Death Weavers Read Online Free PDF

head. “I can’t. There are things I have to do here.”
    Sando considered him intently. “What information do you most desire?”
    â€œYou can probably guess,” Cole said. “Do you know where I can find the princesses? Destiny or Honor?”
    â€œOf course this would be your priority,” Sando said, rubbing his hands. “I cannot tell you the present location of either sister. But I do know a place where Destiny has been. You could acquire her trail there. There would be risk involved.”
    â€œEverything is a risk these days,” Cole said. “Lots of people are after me. The sooner I find the princesses, the less time they’ll have to catch me.”
    Squinting intently, Sando lowered his voice to a whisper. “This is one of my most guarded nuggets of information. I survive by trading knowledge. Would you grant me a favor in exchange for the knowledge you seek?”
    Cole fell silent. Hunter had warned him to be very careful bargaining with echoes and to make no binding oaths. What might Sando want? Had everything until now been a setup?
    Sando smiled, wrinkles gathering at the corners of his mouth and eyes. “Do not fear a trade! I have not yet spoken my terms. They are very lenient.”
    â€œWhat’s the deal?” Cole asked warily.
    â€œI could not keep your silver,” Sando said. “Instead, favor me with a different offering. Maintain the silver ringer in your custody, on my behalf, until you give it to the person I designate. While you retain the ringer, I will serve you as best I can from the echolands.”
    â€œHow will I know who gets the ringer?” Cole asked.
    â€œI’ll bind the ringer to both of us,” Sando said. “That way, while you retain the ringer, I’ll be able to reach your mind.”
    â€œI was warned to avoid binding oaths,” Cole said uneasily.
    Sando waved his hands. “I don’t mean a binding oath. Avoiding those is a good policy. Under a bound oath, you would owe me a particular service, with a punishment attached should you fail. This is not my proposal. Not all bindings involve punishments. Some can simply help echoes and mortals find and trust one another. I would bind the ringer to us so I can help you avoid losing it by accident, and so I can tell you who I want to have it.”
    â€œIsn’t that a lot of trouble just to give somebody a ringer?” Cole asked.
    â€œDonating the ringer will bring me joy,” Sando said. “But my motives go beyond generosity. Echoes spend our existence resisting the call of the Other.”
    â€œThe other what?”
    â€œJust the Other, young sir. The unnamed realms beyond the echolands. They summon us. At first the invitation is easy to resist. But the pull increases over time. I have withstood the call for many long decades. Interaction with the material world helps us resist. Some echoes collaborate with mortals to resolve matters of personal concern. For others, it is a question of survival. In short, having a ringer to give in Necronum will help keep my echo alive.”
    That seemed like a fair reason to Cole, but he had just met Sando and didn’t want to be reckless. “How do I know you’re not tricking me?”
    â€œYoung sir, what have I to gain from deceit?” Sando asked with a chiding smile. “The binding depends on the quality of my information. If my tip fails to lead you to Destiny’s trail, the binding will unravel, as if it never happened. I’m trading a platinum for a copper. Your task is easy, but this knowledge will be most difficult to uncover elsewhere.”
    â€œWhat if you lead Nazeem’s people to me?” Cole said.
    â€œAs a token of good faith, and to give you maximum assurance of my worthy intentions, I will pledge to serve you and only you until I instruct you to deliver the ringer.”
    â€œYou can’t break that pledge?”
    â€œAbsolutely