Page 46 of The Orc's Bride

I nodded but couldn’t stay put. My head wasn’t hurting too much – only a dull throbbing remained which I expected would pass soon. I walked closer to the water and found a patch of wild mint. I made a fragrant bouquet of it and returned to Urgan’s cape, chewing on the leaves.

Soon, Urgan and Grikh emerged from the trees and piled dry branches on the ground. They used their supplies to start the fire and left me sitting by it. I fed it sticks, chewing on mint and sipping water.

It wasn’t long before they returned, carrying a pheasant and a few rabbits. I grabbed the bird and started plucking off feathers. Urgan skinned the rabbits, while Grikh built a makeshift spit using a thin metal rod he had by his saddle and some stones.

“Grikh will go into the city and we will wait for him here,” Urgan said, glancing at me.

I shook out my hands, which were already cramping up from plucking the stiff feathers.

“Why?”

Urgan watched me for a moment while I returned to cleaning the pheasant. Finally, he spoke.

“We believe someone has sent those ragghits to hunt us. Grikh is going to find out if our suspicions are correct.”

“I will do my best to come back as soon as possible. Maybe even the day after tomorrow,” Grikh said, sticking a rabbit on the rod.

Soon, another skinned rabbit joined the first one, and then another. Grikh put the rod over the fire.

My heart beat faster. If I understood it correctly…

“So… I’ll stay with you here?” I asked Urgan, not even trying to hide how breathless this idea made me. “Just… us two?”

He nodded. His face was still solemn. He was grieving. Yet, there were sparks deep in his eyes. He was looking at me with an open, steady gaze.

I inhaled sharply, my whole body tingling. Suddenly, I wasn’t hungry anymore. My insides were twisting with nerves and expectation.

Because it meant he still cared about me. It had to.

Urgan and Grikh talked some more, making plans and suggestions that meant little to me. Speaking about spies, informants, trusted soldiers and members of the Imperator’s court. They were compiling a list of orcs and humans whom Grikh could approach to find out whether the ragghit attacks had been orchestrated.

Soon, the rabbits were ready. Urgan had a pouch of salt. He sprinkled it on the meat, and we ate. I couldn’t stomach more than a few bites, which I forced down my throat.

I hadn’t slept last night. I had been through a grueling journey and attacked by beasts from hell. My travel companions had died. And my entire world had been flipped upside down. I had to change the way I viewed everything. Orcs and humans. Revenge and what it meant.

That last one had truly left me reeling. I was still coming to terms with the fact that orcs weren’t just dumb beasts. That the plans I had been making for the last five years were naïve and unrealistic. And impossible to carry out if I didn’t want to become a monster. The bad kind.

I looked at Urgan as he wiped his greasy hands on a piece of cloth. He reached for a knife and quickly pared three claws of his right hand. He tested their edges, now blunt and short, with his thumb and nodded once, showing his fangs in a grin.

It struck me how attractive he was to me. I could watch even such a simple action with bated breath. Finally, I was ready to accept it: I desired Urgan and wanted to spend my life with him.

I should have been exhausted after everything that had happened. But my heart was beating frantically, fueling my body with adrenaline and butterflies.

Urgan looked up at me, and his mouth split in a sharp-toothed grin. Oh, he still looked feral. His skin was still green, and eyes so uncanny they gave me a pause. But despite all that, I felt safe with him. Like he was my home.

And I could not look away.

After we finished eating, Grikh rose and saluted Urgan. He mounted his horse and rode off.

And I just sat there, suddenly paralyzed. We were alone. The birds were singing around us, insects buzzing. It was safe. The day was warm, and the water was glittering, silver and inviting like Urgan’s eyes.

Eyes that were fixed on me with a toe-curling intensity.

“It’s an old custom that after a funeral, lovers mate. Death and mating are two bones, growing one next to another. Only having two of them together can make one whole.”

Urgan stood up, his powerful body towering above me, green head jutting into the blue sky.

“Come, Una. The water should be warm enough.”

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