CHAPTER 22
Rudgar
“ T his is a terrible idea,” Enka said, putting his weapons into the holsters that I’d given him and his brothers not too long ago. They’d come a long way from when they’d fumbled to get dressed in the first place with the buttons and zippers.
Now, they were almost as good as I was with arming themselves. I had my best friend to thank for that. While I was distracted with my mate, Darak had taken the time to come help them acclimate with our world along with getting them settled with roles in the building.
Rok—who still hissed at the computer more often than not—was in charge of the team, but Enka was showing a big interest in technology and was learning faster than Darak had hoped.
Krusk was also settling in well, but Savla seemed to have the same attitude toward technology that Rok did. Hopefully, with time, we would be able to talk them into it. If not, there were ways around it, and I was sure we could figure it out.
“I know this is a terrible idea,” I told Enka, eyeing the three males as they stood in front of me. I had asked Rok and Dristan to stay behind to protect their mates and the other females from Zara’s coven. “If I could talk her out of it, I would, but she’s refusing to see sense.”
The other males nodded with sighs.
“It’s hard to make that one see reason,” Krusk agreed. “Once she has her mind set on something she bites in with all her teeth.”
“Stubborn as a kikon ,” Enka said with a shrug and Savla nodded.
While it still irked me that these three unmated males knew my female well enough to make those kinds of statements, I could admit that it was sweet that they knew her that well. She was as stubborn as a kikon —whatever the hell that was.
“Why does she need a wand anyway?” Krusk asked, tucking a sword into the sheath at his back. While it wasn’t necessarily legal to carry that huge weapon, I wasn’t going to deny him the comfort of it when we faced off against the Gods knew what kind of creatures in this grove that my mate was insisting that we go to.
“She can’t focus her magick without it,” I explained, but I wondered if I was saying the right thing. I didn’t understand it. How could I expect them to? “If she’s going to face off against the asshole, she’s going to need to be at her full power,” I told them what she’s said to me in slow words that had both helped and offended me.
“Ah,” Krusk said with a nod. “Veron. Yes, he most definitely is an asshole.”
“Of the assholiest variety,” Enka added with a snort and Savla grunted his agreement.
“Where’s The Grove?” Krusk asked as they finished packing and looked at me, waiting.
“It’s close to where her mother’s house is. She was drawn to the power of it, making their home close enough that she thought she could get help from the Guardian in case she needed it but…” he trailed off with a sigh, scrubbing his hand across his face. “That didn’t work out.”
“Well now maybe Zara can get his help,” Enka said with a shrug, patting my shoulder in an awkward way.
“Yeah,” I agreed, turning to face the door, straightening my shoulders as I led them out and toward my home—where my mate was getting ready as well. “And if he can’t help her, I’m going to find another way.”
“I don’t know if this is a good idea,” I told Zara as we walked close to the forested area near her mother’s home. She turned to look at us, her lips pursed.
“And I don’t think I need four huge orcs as protectors to go meet him, but here we are,” she sniffed, her brow furrowed with consternation as she looked at where Krusk, Enka and Savla stood behind me.
“You definitely need protection,” Krusk said, eyes roaming behind her where there was a light mist surrounding the forest. “There’s something weird about this place.”
“It’s not weird, it’s sacred,” she sighed, rolling her eyes as turned to face the trees. “And whatever you do, don’t you dare hurt anything in there.”
I turned to look at the other three males, who had the same incredulous expressions on their faces. “What if something attacks us?”
She pursed her lips, crossing her arms over her glorious breasts. “Nothing’s going to attack you, and even if something does , I can protect you.”
“That defeats the entire point of us being here,” I growled, scuffing my boot in the dirt in front of me.
“The point of you being here,” she laughed, moving closer to reach up and cup my cheeks in her soft hands, “Is for you to protect me if the warlocks come here. Not from Papa Bois.”
“Is that the Guardian’s name?” I asked, moving closer to her so that I was within touching range. There was something feral inside me that needed to be in contact with her at all times. My hands moved of their own volition, wrapping around her waist, but she moved too, snuggling herself against me.
