Summoning the Orc (The Kingverse Orcs #2)

Chapter Thirty-Five

Rok

I peered over the stone wall, prodding at it to see how stable it was. It wasn’t too tall to scale, but if the witch was injured, it might be difficult to get her over it.

I spotted a warlock moving toward the building we needed to infiltrate and I ducked my head to avoid being seen. I looked back at Krusk, and saw him facing away from me, his axe up to protect me.

Pride swelled in my chest and I tapped his shoulder. He turned his gaze toward me for a moment before looking back toward the forest, letting me know he was listening.

“There’s one guard on the outside, but I’m expecting much more on the inside, if they’re trying to keep her in,” I whispered.

“The grand warlock is the one who’s trying to make her his bride,” Krusk responded in a low voice. “He carries a gold scepter. If you see him, avoid him. He might not be as strong as the witch, but he could send a mean hex your way”

“If he attacks us, then I’ll take him on. And if anything goes wrong, take your brothers and leave,” I warned him.

He shook his head, keeping his gaze trained on the area behind us. “No. I won’t leave you behind. Not after everything you’ve done for us. I’ll signal my brothers to leave, but I’ll fight with you,” he said, ignoring my order.

“If you don’t leave, pup, I’ll toss you over the wall and make you leave,” I told him with a growl.

His lip curled, but he didn’t respond. I rolled my eyes, knowing that the stubborn male would try to stay. We watched as the warlock who had entered the building holding the witch left, an empty tray in his hands glinting in the afternoon sunlight.

Meal time.

It would be the perfect distraction for us to get into the building. I gestured for Krusk to follow me, scaling the wall with ease and sinking into the grass to smother the sounds my steps would make. Krusk was louder behind me, but I knew that they still wouldn’t be able to hear him.

I wished I could stay and teach these males more—mentor them the way my father had mentored me—but I needed to return to my home. My mate.

Gritting my teeth at the pang that shot into my chest at the thought of her, I moved forward, low on my haunches, moving as quickly as I could without making a sound. When we arrived at the building, my back pressed against the wall and I motioned for Krusk to stay where he was.

I rounded the edge of the building, peeking out and spotting the guard. He was biting into an apple and I rolled my eyes. He wasn’t expecting an attack, and the way he’d leaned his sword against the wall told me he was unprepared.

I gestured behind me for Krusk to begin our plan and he tossed a pebble onto the stone floor in front of the building. The guard straightened and moved away from where he was lounging against the wall.

I gave an internal cheer as he moved without his sword, going to investigate the sound. He was facing away, leaning out to survey the area when I moved up behind him, lifting the back of my axe over his head. In one swift motion, I brought it down on the back of his head, and snatched the back of his shirt before he crumpled to the floor.

I dragged him to the back of the building. He gave a moan as I lowered him, laying him out so he didn’t make a loud noise when the bulk of him hit the ground. I gestured for Krusk to follow me to the door, and I opened it with care, ensuring that the handle didn’t make a noise.

Wincing as the door creaked open, I stepped inside, but there wasn’t anyone there in the entranceway. The corridor led to dozens of doors on either side and then into an open room. I lifted my head, taking a deep sniff and narrowed my eyes toward the open area. I stalked toward it, the scent of a terrified female strong in my nose.

I spotted three males in there as I got closer, standing in front of where the female was chained to a wall. I lifted my lip at their cowardice.

These aren’t males, these are monsters.

“If you give me a kiss, witch, I’ll give you a bite of this bread,” one of them cajoled in Magick—the language spoken by magic practitioners—and I grinned as she spat in his face. Orcs had grown up learning Magick so that we could do trade with the nearby warlocks, but that had all changed when they’d started attacking us and barring us from their lands. Learning the language was now for warriors who needed to spy on the enemy rather than for true communication. It helped that the warlocks thought we were too far beneath them to learn our own language. It gave us the upper hand.

“I’d rather starve than kiss your ugly face,” she barked.

My grin dropped when the male pulled his arm back and slapped her across her cheek. “Don’t worry, whore, you’ll be kissing us soon enough,” he laughed, taking a big bite of the bread himself.

“We should feed her, right?” One of the warlocks asked, tilting his head at her. “Isn’t she going to have to be healthy enough to be the vessel?”

