Page 70 of Of Nine So Bold

His buddy’s sound of agreement made my rage burn hotter.

Yanking her closer, the henchman sneered. “Who says anything’ll be left over?” He took up a tangled strand of her hair with his free hand and sniffed it.

She whimpered.

Aghast, I looked around the cavern. None of the other giants were moving to intervene. Most were turning away like they were pretending they didn’t notice what was going on. Brock hadn’t looked up again, and even Ignatius only grimaced regretfully, as if the old giant couldn’t do a damn thing and he knew it.

Seated by a fire, Duke Ensid merely glanced at his son and his henchmen before calmly starting in on a second bread roll.

This was madness. How could they just?—

“Now…” Norbert took the woman’s chin, forcing her face toward his. “You want the brat to eat or don’t you?”

My blood boiled. “Stop!”

The bastard paused, but only to turn an incredulous look on me. “You got something to say, human?”

My heart raced. I was outmatched and definitely outsized, and there was no way in hell I wouldn’t get crushed in a fight between me and the enormous giant. They still didn’t know I was Erenlian—Ignatius insisted on keeping my identity as a dwarf a secret—but even that wouldn’t have changed my odds.

Basically, this was suicide, and a guarantee that I would never see my treluria again.

But I couldn’t just sit here and donothing.

I tugged my arm free of Ignatius’s grasp. “Let her go.”

“What, you want a piece of her too?” Norbert chuckled. “Her cunt might be a bit big for a tiny human cock like yours.”

My fingers curled into fists. “She’s aperson, not an object. You shouldn’t treat her like this.”

The giant’s brow rose. He glanced around at his buddies as if silently asking them if they heard me too. When they scoffed, his grin returned. “You hearing this, Brock?”

Brock looked up from his meal, regarding Norbert for a heartbeat before turning a flat, cold expression on me. “Humans don’t get a say in how things are run down here.”

“Anydecentbeing should have a say against this,” I countered.

Norbert snarled. “Wait, are youinsultingus, pipsqueak? Didn’t you hear what I told my friend Nadine?” Thrusting the woman away from him, he ignored how she stumbled as he stalked across the cavern. “I represent the king, and disrespecting the king—” he grinned cruelly, “—is punishable by death.”

Behind me, Ignatius muttered something in a language I didn’t know. But the tone definitely said, “Oh shit.”

Norbert’s massive hand took my arm, pulling me up to my tiptoes.

“Theywantus to kill him, Norbert,” Ignatius cautioned.

“Shut up, old man.” Norbert hauled me closer. “You think you know how to keep order in this place?”

A hand caught his arm. I looked past him to Brock.

“Your father says give it a second,” he said flatly. “Humans are coming.”

“Yeah, well, how about we let them see us crush their little spy, eh?” His grip tightened, grinding my muscles against bone. “Show ‘em they don’t have the strength to survive like we do.”

Brock scowled. He didn’t let go of Norbert, but he didn’t say anything else either.

Trembling, I drew myself up as best I could. “This isn’t strength. A good leader takes care of the people under them. They make sure the youngest and weakest have what they need so that thesoulsof their people survive, not just their bodies.” Rage shivered through my voice. “And they don’trapeinnocent women.”

Norbert scoffed. “Oh, please. The bitch is asking for it.”

Brock’s jaw muscles jumped.

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