Page 11 of Tryggred By the Orc

Hehesitated, grimacing and glancing around the still-chaotic room — but at least that terrifyingSkaaporc was no longer in sight, andEbendrew in a thick, shaky breath. “Ishall go,” he replied, as steadily as he could. “IhopeAlmashall soon — be found, and safe.”

Tryggrtwitched a nod, and that was distinct relief in his eyes.WantingEbenwell out of the way, clearly, andEbenfought to ignore the plunge in his belly as he took another breath, and shoved himself sideways.Lurchingback along the wall toward the exit — which suddenly seemed very far away — and his panic was already rattling higher, his eyes darting around at the utterchaos of this horrible room.Hecould only push himself through it, hope no one else would notice him, and…

Andthen something grasped his hand, warm and firm — and whenEbenstartled to look, it was onlyTryggragain, an apologetic smile on his mouth. “I’llwalk you out,Ka-esh,” he said. “Naughtto fear, ach?”

Ebencouldn’t deny the sudden sinking relief, heavily dropping his shoulders, even as more bitter, shameful misery churned in his belly.Tryggrhad seen his fear, and was now coddling him, condescending to him, as thoughEbenwere some helpless, useless weakling, apet, who couldn’t cross a room unattended.Andworst of all, it was true, andEbendesperately clung to that solid warm hand asTryggrbegan striding toward the door, drawingEbenswiftly along behind him.

ToEben’srelief, they reached the corridor without further incident, though the scent ofTryggr’surgency was now burning through the air — soEbensquared his shoulders, and withdrew his hand as quickly as he could. “Th-thank you,” he said. “Iwish you — all speed.”

Tryggrnodded, and flashedEbena brief, distracted smile — and then he spun around and away, disappearing back into the chaos of the room.WhileEbenjust stood there outside the door, blinking hard, as his stomach twisted with more sinking, staggering misery.Thishad been so, so pathetic.Sofoolish.Whathad he been thinking, to have ever imagined he could — well.Nevertrust aSkai.Neverlet one touch you, or get you alone…

Thesickening vision ofSkaapwas now churning with all the rest, the lingering scent of his breath still far too strong inEben’snose, and he forced his shaky feet to move, away.Away, away, as far as he could go, as deep as he could go, where noSkaiwould ever find him again.

10

Ebenended up bloody and bent-over in thedýflissa, gasping and shivering and begging for more.Offeringit up to any orc who wanted it, any orc who would fill him, flay him, force him to forget.

Andthough it was pain, and perhaps more humiliation,Ebencouldn’t stop.Couldn’tbear to be empty, to lose that raw, reassuring certainty of a strong, hard prick plunged deep inside him.Hewas safe, like this.Hewas already full, already in pain.Anddespite how it looked, how it felt, there was still the awareness, low and fundamental, that he was still in control.Ifhe wanted it to stop, it would, and everyKa-esh in the room would defend this, and hurl the offending orc out at once.Ebenstill held the power.Theright to do this, to be this, to be a foolish, weeping orc who could take a half-dozen loads, and keep begging for more.

“Mayhapyou ought to rest for a spell,Eben,” a breathlessGarethfinally said, once he’d emptied himself for the second time, and had begun gently licking at the fresh wounds onEben’sburning, aching back. “Theseare not healing as they should, ach?”

Eben’srebellion surged up before he could stop it, escaping in a low growl from his mouth — butGarethjust kept licking, kissing, even as his claws sank intoEben’ships.Knowingfull well thatEbenhad never been able to refuse that heady, perfect blend of pain and tenderness, andEbenwas already wilting beneath it, sagging weakly against the wall before him.Andperhaps finally feeling the true extent of that pain, blaring across his back, and still coiling deep and despairing in his belly.

Foolish.Nevertrust aSkai.

“Come, then,” cameGareth’slow, soothing voice, as he nudged something soft —Eben’sabandoned trousers — into his slack hand. “Restfor a spell, and come back tomorrow, if you yet need this relief.”

