Summoning the Orc (The Kingverse Orcs #2)

Chapter Four

Becca

I blinked up at the arachne in front of me, swallowing hard as I considered her words. “I suppose,” I said, avoiding her gaze. “Everyone’s missing something or the other.”

Trixy nodded just as the doors swung upon again and we stepped out onto the seventh floor. The top floor. The only opening that had been available and one that was highly coveted.

The magical section.

A tingle fluttered down my spine and I caught a whiff of the same tantalizing scent that I’d smelled in my new apartment. Looking around, I frowned, wondering if I was losing my mind.

“I think you’ve already met Jun,” she told me, smiling as we walked toward the desk at the front where a red-plumed kinnara was typing away at a computer.

I nodded, because I had met the stern male during my interview and the impression I’d taken away from it was that he didn’t approve of me. Still, I stiffened my shoulders, pasted my best customer service smile on my face and followed behind Trixy.

“Hi Jun,” she called to the male and I watched as his magnificent red tail feathers twitched behind him. His upper torso was humanesque with the main difference being that his hair and eyelashes were all beautiful scarlet feathers instead of hair. His lower half was similar to an ostrich, and I again held in all the curious questions and impulses that occurred to me.

I really want to touch his wings, though.

“Trixy,” the male said with a nod in her direction before turning those judgmental eyes my way.

I should be focused. I knew that I should, but all I could do was be transfixed by his eyelashes, wishing I could get my magnifying glass from my bag so I could investigate exactly how those tiny feathers looked. “I see you’ve brought my replacement,” he continued, his voice crisp.

She nodded, gesturing toward me with a graceful sweep of her arm. “Yes. This is Becca. She’ll be training with you for the next two weeks if that’s alright. I was hoping you could give her the tour today and then start with the hand-over that we discussed,” she said, her voice becoming more professional than I’d heard before.

I wondered if she and Jun didn’t get along, but I pushed the thought aside as I focused on the curl of the male’s lip.

Oh, he’s just going to be a ton of happy-happy-joy-joy.

“I can’t wait to get started,” I told him, hoping that my enthusiasm could soften him.

“I’m sure that’s true. I’ve seen the library you’re coming from,” he snarked, his lips pressed together in a tight, flat line.

Nice. Starting with the dick behavior.

“Yes, very different. Much smaller,” I agreed, striving to not let him tamp down the happiness I was feeling at being here.

I’m not going to let one asshole ruin my experience.

He made a small sound in the back of his throat and swept his gaze over me from head to toe. From the way his lip curled I could tell that he found me wanting. I was aware that I wasn’t the most conventional person. Not everyone would choose the bright jewel tones that I preferred over the muted ones that made me look skinnier, but I was who I was.

I wilted under his gaze, wondering why I was letting one judgmental asshole decide that I wasn’t conforming to what he expected so I wasn’t worthy, but I couldn’t stop it. I’d never had the kind of self-esteem that could withstand that level of judgment. Being an orphan had made me become a people-pleaser in many ways and I was only just starting to break out of the cycle.

“I can’t wait to get to know you better, Becca,” Trixy told me, reaching out to give my shoulder a squeeze and I gave her a queasy smile in response, grateful for her.

She sent a withering glare in Jun’s direction, but he didn’t seem affected. Instead, he stood from the desk, gesturing for me to follow him as Trixy left, giving me a little wave as she did.

“This is the most protected space in the library,” he announced in a self-important voice. “And should be treated as such. Each of our books is specially curated and categorized to ensure that the only ones who can access them are those beings who can handle what’s inside.”

We were heading toward the shelves and I felt my anticipation and excitement coming back full-force. This was why I wanted to be here. The gorgeous tomes just brimming with ancient, protected knowledge.

Unlike all the other floors, these books weren’t kept in the main part of the floor, but toward the back, protected behind a secured door. I’d been told about it, but seeing it in person was very different.

Stepping up to the door, I watched with fascination as the male used his nametag to swipe against the sensor on the right. The lock snicked and he turned the handle to open it, allowing me inside first.

I nodded with gratitude and walked inside, my eyes widening at the massive rows of shelves in front of me. The scent of magic and books almost overwhelmed me.

Someone pinch me.

The door closed behind us and Jun walked forward, gesturing with one hand toward the books. “This is it. Our entire collection.”

I released a whimper, and he rolled his eyes, but I couldn’t be bothered with him. Not now. I stumbled forward, my hand brushing against the edges of the shelves as I stared with longing at each title.

“Yes, I’m sure it’s overwhelming for you,” Jun huffed out in that condescending tone that was grating on me. “But let’s try to keep it together until the end of the tour, please.”

He began walking down the aisles, reciting the history of the collection, but I already knew everything about it. This collection had been my private obsession since the day I discovered it existed. We made our way through each section and I took detailed notes of requirements for each book along with some of the protection spells that were required to be renewed and their dates.

Hours had passed when I felt that odd breeze wafting across my face again and my head turned sharply in the direction it was coming from. A book stood open on a stand, the pages blowing, but all of the windows were closed. I peeked up at the ceiling, but there weren’t any vents.

