Chapter Twenty-Six
Audrey woke to the sound of footsteps and familiar voices. She tried to sit up, but her body refused to cooperate. Her arm throbbed with a deep ache that spread from her fingertips all the way to her shoulder.
The door opened, and Maika and Zulka came in, carrying trays of food. Their faces lit up when they saw her.
“You’re up,” Maika said, setting her tray on the nightstand. “How do you feel?”
“Like I got trampled by a krag.”
Zulka laughed and set down her tray before moving to help adjust Audrey’s pillow. She and Maika worked together to prop her up into a sitting position.
Audrey’s gray arm hung limply at her side. When she tried to lift it, pain shot through it.
“Don’t push yourself,” Maika said. “You need to rest and let your body heal.”
Audrey glanced around the room. This was Morgath’s bedroom in the hut, the same place where they had slept together. She could see the forest through the window, the trees swaying gently in the breeze.
“Why am I here?” she asked. “Why not at the house in town?”
Maika and Zulka exchanged a look, and Zulka pulled a chair closer to the bed while Maika began piling food on a plate. There was a bowl of vegetable soup that smelled incredible, a plate of roasted potatoes and strips of meat, and a small bowl of fresh berries.
“It’s to protect you,” Maika said. “The captain thought it would be safer to keep you here.”
“Safer from what?”
“The horde has split,” Zulka said. “Not physically, but in opinion. There are those who understand your pain and think you’re right to want revenge for what happened to your family.
And then there are those who are angry that you shot a gun in their midst and wounded the captain.
They want to see you and your friends punished. ”
Audrey’s stomach dropped.
“How bad is it?”
“Bad enough that the captain didn’t want you walking around town,” Maika said. She picked up the bowl of soup and brought a spoonful to Audrey’s lips. “Here, eat. You need your strength.”
Audrey opened her mouth and let Maika feed her. The soup was warm and savory, filled with chunks of root vegetables and herbs.
“For what it’s worth,” Zulka said, “we’re on your side. Maika and I. And Varka and Dorsha too. We all are.”
“Thank you,” Audrey said. “That means more than you know.”
Maika fed her another spoonful of soup.
After a few more bites, Audrey asked the question that had been nagging at her since she woke up.
“How did you find the Tusk Hunters? How did Morgath know where they were?”
Zulka burst out laughing, and even Maika smiled as she set the soup aside and reached for the plate of meat and potatoes.
“The Tusk Hunters,” Zulka repeated. “That’s a ridiculous name.”
“It’s what we call ourselves.”
“It was Brumis,” Maika said, cutting the meat into pieces. “Remember when you and Brumis sparred and the captain had a talk with her afterward? She told him she was concerned about you. She said you knew how to fight, that you had your own weapons, and that you weren’t who you claimed to be.”
Audrey should’ve known Brumis wouldn’t let it go.
“So Morgath sent Brumis and a few orcs to do reconnaissance,” Zulka continued. “Brumis thought you were up to something, and that you weren’t working alone. The captain made sure you thought he’d sent her hunting, which wasn’t entirely a lie. She was hunting, just not for deer.”
Maika held up a piece of meat on a fork, and Audrey leaned forward to take it. She chewed slowly, her mind racing. Morgath had known for days that something was up, and he’d been testing her the whole time, waiting to see what she’d do.
“I’m such an idiot.”
“You’re not an idiot,” Maika said. “You were trying to protect yourself and get justice for your family. No one can fault you for that.”
Zulka leaned back in her chair. “Besides, the captain is clearly in love with you. He’ll set things right. You’ll see.”
Audrey shook her head and reached for a berry with her good hand.
“Morgath isn’t in love with me.”
“Why not?” Maika asked. “We’ve all seen the way he looks at you. He barely left your side for three days.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Zulka and Maika exchanged a look.
“Can I ask you something?” Maika said. “And I need you to be honest with us.”
Audrey nodded.
“Do you care about the captain at all? Or was this all a game to you? Was it just about getting revenge? Were you really going to kill Jorrad and Morgath both? Do you still want that?”
That was more than one question. Audrey opened her mouth to answer, but nothing came out. She shook her head rather pathetically. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know the answers herself.
“I don’t know what I want anymore,” she whispered. “I’m not the same person I was. So much has happened, and I’m not sure who I am now.”
Maika reached out and took Audrey’s good hand in hers.
“But do you care about him?”
Audrey’s throat tightened.
“Yes,” she admitted. “I care about Morgath. I didn’t want to, and I tried not to, but I do. And I’m sorry for what happened. For shooting him, I mean.”
Tears spilled down her cheeks before she could stop them. She hadn’t expected to cry, and certainly not in front of them. She tried to wipe them away with her good hand, but they kept coming, and soon she was sobbing.
Maika and Zulka moved closer, their hands rubbing soothing circles on her back. They murmured words of comfort, telling her it was all right, that she was allowed to cry, and they were there for her.
“I’m all alone,” she choked out between sobs. “I’ve always been alone. My only family are the Tusk Hunters, and now, because of me, they’re locked up somewhere and in danger. This is all my fault.”
“You’re not alone,” Maika said. “You have us now. The horde is your family.”
“Even the orcs who are against you will come around,” Zulka said. “You’re the captain’s mate. The captain’s mate is always loved and respected, even if things are tough sometimes. That’s how it works.”
Audrey shook her head, fresh tears streaming down her face.
“I don’t think Morgath will want to be with me after this. And I don’t think that’s what I want either. How can we be together after everything that’s happened?”
Maika wiped a tear from Audrey’s cheek with her thumb.
“Don’t think about it now,” she said. “You need to rest and heal. Everything else can wait.”
Audrey wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She felt wrung out and exhausted, and her arm throbbed with renewed pain.
“I need to use the bathroom. I need a minute alone.”
The female orcs helped her out of bed, supporting her on either side as she stood on shaky legs. They walked her slowly to the bathroom door, and Audrey gripped the frame.
“Are you all right?” Zulka asked.
“Yes. I just need a minute.”
“We’re going to head back to town,” Maika said. “But we’ll be back later to check on you. If you need anything, just call out. The captain isn’t far.”
Once alone, Audrey stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
She used the toilet, then stood at the sink and turned on the water. She splashed her face and drank a bit. When she looked up at her reflection, she barely recognized herself. Her eyes were hollow and red from crying, her skin pale and drawn.
There was noise coming from the other side of the door. The sound of heavy footsteps on the creaky wooden floor. Morgath must’ve come back to check on her. She wasn’t ready to face him, but she couldn’t hide in the bathroom forever.
Audrey ran her fingers through her tangled hair, trying to make herself look a little more presentable.
She walked to the door and pulled it open, plastering a smile on her face.
She didn’t want the orc captain to know she’d been crying.
It was enough that she’d broken down in front of Maika and Zulka.
Hopefully, they wouldn’t tell anyone. Audrey hated showing weakness in front of people. Even more so in front of orcs.
The orc she found herself face to face with was not Morgath.
It was Jorrad the Brutal.
He carried a sword that glowed with magic, the blade humming with barely contained power. He held it at his side as his dark eyes locked onto hers.
Audrey screamed.