“We’ll feed her once she’s pregnant,” the other one scoffed, nibbling on a piece of dried meat in his hand then taking a slug of the drink in the other hand before putting it down on the table nearby. A table that was covered in tools that Rok was certain they’d used for torture. Rusty pliers and blood-covered hammers.

“I can’t wait for Lord Veron to find the perfect time for the ritual.” The male with the dried meat gave a low moan as he stroked his finger down the female’s injured cheek.

Her lip curled as she pulled away from him, but he gripped her chin, tightening his hold until she gave a low whimper. “I want my turn with her,” he whispered.

“You’ll have to wait for some time, though. Until she has the child,” the other male, who was still stuffing his face with bread, said.

“But after that,” the idiot who still had his hands on the female said, “she’s all mine.”

“Ours,” the bread-eater argued, a chunk of spit-covered bread leaving his lips as he spoke.

“Yes, ours,” the cruel male leaned down to press his nose against the female’s neck. She whimpered again, fighting the chains holding her until they rattled wildly. “All ours.”

That was when I spotted the keys on his belt. With a plan in place, I advanced on the putrid males, my axe at the ready. They were so distracted with their deviance that I was upon them in seconds, my hand on the shoulder of the male whose face was still touching the female.

I yanked him away and he spun, dropping the meat he held in his hand.

“Hey!” he called, but his eyes went huge in his face and his jaw dropped when he saw me. “Orc?” he asked, as my fist plowed into his face.

Krusk had already advanced on the bread-eater and had shoved him into the wall next to the female. As he staggered to his feet, I rounded on the third male. He yanked his sword from his belt, squaring off against me and I palmed my axe.

“What the fuck do you want?” he spat. “As if you thieves haven’t stolen enough.”

“What would you call someone holding a female against her will, then?” I barked, my axe hitting his sword. He held on, straining under the force of the blow.

A loud cry sounded from behind me as I felt something smash into me. I cursed, the pain exploding behind my head, but I kept my grip on my axe, my arm shaking as I stayed upright. Turning to glare behind me, I saw another warlock standing there—stunned that I hadn’t fallen to the floor after he hit me with the solid wooden chair. It lay in broken pieces around me.

I sneered, pushing down on the sword of the male I was still fighting. He gave a whimper of pain as his arms gave way, his sword falling with a clatter to the floor. I lifted my axe before dropping it again and with one clean cut, his head left his body.

I turned back to the other male, blood dripping down my axe and splashed on the side of my face. He swallowed, backing away with his hands up. His gaze darted and he dove for his dead companion’s sword. The small, quick fool was back on his feet before I knew it.

“That female is our leader’s bride,” he yelled as he pulled back and slashed at me. He was clumsy and I dodged it with ease, but I hadn’t noticed the first male that I’d attacked rising from the floor. He stabbed at my side and I grunted, turning to glare at him, backing away so I had them both in my sights.

Krusk was faced off against the last male, the clash of his axe against sword telling me he was holding his own. Both warlocks charged for me at the same time, swords at the ready and I gripped one male’s arm, holding it over his head while I slammed my axe against the other’s sword.

He gasped, his sword dropping from the blow and he gripped his wrist. The male I was holding wriggled away and jammed his sword into the same spot I’d been hit before. I gasped with pain, gripping the sword in my hand, turning to face him.

His eyes widened with shock as my hand dripped with blood, but I was able to wrest the sword from him. It fell with a clatter of steel from my hand as I pulled him closer and slammed my skull into his.

His body went limp in my hand and I grabbed the other male, who was still gripping his broken wrist. I lifted him with ease, barely stopping myself from bellowing my fury and I slammed him head-first into the wall next to the female.

She was gaping at us the entire time, but when she saw Krusk, she gasped his name, the hopeful sound telling me that she wouldn’t fight us. I snatched at the keys on the male’s belt, moving toward her as I heard a final clash of steel and then a low groan of pain from the last human male.

I moved to the female, and she froze as I freed her before I moved back and held my hands up to show her I wasn’t a threat. She was a pretty female—although nowhere near as pretty as my mate—with brown skin that had warm orange undertones and light brown eyes. She massaged her wrists and stepped toward Krusk, keeping her gaze on me.

When Krusk moved toward her as well, she threw her arms around him. “I can’t believe you came for me,” she said, but her words were stilted somehow. Almost an echo of her voice.

