Page 142 of The Orc Outcast's Miracle

“See him?” Brovdir winced over each word. He had to talk too much. He constantly had to bark orders now.

“Yes,” Govek said, though it came out strangled.

“You okay?” Miranda asked as Brovdir led them further into the camp. “I can go in with you if you want.”

“No.” Govek stroked Miranda’s hair back behind her ear. He did not want her anywhere near this. He was glad that Sythcol had put up a glamour so that none could hear anything from within the tent.

“He’s ready,” Brovdir managed. “Gagged.”

Gagged. And sitting in squalor inside a rough leather tent over muddied ground tied to the center pole so he could not escape, bound with the same magic that had blistered Govek in his youth.

The once-great chief of Rove Wood Clan had been reduced to a level even Govek had never been subjected to.

And now Govek would deliver his punishment.

“Thank you, Brovdir,” Govek said before patting Miranda’s back. “Wait with her for me.”

Brovdir nodded. Miranda let him go and he pushed through the cloth exterior into the dimly lit tent. It was stuffy inside, with no windows and a door that shut tight. The only light was a sliver at the top where the fabric was pulled together.

Ergoth’s hands were bound behind him, the pole dug into his back. His legs curled up beneath his slender frame. He was dressed in trousers and no shirt, and Govek realized he had never seen Ergoth in anything but his opulent robes before.

He looked small.

His back was to Govek, and the male straightened. Govek inhaled sharply and walked around to face his father.

For the last time.

Ergoth’s skin and white hair were both clean, obviously washed recently, judging by how damp it was. They’d cut it close to his head to make the care of it easier. That one change in appearance somehow accentuated his wrinkles, displaying the heavy bags under his eyes, the whites of which were so bloodshot they looked almost entirely red.

Ergoth’s green skin was pale. His breathing jagged against the tight rope gag that silenced him. And his gaze spat wild venom at Govek as he knelt in front of the male who had caused him so much grief over the course of his life.

Govek forgot the words that he’d planned to say for a moment, but the tightness in his chest ebbed. The fury churning at the back of his mind cooled, and he released his tension.

This male could do nothing to him now.

“You know,” Govek said slowly, his voice light and smooth. “Karthoc wanted to rip out your tongue.”

There was a flash of anger in Ergoth’s eyes, and Govek swallowed at the reversal of power here. He was in control and Ergoth was lost to his fury.

And this brought him no comfort.

“I told him not to,” Govek said. “I didn’t think that punishment was good enough for what you’ve done.”

Ergoth straightened, his pupils tiny pricks.

Govek snorted. “And no, I do not mean death either. That would be far too easy, wouldn’t it? To let you return to the Fades you so greatly praise. The beings who supposedly favored you above almost all others. Do you truly think they would be glad to see how you have abused your power?”

Ergoth bit his gag, chewing at the rope, trying to dislodge it.

Govek reached out to slice it away. Sythcol’s magic prevented Ergoth from doing harm and that included verbal magic or incantations. All Ergoth could do was hurl powerless insults, words that held no control over Govek any longer.

There was truly nothing Ergoth could do to him.

The male spoke the moment his mouth was free. “So, you aren’t so much a coward than you cannot bear to hear the truth.”

Govek’s brow twitched as he worked to keep his emotions at bay. “And what truth is that, Ergoth?”

The male growled. “The truth that you are evil. Far more wicked than I could ever be. What son would ever want to punish his own father this way? What child would relish his parent’s suffering? Your mother was right to abandon you. You are a wretched abomination.”

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