Page 24 of Mountain Orc Daddy

It’s easy to believe that Uzul could get so anxious on a day like this. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, there is a lovely breeze, but it seems the whole city is outside enjoying it all. Someone like him, who has lived the life he has, could easily get overwhelmed by it all.

He just needs some time to decompress. We’ll stay in tonight, I can make him a special dinner. Hopefully by the morning he’ll feel better. There is still so much I want to show him.

My closest grocery store is not a long walk, so I could take advantage of the nice weather and I won’t be leaving Uzul alone for too long. Normally, that’s what I’d do. Still, I head towards my car.

I find myself really wanting to get back to him. We’ve spent so much time together recently. It feels weird to be alone right now. I’m not sure I like it. I want to speed through this trip and get back to him.

Just steps away from my car, a pair of hands reach out from behind and grab me. I’m immediately confronted with a man standing behind me with one hand over my mouth and a knife against my throat. Fuck.

“Now don’t make a sound,” the man says in a low gruff voice right into my ear. “Or I’ll slit your throat from ear to ear. Nod if you understand.”

I nod. Luckily, I just got my car washed and am able to get a good look at him in the reflection on the doors. Combat boots, a belt strapped full of knives and other weapons, and a duster jacket. This asshole is a bounty hunter.

The bounty hunter begins shuffling for something. I can hear him unclip something from his belt and a sharp point is pressed against my back. “That’s a crossbow, you won’t get far if you run. Start walking, and remember, stay quiet.”

I do as he says. I spend the majority of the walk mentally kicking myself. I can’t believe I let myself get caught, and with Uzul just inside. It’s been years since anyone I know has had to deal with one of these assholes.

I’ve done a pretty good job of shielding Uzul from these types of people since he came to town. We haven’t had any trouble. Most have come to terms with the existence of magic and supernatural beings. But every so often some asshole will pop up and cause trouble, and the bounty hunters are the worst of the worst.

The bounty hunter silently leads me into some nearby woods and we quickly end up outside a rundown shack. “Inside. There is a chair, sit down.”

Once again, I do as I’m told, but I haven’t given up. Growing up without magic, I’ve learned to be resourceful. I can still find a way out of this.

“You don’t have to do this.” My words fall on deaf ears. The bounty hunter doesn’t even react as he ties me to the chair. “I get it, magic can be scary. Once the Veil fell, everything changed so quickly. But-”

“I’m not letting you go, little lady.”

“I promise you, me and my family are not a threat to you-”

The bounty hunter simply scoffs and starts sharpening a knife. He had hardly even looked at me since we got here. He just keeps peeking out the window.

“Look… um… Whatever your name is, if you let me go right now, unharmed, I promise no one will come after you. My family will let it slide and you can return to wherever-”

“Lady, I don’t give a shit about your family! Why do you keep bringing them up? Just stay quiet.”

This guy doesn’t know who my family is? What type of bounty hunter is he? Maybe he just thinks I’m a standard witch. If that’s the case. I can bluff him.

“Untie me and let me leave, or I will be forced to use my magic on you.”

The bounty hunter stares at me for a moment before bursting into a fit of laughter. “If you had magic, you would’ve used it on me already.”

Alright, he’s smarter than he looks. But it was worth the try. The only problem is that I still don’t understand why he kidnapped me. He doesn’t know my family. He knows I don’t have magic. He doesn’t even seem like he plans to kill me. I guess I might as well ask.

“Why did you kidnap me?”

“They all have to go.” He shakes his head and looks out the window again.

“Who? Who has to go?”

“Who? The orcs!” Fuck, he’s after Uzul.

“The orcs?”

“Yeah,” he licks his lips with excitement. “Like your friend. They are a scourge on this earth. And they must be eliminated.”

“You can’t-”

“Oh but I can, little lady. I can and I will. When I’m done, the world will thank me. They will celebrate me and what I did to protect them all. They will all know that Gideon was the one who saved them from the vicious orcs.”

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