“Yep. And if we meet him, you need to mind your manners. He gets upset if you’re rude. Let me do all the talking and whatever you do, do not stare at his feet,” she explained, running her hands over my shirt, smoothing the cotton over my chest and making me shudder.
“What’s wrong with his feet?” Enka squawked from behind me, and she rolled her eyes, glaring over my shoulder.
“There’s nothing wrong with them. They’re hooves. He just doesn’t like anyone looking at them. That’s all,” she tsked, and the males behind me breathed a sigh of relief.
We could deal with hooves. “No staring,” I said, chucking her under her chin. “Got it. But if he attacks you, I’m going to shoot him.”
She narrowed her eyes at me, waving her finger in front of my face. “You wouldn’t be able to touch him. He’s too fast. And all you’ll do is get me in trouble. Focus on the warlocks. Nothing else. Promise me,” she demanded. Her tone was firm and after a few moments of pouting, I nodded my agreement. She leaned back to glare at the other three males behind me and they gave their grudging assent as well.
“Then here we go,” she said, taking a deep breath before turning toward the misty forest and stepping forward.
As a group, we walked toward the trees. I kept my female in my sights, glancing around for only a moment before I realized that she was only a few feet in front of me but barely visible. I hurried forward, taking her hand in mine and she glanced back at me with a smile.
There was something eerie about the mist that surrounded us and I wondered if it was a way for us to get lost. Still, my Zara knew where she was going, walking with purpose.
The three males kept themselves in a straight line behind me, eyes scanning the surrounding trees for any hint of movement. It wasn’t long before we were deep enough in the forest, and for the mist to be thick enough, for me to become disoriented.
“Slow down,” I murmured to Zara as she kept walking. “We have to stick together.”
She did, peeking back at the males whose brows were furrowed as they looked around with wariness in their eyes.
“This is one of the tests,” she whispered, keeping her voice low and soft. “We have a purpose for being here. Focus on that.”
“Our purpose is to protect you,” I told her, ensuring that my voice was just as quiet as hers.
“Exactly,” she murmured, looking at the others and nodded. “Protection. That’s it. Remember that and keep walking behind me.”
With slow nods, we followed her instructions. The mist was getting thicker and it was becoming harder and harder to breathe. It was like a soup that was entering my lungs and suffocating me. I ran my palm over Zara’s back, but she smiled back at me, letting me know that she either wasn’t affected or she was used to it.
Focus on why you’re here.
Thoughts of protecting her filled my mind and at once, the mist eased. Suspicious, I looked around, but I kept the thoughts of keeping my Gul-ar safe at the forefront. It eased even further, and I looked back at the males behind us, noting that they were less affected now as well.
I breathed a sigh of relief as we entered a clearing. Zara paused, her grip on my fingers tightening and I frowned, before looking up and seeing a bear lumbering into the clearing as well.
My hand moved to my gun, preparing to shoot it, but she gripped my hand, stilling it and shaking her head. “Don’t even think about it,” she whispered.
I frowned, but watched as the black bear continued along its path, two small balls of fur rolling out of the forest behind it, snorting and chasing her. My eyes were wide as I watched in awe as the mother bear turned to eye us curiously before continuing on her path.
When she got to the other end of the clearing, she turned to look at us, sitting and staring with a level of focus that I found odd as the little ones continued on, growling and pouncing on each other. When her cubs were no longer visible, she huffed out a breath before moving after them.
Zara released a breath before she whispered, “Nothing in this forest is going to hurt us. Just remember that.”
I nodded, allowing her to lead again. We passed through the clearing, entering the treeline on the other side. I tensed as a snake slid along beside us, but I followed her lead, keeping an eye out for anything human-like instead.
If Veron’s warlocks were anywhere near us, I would be able to smell them long before they attacked. I listened for any noises, passing by a huge cobweb brimming with spiders the size of my fist. I shuddered, but continued on. The males behind me were doing better than I was, not even fazed by the wildlife.