I tilted my head at her, curious, but I also knew we had to get her away as soon as possible. “Let’s leave. Now,” I said, moving with haste back toward the front door. I heard them following me, the drag of her skirt on the stone making her position easy to follow.

I opened the door, holding my hand behind me to tell them to stop moving. When I didn’t hear any movements around us and I didn’t scent anyone coming our way, I stepped outside, gesturing for Krusk and the witch to go ahead of me. I moved backward, allowing them to run ahead of me to escape. If anyone came after us, I’d meet them with my axe first.

The guard behind the building gave a low groan, stirring, so I dropped the end of my axe on his head once more and he was unconscious again. We made it to the wall without being spotted. Krusk gave a low whistle and it was echoed on the other side. He lifted the female and helped her scale the wall. She jumped, the low sound of impact telling me that one of Krusk’s brothers had caught her on the other side.

It was our turn to follow and we did, easing our way over the wall. When we were on the other side, I gestured toward the forest. We needed to hurry before anyone realized what had happened. As soon as they did, they would be coming after us.

I pressed my finger to my lips and then gestured for them to run ahead of me. They did, the female lifting her skirt and racing after them. I faced the wall, hurrying backward, having scouted the path and knowing that nothing could trip me until we hit the tree line.

When we were there, I raced after them, dried twigs and fallen branches crunching under my steps, but I knew that no one could hear us now. With a satisfied grin, I caught up with them within a minute.

The female was struggling, I could see that, but we needed to continue to get away from them. She held her hand out, stopping to bend over at the waist, heaving in breaths and waving her hand in the air.

“Wh-where are we g-going?” she gasped, looking between us.

Her voice still echoed with that strange note and I spoke first. “You’re going to open a portal so I can return to my mate,” I told her and she turned on me with wide eyes.

The other three males tilted their head at me and I realized that I’d spoken in Common.

How strange.

I parted my lips to try again, but the female asked in perfect Common, “Do you speak Common?”

“I took a potion,” I replied, my brow furrowed. “It’s the language of my mate’s people. On the plane she’s from.”

Her eyes widened with wonder, and she gripped my forearm, her tiny palm barely spanning the front. I scowled, pulling away from her.

No female touches me but mine.

She lifted her hand away at once, her grin wide. “She’s from where I come from,” she gasped, giving a little hop of joy. “I thought I’d never find a way back after they summoned me here.”

She gave a whoop, spinning and grabbed Savla in a hug instead of me, which I was grateful for. “Now I can go home,” she squealed, spinning with him. He stood stock-still, letting himself be spun and he was looking at us as if he’d like to be rescued.

“You can take us back?” I asked, hope filling my chest. She stopped her celebration to give me a happy nod. The three males were looking between us, confused, not understanding what we were saying.

“Yeah, I can use your bond with your mate as the tether. I didn’t have one before,” she laughed. “This is perfect!”

I grinned, my voice hopeful. “Can you do it now? What do you need?”

She paused, nibbling on her thumbnail as she looked around her and shook her head. “No, damn it. I need my herbs to make the sacred protection circle. I don’t think I can find those here. We need to go back to my house,” she sighed before shaking her head. “But they know where that is. They’ll come find me.” Her brow furrowed and her hands clenched into fists. “I hate them so much.”

Focusing on the fact that she would be able to take me home, I asked, “Where’s your home?”

Her eyes went wide in her face and she shook her head, looking around. “Uh, I have no idea. I’ll be honest, I’m not great at navigating.”

I snorted out a laugh and asked Krusk, “Do you know where she lives?”

He nodded, his gaze swinging between us. “Did you know you were speaking in tongues?” he asked, his eyebrows high and both Savla and Enka nodded in agreement. We both huffed out laughs.

“I’m going home,” she said in that strange, echoey Orcish. “And I’ll take him with me.”

“We need to get her to her house,” I said, “and then she can take us there.”

“They’ll be coming,” Krusk warned and she nodded.

“That’s where they caught me, so it’ll be the first place they look.”

“Then we need to hurry,” I said, gesturing with my chin toward the female. Savla nodded, grabbing her and tossing her onto his back. She yelped, but she held onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck and securing herself against him before she pointed straight ahead.

“Onward!” He rolled his eyes and turned in the opposite direction before jogging away.

“I knew that,” the female announced—which was an obvious lie.