath the moonlight. Deceptive, dangerous, and too beautiful for her own good. “Why would you need my help, shifter?”

  While she styled herself as a stunning girl with raven hair, she was a trickster, a shapeshifter—a creature to be killed, not regarded as an ally, however temporary the status.

  “Because this little mission is a secret. I can’t have certain people finding out. Plus, travelling alone is so boring.” She patted my chest. “Go sleep and take a bath. You smell like a mule.”

  As she sauntered toward the inn, I sniffed my shirt. I did stink.

  I woke just before dawn in hopes of outrunning Lucy, but when I walked outside, she was propped up against a tree, chomping an apple.

  “Morning.” She winked.

  “Don’t do that.”

  “Do what? Are you hungry?” She tossed me an apple, and I caught it with my left hand.

  “Don’t act like we’re friends.”

  She pouted. “We’re not?”

  “I don’t have time for this. Jeslyn could be in danger.”

  “I thought she wasn’t your problem anymore.” Lucy smirked, and I shoved past her.

  “Baker is over there.” She pointed down the street.

  Which she was—and opening the door as we came near.

  “Good morning,” she said. “What can I get you two?”

  “I’m a friend of Jeslyn’s,” I said before Lucy could—I didn’t like the way she eyed Ms. Gen. “Come from Lakewood for a visit. Do you know where she is?”

  “She’s with that boy, Edward.”

  “What does Edward look like?” Lucy asked.

  “About your height, dark hair, and the brightest blue eyes I’ve ever seen.”

  Lucy raised an eyebrow at me. From what I recalled, Lucino was blond, and I couldn’t remember what his eyes looked like, but why did that matter?

  “Where were they going?” Lucy glared at the woman, stepping closer.

  The baker’s eyes glazed over. “They went on a trip.” She recited the words more than spoke them.

  “She’s under Lucino’s charm spell,” Lucy whispered to me. “Tell me everything about the last time you saw Jeslyn. From when she walked in until she left,” she sang, and Ms. Gen blinked.

  My tattoo pulsed, heating my chest and neck. The tattoo covered my left side and traveled over my shoulder, the image of a black, withered tree, dripping blood. My father had no idea I had stolen a few of the blood crystals. The pain made up for it, quite unlike anything I'd ever felt or would feel again if I were lucky, but I was protected. No one would trick me with their voice or bend me to their will. So was the hope. I didn't know how immune I was since Lucy was the first magic user I encountered, but I prayed to The Creator I'd be protected from all of them.

  “Jeslyn and Edward came in the morning,” Ms. Gen said. “Right before I opened the shop. She said Harold had been kidnapped, and they were going after him.” A tear slid down her cheek. “Edward warned me not to tell anyone, and if anyone asked, just to say that they had gone on a voyage. Oh Harold.” She clutched the rag in her hand and cried.

  “Thank you,” I said. “We’re going to find them. Promise.”

  We left the baker, and I kicked a stone by the shop.

  “How could Jeslyn go after Harold alone?” Was she that reckless?

  “She’s not alone. If she’s with my brother, she’s more protected than most humans.”

  I raked my hands through my hair. It was getting too long. A close crop was what kept it out of my eyes while smithing.

  “Go speak with the man in the shop again,” Lucy said. “Find out why anyone would want to kidnap her grandfather. I’ll ask around the inn.”

  I nodded. It was the best lead we had.

  Chapter Three

  Lucy had better luck at the inn than I did with Beckett. He said Harold knew the location of a valuable gem, but nothing more. Lucy found out mercenaries had crossed through the town at the same time Jeslyn went missing. These weren’t just hired men; they worked for The Nomad King—the man leading the mage rebellion.

  If the mercenaries took Harold, and Jeslyn went after him, it meant we were traveling west, and straight to war.

  Going on Lucy’s knowledge of a shortcut that would save us days of travel, we rode through the day, heading for an old shabby inn shoved into the forest, off the main route. Gooseglass Inn had been scribbled in bright yellow paint above the entrance. I hooked my horse to the rung and followed Lucy inside.

  “Two rooms, dear.” She smiled at the fellow manning the bar, frizzy red hair sticking out of his oversized hat.

  “Lucy!” He passed the mugs to a
customer and reached for her hand to kiss. “It’s been a long time.”

  “Yes, but now I’m back. Lugar, meet Derrick.”

  I nodded and he tipped his hat at me, then reached underneath the bar. “I’ve kept your room. No one but the maid has gone in.”

  Lucy grabbed the key. “Thank you. I’ll need one for my friend.”

  “Here.” Lugar handed her a second key. “The room is two doors down from yours.”

  “Wonderful! I can’t wait to take a bath. Call up the maid for me, dear?”

  She tossed me the key and headed for the stairs. Halfway before we reached the landing, she stopped. “Really, Derrick, you—” When she turned around, I stood a pace behind her.

  “I don’t know what game you’re playing, but I don’t trust you.”

  “That’s probably best.” She patted my chest. “Goodnight, Derrick.”

  This was a very bad idea. I ran a hand across my head. A very bad idea. “You said you knew a shortcut across the land, not underneath it!”

  She shrugged. “The underground tunnels my people created will get us there faster. What’s the big deal?”

  The Nomad King ruled the desert lands to the west, and it would take weeks to travel by boat, but going underground … Just the idea of being around her people made my palms sweat.

  “As long as you follow my lead, you’ll be fine.” Lucy winked. “Oh, and try not to panic when I change.”

  “Change?”

  She closed her eyes and lifted her face toward the suns. Her pale skin shifted into a soft olive green. Her eyes elongated into two perfect ovals, and her ears pointed at the tips while her black hair flushed a bright, glimmering auburn.

  She opened her eyes. They were the same electric blue as before.

  “What are you?” I kept my hand on my blade. She looked different, but still human.

  “I thought you knew.” She smirked and glided to my side. Her features were sharp yet delicate, and exotic beyond any girl’s I had ever met.