Page 27 of X'nath

Greag snorted nearby, amused. "Come on, don't tell me you think you can do a better job than us." He turned to the others with a wink. "You all know we orcs are the best at everything."

Some of the women laughed, the tension in the air easing a little.

But it was Gracie who held my attention the most. She moved with purpose, directing the others where to go, keeping them focused. Her resolve was unshakable, and I admired that, even if she stubbornly refused to acknowledge it.

I straightened up and Yargol leapt off my shoulders. With a confident swagger, I made my way in her direction, my eyes never leaving her.

“You know,” I began, my voice lower, “you could always let us help. I’m sure we could make things a lot easier for you. Yargol’s been trained to retrieve things,” I leaned in, my grin widening. “You don’t have to do everything alone.”

She gave me a quick glance, her brow furrowing as she met my gaze. "Is that the name of your furry friend? I can take care of the human women just fine," she replied, her tone cool and firm. "We’ll be living together in a communal home. It’s how we’ll make it work."

Despite our brief time together, the constant closeness during our travels had gradually improved our understanding of each other's language, slowly breaking down the barrier that once separated us. It was another quality I found impressive about Gracie—how she grasped Orcish when it would slip from me. While I often found myself fumbling for words, she picked up on it with surprising ease, showing a sharp mind and an ability to adapt.

I stepped a little closer, my curiosity piqued at her decision to keep the women together. “Communal?” I murmured. “You’re a strong woman, Gracie. I can respect that. But even the strongest need help sometimes.”

Her gaze softened for a moment, but she didn’t let me off the hook. "We’ll manage," she said, her tone unwavering. "It’s best we do it ourselves. The others will be more comfortable that way."

Her rejection stung more than I’d expected, though it didn’t surprise me. Still, a part of me couldn’t help but admire the way she stood her ground. It was... alluring, in its own way.

“I’ll take your word for it,” I said, watching her with a raised eyebrow. “But just remember, Gracie, if you ever change your mind, you have one of the strongest orcs at your disposal.”

She gave me a sharp look, and for a second, I thought she might say something else—but then she turned back to the other women, her attention fully focused on them once again.

Vakgar’s booming voice interrupted the silence between us. “Come on, X’nath! We’ve got work to do! You can flirt later.” He laughed, clapping me on the shoulder with a heavy hand that nearly sent me stumbling. “Let the lady do her thing. Besides, we’ve got a few things to fix around here, and we don’t need you distracting everyone.”

I grinned at his interruption, but a part of me still felt a pull toward Gracie. Maybe it was because she had rejected me—maybe it was because I could see the fire in her that most others didn’t have. Whatever it was, I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to her than what she was letting on.

As the men moved off to help the others in the tribe, I hung back for a moment, watching Gracie and the women. Savage Claw Clan might be ready to offer their help, but it was clear the human women were going to need more time to truly trust us. And maybe, just maybe, the same could be said for Gracie.

She didn’t need me... yet. But one day, she would.

16

Fractures in the Silence

GRACIE

Weeks had passed since we’d arrived at the tribe’s home, and in that time, we’d begun to adapt, slowly but surely. The group—Kelly, Erin, Sophie, Salma, and I—had settled into some semblance of routine. We learned to make and eat the tribe’s food, which, to my surprise, wasn’t as hard to stomach as I first thought. The orcs had shown us how to cook with wild herbs, game meat, and grains I couldn’t even name, and while it was far from what I was used to, it filled our bellies. And even though there was a lack of electricity, the orcs had a surprising supply of candles. It was a strange sort of comfort in knowing we could survive here, that maybe this new life wasn’t entirely as bleak as I had feared.

But despite the relative peace, something was shifting. I could feel it in the way the other women moved, in the quiet tension that had started to settle in their eyes. We were becoming restless.

I didn’t know if it was the isolation of being surrounded by orcs, or if it was just human nature to want more, to desire connection in any form. But I could tell the women were starting to stir with thoughts I wasn’t entirely ready to face. I had kept a cautious distance from the men, mostly out of habit, but also out of wariness. We owed them so much already, and I didn’t want to add to the weight of that debt by getting too close.

"Gracie," Kelly said one morning, as we sat by the fire. "Why do you keep pushing us away from them? These men… they’re not like the ones who enslaved us. You know that. They’ve proven that."

I glanced up at her, feeling my heart race at the idea she was planting. We’d been together for weeks now, and though we had our own little ways of coping, I knew the urge to connect—to find comfort in something familiar—was growing among the women.

"They’re still orcs, Kelly," I said softly, keeping my voice steady. "I’m not saying they’re evil, but we can’t forget what they are. What they could do if we aren’t careful. Why else would a group of males come looking for females?"

Kelly frowned, shaking her head. "Gracie, you’re being stubborn. These orcs aren’t like the men on the ship. They’re protecting us. They’re offering us safety. Don’t let our past trauma cloud a possible future."

I bit my lip, glancing over at Salma and Erin. They hadn’t said much, but I could see the hesitation in their eyes, the uncertainty that mirrored my own. It didn’t feel like I was using my trauma to hold us back. After all, it wasn’t justmypast—it was all of ours. How could they so easily push past it, as if it hadn’t been that long ago?

"She’s right," Erin said, looking over at me with a cautious expression. "The way they’ve treated us so far… I don’t think they’re planning to harm us. I mean, look at how they’ve been with us. How they’ve taught us things."

Sophie, who had been quiet up until this point, looked at the ground for a long moment before speaking up, her voice surprisingly firm. "I’m going to give it a chance," she said, startling us all. "I’m going to accept Greag’s flirtations. He’s been kind to me, and I’m not going to shut that down just because we’ve had a rough past. He’s proven to be a great protector… and I want to feel protected. I want his protection and safety."

I stared at her, not sure if I should be angry, confused, or simply disappointed. Sophie, though she stood up to me when we were first rescued, became one of the more cautious ones after the swamp ordeal. But now, she was openly admitting that she might entertain the idea of getting closer to one of them… in an intimate way. Greag, of all people—the one who had taken charge, barking orders and often coming across as too serious.

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