Page 34 of The Orc Outcast's Conquest

“B-but you can’t be. This can’t be. I’m not... I can’t...” Her voice raked over his flesh like a harsh winter chill, scraping against his senses.

His gaze shot to her hand, where her fingers were digging into the cut on her palm. Breaking it open anew. Bright blood dripped from between her fingers onto the forest floor, painting the decaying leaves at her feet. “Stop!”

The slice of a yowl drowned away his order.

A saber cat.

The beast pounced toward Miranda with deadly precision.

Nervous energy burst through Govek’s limbs. He shot out, shoving her behind him, and threw himself toward the cat’s gaping maw.

Govek’s fist collided with the animal’s thick skull. It cracked, and the cat plummeted to the forest floor.

He looked back at his woman long enough to find her scrambling to her feet. His heavy bag had pulled her down.

The cat snarled and Govek whirled, bracing his feet. Its jaws were dripping, its sharp teeth were tinted black. Its eyes were glazed and listless. Its movements were jerky and unpredictable.

It had the blight.

The cat charged with ruthless precision, claws digging into the ground, snapping and spitting. It shot around him.

Toward Miranda.

He roared, leaping into the air and tackled it. It scrambled and flailed and screamed into the foggy air. It was all he could do to avoid its deadly claws.

Its neck was right there. With a quick assessment of his woman, he flashed his eyes and found Miranda still horrified, and he fucking couldn’t do it. He could not risk terrorizing her with the sight of him ripping the creature’s throat out with his own vile fangs.

The hesitation caused the cat to break free.

Miranda did the unthinkable. She bolted for the woods.

The cat whipped toward his woman. Its instinct to chase its prey making it inconceivably fast as it hurtled after Miranda.

Panic speared his mind, and he shot his hand out, caught the tail of the cat and crushed it in his grip. It snapped. The bones wrenched apart under the force of stopping the beast from hurtling toward Miranda.

But the flesh held.

The cat screamed and spat in agony, writhing and twisting around to skewer him. Govek’s own terror went higher and gave him precision. He dragged it back, dodged its claws, and pushed his knee into its ribs until they crunched under his weight.

Anguish roared to life in his bones. The cat’s tortured cries grated his senses, and he gnashed his teeth against the guilt that he was causing it such pain.

It whipped its head around, its teeth snapping so close to his cheek he felt its spittle on his face and smelled its rotten breath. Govek wrapped his hand around its neck and sliced clean through the fur and tissues. Blood sprayed in an arc against the ground. It was dead in an instant.

Rage roared to life within him, and he lurched toward the trees where Miranda had run. He would hunt her. Force her to return. Make her face the torture her stupidity had caused this creature.

Had caused him.

She’d fucking ran.

Just like Yerina.

His chest burned.

“A-are you okay?”

He froze, eyes darting. Miranda was staggering toward him. But she had run. She’d?—

“Oh god! Your hand. Here.”

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