Page 32 of The Orc's Wife

But the feeling of elation, of giddy excitement, passed, when Urgan gave me a hard look.

“But I would hate to see you endangering yourself. I’ll be there, but if you challenge Urzulah or the Imperator, even I can’t save you. Remember this and behave. Do your best to hold your tongue.”

I stepped back from him, and he let me, watching with those hard eyes that seemed to mock me. I pursed my lips to hold the spiteful words of protest inside.

Was I really only good as long as I obeyed him? Was anything that came out of my mouth a risk to my safety? Or maybe it wasn’t about that? Maybe Urgan was ashamed of me, his weak human mate, and wanted me to keep silent so I wouldn’t reveal just how ignorant I was?

I squared my shoulders, which was difficult with the burden of those doubtful thoughts weighing me down. But I managed. I would do my best to prove Urgan wrong. I wasn’t a liability. I could be an asset.

And it didn’t matter at all that a contemptuous voice in my head, one that sounded very similar to my father’s voice, was whispering that I could never be good enough. That all I was made for was to be an obedient wife, and even at that, I failed.

I chose to ignore it.

Urgan took my arm, that detached, cool look still in his eyes, and I took a deep breath. No matter how I felt, he was right. We would be among enemies now. The tiniest misstep could cost us everything.

So, I gave him a smile that I hoped was confident and reassuring. I would behave. I knew what was at stake. Urgan squeezed my arm in response.

We stepped out of our secluded corner and with no more ado, made our way to the main hall. We entered after a group of colorfully clad orc females, who all wore bright feathers and tinkling bells in their hair and were looking at Urgan and me with open interest.

I gave them a polite smile, taking care not to show my teeth.

When they moved toward a table, I could see the hall in all its glory. It was breathtaking.

Brightly lit with torches and large metal dishes full of fire so bright it was almost white, the hall was enormous. Wide tables stood there at even intervals, many of the benches already full of guests. Their clothes in so many vibrant colors, they looked like a flock of exotic birds I had once seen in a book. The noise, as soon as we had entered, was deafening.

Laughter, conversation, and music flowing from a dais on the far side of the hall mixed into a dizzying clamor. Most guests were seated for now, and the only ones not sitting were those who had just entered, and servants, running about with heavy platters of food.

It smelled, too. Of food, of sweat, of the burning wood. I was keeping myself tall and straight, trying not to clutch Urgan’s arm desperately as we walked slowly towards the table closest to the throne.

And on that throne, with a table of his own, was the Imperator himself. We stopped when he looked at us, and I bowed with Urgan, following his lead. The Imperator motioned for the musicians to stop and clapped his hands. The noise died down to a murmur.

“Here is my guest of honor, the great general, Urgan the Bloodthirsty! We are celebrating his victory against Tokoma, and his other conquest. For Urgan has claimed a mate!”

The voices behind us cheered and shrieked, not entirely with joy, I thought. So many loud orc voices directed at me were making my head spin.

“We have another reason for celebration, but I will share it later tonight. For now, eat and drink! Eat and drink, for this world belongs to us!”

A deafening din of voices filled the hall, and I shivered from the onslaught, wishing I could cover my ears. I thought I knew whom the Imperator had meant when he had saidus: orcs and orcs only.

He really deserved to lose his power for enslaving the human race.

But for now, there was no justice to be had. I needed to be patient. So, I followed Urgan meekly to the topmost table, where we sat down side by side, surrounded by weird looking orcs. I kept back a gasp when I saw some of them had filed down their fangs or put glittering jewelry in holes made in their skin.

Their speech was different from Urgan’s, too, and at the start, I had trouble understanding a word from what was said. The noise and their accent were making it impossible. Urgan exchanged a few polite nods with our neighbors and started speaking to the orc at his right, who had asked about the last war.

I was sitting and barely eating from my overflowing plate. I was thirsty, but there was only wine to drink, and the thought of drinking wine right now was making me queasy. I wondered if I could ask a servant to bring me water boiled with herbs.

That would probably be seen as a sign of weakness.

My left-hand neighbor, a grizzled orc who had only one sharp fang left in his mouth, surrounded by the blunt ones, leaned to me. He had purple feathers in his mane, and his chest was bare, letting me see the scars.

“Is the general so weak he needed to make a human who can’t refuse him his mate?”

I clenched my fists under the table, heart beating fast. Fighting words, so soon in the feast. How could I answer to help Urgan save face and keep him from being forced to challenge the orc?

“Oh, he would never take what wasn’t freely given, he’s much too powerful for that,” I said, taking a sip of wine to give myself time to think. I put the cup away and shrugged, giving the orc a warm smile, as if I wasn’t offended at all. “And I hear orc females of high station are clamoring for his attention. He hadn’t picked me for lack of other candidates.”

The orc’s face soured, his eyes turning to flint, but he gave me a polite nod and turned back to his plate. I sighed with relief, thankful for Oriana’s essence allowing me to bluff so effectively. If he had been able to smell my emotions, he would know at once I was scared like a deer in headlights.

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