Ebencouldn’t find the will to argue, and he suddenly felt so, so tired, worn and ragged and aching all over.Andeven putting on his trousers was far too difficult, and he was distantly, fervently grateful forGareth’sfirm hand on his arm, holding him upright.AndonceEbenhad finally managed it,Garethpulled on his own trousers, passedEbenhis tunic — which he would otherwise have fully forgotten — and guided him toward the door.

Ebenwent without looking, without scenting, with only more deep, dragging gratefulness towardGareth, and a vague nattering dread of how much he would regret this tomorrow.Andit wasn’t until they were in the corridor that he suddenly scented — something.Somethingthat didn’t at all belong, andEben’sbreath drew in, his bleary eyes snapping open, and finding —

Tryggr.Tryggr, standing here in theKa-esh corridor, and staring at him.

Ebenfroze all over, alarm screeching through his chest —Skainever came here, he was supposed to be safe here.Andcurse him, he wasn’t wearing his tunic, and even ifTryggrhadn’tbeen able to scent the fresh blood and seed all overEben’stired, trembling body, he now had a full-on view of it, his eyes narrowing as they rapidly ran up and downEben’storso.Andthen shifting even darker as they darted towardGareth, who was still holdingEbenby the elbow.

“Whothe hell are you?”Tryggrsnapped atGareth, his voice sharper thanEbenhad yet heard it. “An’ where are you taking him?”

Ebenblinked, as more confused alarm juddered through his exhausted body, but beside him,Garethstayed solid and steady, without even a trace of fear in his scent. “IamGareth— or oft,Gary,” he replied mildly. “AndIam only taking him to his room.”

Tryggr’snarrow gaze snapped back toEben, as if wanting him to confirm the accuracy of this claim — and somehow,Ebennodded.Nodded, holding his wide eyes toTryggr’s, needing him to understand, to agree.Andhe was vaguely surprised to seeTryggr’seyes softening in return, his swallow bobbing in his throat.

“Ach,Isee,” he said thickly, as he ran a hand against his bound-back hair. “Didn’tmean to interrupt.I’llleave you be, then,Ka-esh, and find you another time.”

Hewas already backing away, about to leave, no, no — andEbenlurched forward, out ofGareth’sgrip. “Wait,” he croaked, as a hazy awareness finally whirled in his brain, becauseTryggrhad to have news, right? “IsAlmawell?Didthey bring her back?”

Tryggr’sgaze had again darted sideways, towardGareth— who was already backing toward thedýflissa, his hands upraised. “Onlycall if you need me, brother,” he said toEben, a little too smoothly. “Andsleep well, ach?”

Ebenrapidly nodded, and couldn’t help a grateful, genuine smile toward him, and a quick wave farewell.Butonce heturned back toTryggragain, he found him still looking decidedly unsettled, and frowning darkly at whereGarethhad gone.

“Isaught — amiss, then?”Ebencroaked, into the stilted silence, as the alarm shuddered back through his chest. “IsAlmalost?Orharmed?”

Tryggr’slean body twitched, his gaze snapping back toEben’sface — and again, brief but unmistakable, down to his bare, sweaty, bloody chest. “No, they found her,” he said, on a heavy exhale. “She’sback in the sickroom now, andBossis with her.He’sgonna make her an offer,Iken, to make sure she stays put, where we can keep an eye on her.Notsafe for her to be running about thus, ach?”

Ebencouldn’t even pretend to hide the surprise in his scent —Drafliwas now going to makeAlmaanoffer, to keep her here?Tokeep her safe, after all that?Butthere was again no trace of guile inTryggr’sscent, and it distantly occurred toEbenthat ifDraflitruly still wantedAlmadead, it would have been far easier to let her keep running, and then to stage some convenient accident afterwards… right?

Nevertrust aSkai, the voice was droning again, butTryggrwas still here, shifting on his feet, and thrusting something intoEben’sarms.SomethingEbenhadn’t even noticed him carrying, and when he blinked downwards, he found himself holding a small cloth sack, full of — freshfruit?

“An’ just — wanted to be sure you were — all good,”Tryggrsaid, with a grimace. “Didn’tfeel right, leaving you howIdid. ’Speciallyafter you went outta your way to help, and find me, even after that scumSkaap—”

---