Epilogue
Francesca
––––––––
"She must have gone through the portal," Jasmine says, fear lining her voice. "And something must have happened."
The six orcs create mini earthquakes with every pounding step they take, barely in control of their pent-up fury and worry.
"We have to go and find her," I say. The fact that the orcs can't go through the portal infuriates them beyond measure. Yet I know they would risk their lives crossing it without a moment's hesitation if they needed to for us. It's up to me and Jasmine, and that makes them scarily angrier.
In the month that I've been here, I've grown to love Jasmine, her orcs, and Cailyn as if she were also my sister. Our bond is unbreakable, and my heart shatters at the thought of what might have happened to her. We have to find her.
And then, coming up on the horizon, we see her. Dressed in orc garb with her green face, but without the stilts she mastered to make her petite frame look incredibly taller, Cailyn nears us with a triumphant smile on her face.
But she's not alone. There's a leash in her hand, and attached to it is...
Oh god, Cailyn, what have you done?