I turned to where Jun was talking to himself, gesturing toward the shelves and I tiptoed toward the book. The scent was much stronger here and I closed my eyes, inhaling for a hit of the intoxicating aroma.

They should bottle this and sell it.

The book itself was unremarkable. It looked like every other leather-bound tome in the room, but I knew it was special when the pages stopped turning and settled on one in particular. I tilted my head, moving to stand in front of it, sidling away from where Jun hadn’t noticed I’d stopped following him.

I ran my fingers over the edges of the stand, the scent so strong now it filled my head with all sorts of thoughts. Wicked thoughts. Filthy thoughts. The kind you only get late at night when you should be wrapped around a male. I gripped the edges of the stand, staring down at the pages the book had opened to.

I stroked my fingers over the pages, awed as I realized that they were warm .

How odd.

My lips moved with the words on the page before I could stop myself. I heard noises in the background. A strange chanting that couldn’t be something happening in my reality, but everything seemed soft and fuzzy around me as I continued reading what was on the pages.

I didn’t even know how I could be reading it. It wasn’t in any language that I knew or understood. Yet I was stuck here, almost in a trance, as I finished it.

“W-wait!” Jun called, his voice filled with horror, but I couldn’t look away from the pages of the book, my lips still moving even though I couldn’t hear myself speaking. When the words were done, the chanting stopped and there was a sudden silence all around me.

What the hell just happened?

Jun hurried over, pulling me away from the book. “Didn’t you read the welcome pamphlet?” he squawked and heat rushed to my face.

“I browsed it,” I defended, biting my lip. “Why?”

“Browsed it! No,” he gasped, backing away from me and the book. All around us, the room started rumbling, a loud clatter of shelves all around, a wind picking up and swirling on the floor, taking the pages of the book with it. It fluttered madly, a bright, spinning purple light circling around it.

“This is why!” Jun wailed. “That’s a summoning tome! You can’t just read out of it, you nitwit! All manner of nasty creatures come out of these books. That’s why there’s a rule!”

I was too busy staring in awe at the light show happening above the book, the room taking on a shimmering quality as the pages continued to flutter like mad in front of me.

“Summoning?” I asked when his words finally penetrated my mind. “Wait, what’s going to come out?”

“Who knows!” Jun shouted, moving away from me and the tome. “Demon? Dragon? Succubus? Could be anything.” He tossed the keycard to the ground at my feet. “Don’t forget to lock up!”

“What? You’re not going to help me?” I asked, stepping away from the book, wondering if I should be planning my exit strategy as well, fear thrumming through me.

“Rule number two,” he scoffed. “If you summon it, you return it. Good luck.”

Out of the shimmering lights above the book, I spotted a form manifesting. I squinted, struggling to see it clearly, and I reached back, grabbing Jun’s hand to keep him there.

“Please, I don’t know what it is!” I told him. He squawked, trying to pull away from me, but I clung to him. When the outline was formed, I narrowed my eyes. “I think… It looks like an orc.”

Relief swept through me and I only just stopped myself from rolling my eyes. Had he been scaring me for nothing?

The orc became clearer and my jaw dropped in shock. He didn’t look like a typical orc that I knew. He was much bigger than any I’d ever seen before, his hair loose and flowing down his back in a cascade of dark silk. His chest was bare except for leather straps creating an “X”, leading to a metal plate over the center of his chest, protecting his heart, and then I saw a huge axe peeking over his shoulder where it was secured on his back along with a leather satchel.

He had swirling tattoos across his chest and bulging arms, more leather straps wrapping around his huge bicep and then down his forearms. He wore leather pants and as he became clearer, I had to look away, because those pants did nothing to hide what made this male a male . His brow was furrowed and his expression was fierce as he became fully formed. My heart was pounding, and I lost my breath at the sight of him. His gaze swung around before landing on me.

His eyes went wide with shock, just as something inside me tugged with a sharp pang of pain. I gasped, my hand going to my chest, the ache of longing so painful, my head spun. I watched the male’s hand go to his chest as well, clinging to the metal plate. His intense, dark brown eyes narrowed on me, a chuff of breath leaving him before he saw Jun behind me, my hand connected to the birdman’s.

His head tipped back as a roar left him and I released Jun’s hand, covering my face and dropping low, cowering in terror at the loud noise. I heard Jun scramble away, releasing a loud screech, the sharp nails of his talons clacking against the floor as he ran. The thunderous sound of the orc chasing him sounded in my ears and I whimpered, hiding behind my arms.

After a few moments, I uncovered my eyes, wondering if I was dreaming. Instead, I saw a clump of red feathers in front of my face. Confused, I pulled away, landing on my ass.

It’s him.

The orc was in front of me, squatted low so he was at my level, his curious chocolatey eyes focused on me in a way that no one ever had before. He chuffed out a breath, offering me the fistful of red feathers again and my eyes widened as I realized where they’d come from.

Jun’s tail.

Oh my Gods, this male had plucked the feathers from Jun and was now giving them to me.

What. The. Fuck.