Page 21 of The Orc's Oath

"It's okay, Serena. The gates to this part of the building are all down and secure."

"Oh, you should have said. I've sent Heather running off now. Will they hold?"

I could hear the sounds of fighting getting closer.

"I'm sure they will hold."

He pulled the door closed to my room and pulled the metal emergency bars across. The energy shifted in the room and my heart sank. He turned to me, and something in his eyes looked dark and threatening.

"You don't need to worry about being mated to a monster now, Serena. I'm here. We can leave together once this is over. Daylen has promised me he will stop anyone from getting over to this section of the prison. He's working the gate controls."

He stepped towards me and reached a hand out to my face.

"I'm not worried about it. I'm glad to have found my mate, and I'm glad he is an orc."

Billy's eyes flashed and his body language shifted, and I knew instinctively I was in danger.

"The orc? It's not right, Serena! Monsters taking human women. I can take care of you. Properly. Like you deserve."

I could see the anger building inside him. I knew that his idea of taking care of me actually had nothing to do with caring. It was about possession. On some level he'd convinced himself that his wants mattered more than my needs. His hands tensed. Zesh was right, Billy was my enemy. I just hadn't wanted to see it. I'd fallen for his lost boy routine and if I wasn't careful he was going to snap. He was between me and the door. I kept eye contact with him and held my hands up. I knew my room like the back of my hand. A pan for boiling water to make tea was on the table next to me. He stepped forward, and I darted sideways. I grabbed the pan and without thinking, swung it at him. A clang rang out as I caught him across the face. He stumbled back and glared at me.

"You can't hit me. You should be mine!"

He jumped up again and reached for me. Panic threatened to overtake me, but I knew I couldn't let him get a hold of me. I swung the pot again down on top of his head. The adrenaline of the moment coursed through me. The rush flowed through me, and all my senses felt more powerful and intense. Billy fell to the ground in a heap just as the door to my room was ripped off its hinges and flung to one side.

"Uk'lah!"

Orzesh took in the scene.

"You are vanquishing your foe!"

I laughed wildly, high on my body's chemicals.

Orzesh roared a triumphant roar. Billy was pulling himself across the floor away from us both, looking dazed. My body was buzzing with energy, and I felt more alive and in the moment than I'd even thought possible.

"Now, your turn to fight," I shouted, and leapt towards Zesh, shouting incoherent noises.

His eyes widened, and as I hit him with my full body he actually stumbled backwards, taken by surprise. I swung the pan, caught up in the moment. Heather had told me that the mating fight was a proper fight and I shouldn't hold back. While it didn't actually matter who won, the ritual of it was important. I had to take it seriously. Taking Zesh by surprise was my best chance of getting any hits in. But once I heard the vibration of the hit, I felt bad. It didn't last long as Orzesh laughed with glee and picked me up, held me over his head and threw me across the room onto my bed, like I weighed nothing. I bounced and nearly fell off the end, dropping the pan. That was my only weapon. I didn't even have time to think of grabbing it again before there was a huge orc leaping on top of me. I squealed with shock and a little thrill of fear. His eyes were turning red now. Heather had let me know it could be a sign of desire, not just rage. But as they glowed at me, it was easy to feel intimidated.

I decided that there was only one option, to fight with what the gods gave me. Growling like a wild animal, I scratched my nails down his chest. I thought I sounded quite ferocious.

"Such delicate little claws you have there, Uk'lah. Shame they haven't done any damage."

I reached for his chest where there were still the remnants of a purple bruise, and dug my nails in as hard as I could. The growl that erupted from him made the room shake. A few drops of blood leaked from him. He looked down at it and laughed. A squeal in the background distracted us for a moment. Billy had tried to pick up Orzesh's axe but couldn't even get it off the ground. Now Bloodletter was pecking him angrily.

"Serena!"

"Oh, fuck off, Billy."

Bloodletter cried out and pecked Billy's face until he turned and ran.

"Do you want to follow and kill him, Uk'lah?"

"Absolutely not. This fight is more important."

"Agreed. We can kill him later."

I ignored that and slapped him across the face. He probably would barely even feel it, but I knew it would surprise him. His eyes widened, and he flipped me over so I was on my front. One hand pressed on my back to hold me in place. I wiggled and complained. His hand came down on my ass with a crack. I squealed more in shock than anything else, but I could feel the need for him building in me. He flipped me over onto my back, and with one pull ripped my red dress off me. He pinned my wrists to the bed and looked me up and down.

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