Years of becoming used to living indoors—while good for our financial status, as well as helping us adapt to the norms of the society we were now living in—were not good for my acclimation to outdoor dangers.
I started as I spotted eyes shining back at me in the darkness of the woods.
What the fuck is that?
I saw a rounded face and fur.
Fucking hell, is that a mountain lion? Do we have mountain lions here?
I tried to recall every wildlife fact I knew, but I was coming up blank. I inched closer to Zara, baring my fangs at it. It wouldn’t attack a group of orcs, but she was small enough that it might take a chance at her.
The eyes didn’t blink as we passed, and I huffed out another relieved breath, scanning as we went. After what seemed like an eternity, but was probably less than an hour of picking our way through the forest, we made it to another clearing.
This time, as I looked around, all of the trees looked the same. Like an exact replica of each other, down to the last leaf. Blinking, I rubbed my eyes to make sure I was seeing it properly. The other males were having the same problem, looking around with curiosity, but Zara had stopped walking, her fingers tightening around my hand in warning.
I looked down at her and she gave me an earnest expression with a small shake of her head. I nodded, not sure what she was trying to tell me, but understanding I wasn’t supposed to speak. The male appeared in front of us with a suddenness I wasn’t ready for. I started, but Zara’s fingers squeezed mine again, warning me not to move or say anything.
The male was shorter than Zara by almost a foot, his skin a deep, rich brown with a thick layer of dark fur covering his lower body. His curly hair was twisted into long locs that fell around his face with horns curving behind his head. He had a horn hanging from a chain around his neck, making me wonder what he used it for. His hair and his full beard held a scattering of leaves. His dark eyes were watchful and suspicious, taking us all in. I took one glance down to see his hooven feet, before looking away, hoping I hadn’t fucked up everything royally because of my curiosity.
Zara bowed low, and I did the same, gesturing for the males behind me to follow in kind.
“Bonjour, vieux Papa,” she said in a soft, gentle voice. The rest of us stayed utterly silent, remembering her instructions.
“What brings you here, child?” he asked, his voice a rasp of sound that resonated through the forest, yet was somehow barely audible.
“I’ve come to ask for a favor, vieux Papa,” she answered, keeping her head bowed.
“Raise yourself and let me look at you,” he responded, and she did. I kept my head low, not sure if he meant us, but a small, gruff, “You four as well,” made me lift my head.
I kept my gaze focused on his face and prayed the other males would as well.
He wasn’t looking at me though, his entire focus was on my female and something bristled inside me at that. His gaze cut to me for a second, his lip quirking as if he’d read my mind and was amused by it, before he looked at Zara once more.
“You look like your mother,” he told her, another, gentler smile playing on his lips. “She was kind to the forest. I liked her.”
I watched as tears gathered in Zara’s eyes, but she swiped them away. “Thank you for that. I loved her so much.”
He made a low sound of agreement. “You still love her. She’s not gone yet. She’s protecting you. She’s asked me to help you. Something I don’t do often. The forest needs my help. Quarrels on the outside have nothing to do with me, you understand,” he told her.
“I understand,” she whispered, wiping another tear away.
It was killing me that I had to stay still and I wasn’t able to hold her in my arms.
“But the one who took you,” Papa Bois growled, his voice low and menacing. “He’s an aberration. He knows the power of this grove and he would use it to bring harm to the creatures I protect.”
“Yes, vieux Papa,” Zara whispered, bowing her head again.
“That can’t happen,” the male said, turning from us and moving further into the forest. “Like your mother, you’ve passed my tests. And while you’ve brought these males with you, they’ve followed your lead, which makes me think they have at least some sense in them.” His gaze cut to mine and I had a feeling that he was making me the butt of his own personal joke. I wasn’t offended. I knew that most orc males had a bad rap when it came to hunting and destroying.
His eyes narrowed on me and he gave a small nod as he waved his hand and the grove around us changed. It transformed into a circle of trees with light wood, small leaves and bright red berries.
I didn’t spin in a circle the way I wanted to, focusing on my mate instead and ensuring that she was safe, but I had so many questions to ask once we were out of there.