Page 15 of Adored By The Orc

Gnark shakes his head. “Aye, don’t lose focus, Jogug. This king isn’t wet behind the ears like Wruk. This one is legendary and if you ever need the element of surprise that you took out Wruk with, this is it.” He leans in to make his point. “You could lose your life.”

My life is revenge.

I nod, letting them know I understand the gravity.

“We’ll make our way to the fork and we’ll leave at dawn, with or without you. On our way to Collins, we’ll search for you in the West Mountain village in case you’ve been taken captive. But if not, once you’ve killed this one, we’ll meet up with you there.”

“What about a horse?” I ask, as Grilud ties Wruk’s horse to his. Why wouldn’t they leave it for me to use?

“He’ll have one,” he grunts, pointing his chin toward the tied male. “Make him tell you where his is at before you kill him. This one we can sell.”

I grit my teeth. Stupid to allow him to wake before killing him just for a horse but the greedy clan wants to sell Wruk’s instead of allowing me to ride away on it once I kill the male.

Chapter Six

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BAKOG:

THE SOUND OF A blade scraping from its sheath wakes me.

Shalia sits near the burning fire sharpening the tool. She looks relaxed but I know her well enough to see it’s a farce. She has one eye on the dark woods beyond our clearing and sits near enough to me to block herself from attack.

Aye, she’s aware then, that where a royal is, his guard isn’t far behind.

“You knocked me out,” I grunt, the side of my head swollen and stiff with dried blood from the rock she used.

“Aye. How many West Mountains traveled with you?”

My brain isn’t at full capacity yet and I toss her words in my head. Why does she refer to us as West Mountains with such a tone of derision?

“None. I was in a hurry to find you and left alone. But the others won’t be far behind me.”

“How many others?” she snaps.

I stare at her, brows knotted. Something isn’t right but with the soreness in my head, I can’t quite place it. “Royal guard,” I say quietly. “At least.”

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