Page 44 of Guarded By the Orc

What the fuck is that?

I saw a rounded face and fur.

Fucking hell, is that a mountain lion? Do we have mountain lions here?

I tried to recall every wildlife fact I knew, but I was coming up blank. I inched closer to Zara, baring my fangs at it. It wouldn’t attack a group of orcs, but she was small enough that it might take a chance at her.

The eyes didn’t blink as we passed, and I huffed out another relieved breath, scanning as we went. After what seemed like an eternity, but was probably less than an hour of picking our way through the forest, we made it to another clearing.

This time, as I looked around, all of the trees looked the same. Like an exact replica of each other, down to the last leaf. Blinking, I rubbed my eyes to make sure I was seeing it properly. The other males were having the same problem, looking around with curiosity, but Zara had stopped walking, her fingers tightening around my hand in warning.

I looked down at her and she gave me an earnest expression with a small shake of her head. I nodded, not sure what she was trying to tell me, but understanding I wasn’t supposed to speak. The male appeared in front of us with a suddenness I wasn’t ready for. I started, but Zara’s fingers squeezed mine again, warning me not to move or say anything.

The male was shorter than Zara by almost a foot, his skin a deep, rich brown with a thick layer of dark fur covering his lower body. His curly hair was twisted into long locs that fell around his face with horns curving behind his head. He had a horn hanging from a chain around his neck, making me wonder what he used it for. His hair and his full beard held a scattering of leaves. His dark eyes were watchful and suspicious, taking us all in. I took one glance down to see his hooven feet, before lookingaway, hoping I hadn’t fucked up everything royally because of my curiosity.

Zara bowed low, and I did the same, gesturing for the males behind me to follow in kind.

“Bonjour, vieux Papa,” she said in a soft, gentle voice. The rest of us stayed utterly silent, remembering her instructions.

“What brings you here, child?” he asked, his voice a rasp of sound that resonated through the forest, yet was somehow barely audible.

“I’ve come to ask for a favor, vieux Papa,” she answered, keeping her head bowed.

“Raise yourself and let me look at you,” he responded, and she did. I kept my head low, not sure if he meant us, but a small, gruff, “You four as well,” made me lift my head.

I kept my gaze focused on his face and prayed the other males would as well.

He wasn’t looking at me though, his entire focus was on my female and something bristled inside me at that. His gaze cut to me for a second, his lip quirking as if he’d read my mind and was amused by it, before he looked at Zara once more.

“You look like your mother,” he told her, another, gentler smile playing on his lips. “She was kind to the forest. I liked her.”

I watched as tears gathered in Zara’s eyes, but she swiped them away. “Thank you for that. I loved her so much.”

He made a low sound of agreement. “Youstilllove her. She’s not gone yet. She’s protecting you. She’s asked me to help you. Something I don’t do often. The forest needs my help. Quarrels on the outside have nothing to do with me, you understand,” he told her.

“I understand,” she whispered, wiping another tear away.

It was killing me that I had to stay still and I wasn’t able to hold her in my arms.

“But the one who took you,” Papa Bois growled, his voice lowand menacing. “He’s an aberration. He knows the power of this grove and he would use it to bring harm to the creatures I protect.”

“Yes, vieux Papa,” Zara whispered, bowing her head again.

“That can’t happen,” the male said, turning from us and moving further into the forest. “Like your mother, you’ve passed my tests. And while you’ve brought these males with you, they’ve followed your lead, which makes me think they have at leastsomesense in them.” His gaze cut to mine and I had a feeling that he was making me the butt of his own personal joke. I wasn’t offended. I knew that most orc males had a bad rap when it came to hunting and destroying.

His eyes narrowed on me and he gave a small nod as he waved his hand and the grove around us changed. It transformed into a circle of trees with light wood, small leaves and bright red berries.

I didn’t spin in a circle the way I wanted to, focusing on my mate instead and ensuring that she was safe, but I hadsomany questions to ask once we were out of there.

CHAPTER 23

Zara

Istared in awe as the rowan trees replaced the illusion in front of us. This was The Grove that my mother had spoken about with such awe in her voice. They were the ancient rowans that protected the forest and creatures in it.

They had a life of their own and were said to be able to come alive when they needed to. Swallowing hard, I struggled to hide the tears that kept filling my eyes.

I needed to be focused, and I had to keep my wits about me. Papa Bois wasn’t one to provide these types of gifts to just anyone. Even being allowed to enter The Sacred Grove was unheard of. Yet here we were, and I struggled not to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.

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