Summoning the Orc (The Kingverse Orcs #2)

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Becca

“There has to be someone who can help us,” I sobbed, gripping my hair in fists as I sat on the sofa of the apartment I used to share with Rok. Last night had been torture. Sleeping without him after falling in love with the feel of being in his arms was the worst experience of my life. “I need him,” I gasped, shaking my head.

Pen had her arms around me, stroking her hand down my back. “Tasia’s looking, Becks. And we’re never giving up on this. He’s going to come home. We just haven’t found the way yet. But we will ,” she assured me. But I wasn’t feeling the same level of hope that I had the day before.

“If he can’t come to me,” I said, sniffling and standing, clenching my fists at my side, “I’m going to him.”

It was a terrible plan. I’d come up with it after Tasia and I had visited every magical practitioner in the area. We’d been met with shrugs and doors closed in our faces.

Opening a portal was tricky and required vast amounts of magic. Not just anyone could perform the necessary spells, it seemed, and almost no one was willing to attempt it.

The last witch had waved us out of her home, crossing her fingers in a complicated gesture before spitting in front of us and saying, “The last witch who opened a portal on this plane was taken. Shoo.”

While I was getting used to the rejection, I knew that I hadn’t tried the library yet. There had to be a magical tome that could take me to him. I was sure of it. I just had to find it.

“That’s a terrible idea,” Pen insisted, shaking her head and turning to look at Dristan, who was seated in the armchair.

His eyebrow quirked as he considered. “Well, it isn’t the worst idea,” he drawled, but Pen rolled her eyes, turning back to me to take my hands in hers.

“Don’t listen to him. He’s an idiot,” she said, and Dristan grunted his disagreement from his seat

“I don’t think it’s a terrible idea to at least do the research—” he started arguing, when I felt the flutter of a breeze in the room. Canting my head to the side, I looked around, but there weren’t any windows open.

“Do you—” I started, but gaped as a swirling light started forming in the middle of the room. A swirling light that was so similar to the way Rok had appeared the first time that I gasped, hope filling me to the brim.

I took one shaky step forward, reaching my hand out to where I could see something starting to form. I skidded to a halt as I realized that the form was decidedly female and it was moving backward—ass-first. As the form solidified, I saw the curvaceous woman back out of the portal, her arms still outstretched inside.

“Oof,” the female grunted, turning as another form flew out of the portal, landing on his back next to her.

An orc.

I gasped, running closer, reaching out for only a second before yanking my arm back again.

Not my orc.

Another orc landed in a pile on top of the first one that had come through. I leaned forward, hope brimming inside me only to be dashed again. And then a third time when a third male orc landed onto the others.

It’s raining orcs, but none of them are mine.

“One… last…” the female was sounding out, her features strained as she kept the portal open with her hands.

One final orc flew through the portal before she pulled away, the portal slamming shut behind her. I stared at the final orc in shock.

Rok.

With a cry, I ran forward. He was on top of the pile, all three orcs under him making sounds of distress—and I could understand why. My male was huge . He was almost to my eye-level, being so high up, and I cupped his cheeks, but Rok didn’t respond.

“Holy shit,” Pen gasped, “he came back!”

“And he brought friends,” Dristan added in a grumpy voice.

“Hush,” Pen hissed at him, hurrying over to help the female as she stood, swaying on her feet. “Hi, let me help you sit.”

While she helped the female move to one of the sofas, the males under Rok eased him to the floor, getting to their feet. They looked around, shock in their gazes, but my eyes were fully focused on my mate.

“Rok, please wake up,” I whispered, cupping his cheeks. There was a singe mark on his chest and blood covered him. “I-Is he bleeding?” I gasped, and one of the males shook his head, kneeling next to me in front of Rok.

He spoke in Orcish, his voice shaking as he spoke to the female who’d brought my mate through the portal. Dristan’s brow furrowed as he translated. “He asked her to help heal him. They hit him with magic before they arrived and Rok protected them.”

The witch nodded, her brow furrowed as she moved from the sofa toward us, kneeling along with us. The male orc made room for her, ensuring she had space to work, but even while I told myself I needed to move, I couldn’t. My legs were unable to shuffle away from this male. This male who’d made a promise to me that he would return, and he had.

He’d been hurt protecting others, because that’s just the kind of male he was. There was no way I would survive losing him. Tears leaked down my face as I pressed my forehead against his.

“Yes,” Zara said, shocking me by speaking in Common and patting my back, “Keep him with us. You’re exactly what he needs right now. Call to him with your bond. It’s what brought us to you in the first place.”

I had no idea what she was talking about, but I tried to open all my senses—open myself up to the connection that was almost palpable between us. Behind me, near his chest, she murmured words that I didn’t understand.

The glow of her hands should have scared me, but the light was so warm and soothing that it did the opposite. I felt protected and hopeful.

“Please, Rok,” I whispered, tears dripping onto my male’s face. “Please come back to me.”

I thought I imagined it at first—the flutter of his long, gorgeous lashes. But I gasped and pulled away as his eyes opened. Their chocolate perfection was staring up at me, the small furrow between his brows telling me that he could see me.

“Am I dead?” he asked, his voice hoarse, his hands reaching out to cup my cheeks. “Or are you here?”

I gave a watery laugh, cradling his hands against my face. “I’m here. You made it back home. I missed you so much,” I told him, the tears not stopping.

“Don’t cry, my Becca,” he whispered, his big thumb sweeping over my tears and wiping them away with gentle touches. “I never want to see you cry.”

“These are happy tears,” I hiccupped. “I’m just so happy that you’re here. And safe.”

The sound of someone falling to the ground next to me jolted me away from our reunion. The witch had fallen to the floor.

“Oh no,” I gasped, reaching for her, but she waved me away with a tiny movement of her fingers.

“Give me a minute,” she said in a voice so low I almost didn’t understand her. “Recharging.”

I looked over at Pen whose eyes were huge in her face as she hovered next to her.

“Just need to sleep.” The witch yawned and Rok groaned as he sat up, wrapping his arms around me.

Perplexed, I cuddled against my male as the female fell asleep, emitting light snores. I looked up at the other three males who’d gathered around us. The tallest of them was prodding at the crystal chandelier above our heads, the burly male was looking out of the window in awe and the third was eyeing Dristan as if he was a threat. I turned back to Rok, my eyebrows almost to my hairline.

“We’re a bit of a ragtag team,” he said with a shrug and a wince. “But we made it out of there alive and that’s what matters.”

My expression transformed into a grin as I hugged him close, cradling my face against his neck. “Yes, that’s what matters,” I told him before wrinkling my nose. “But also, you’re covered in blood and need a bath.”

His rough chuckle soothed the last bit of worry inside of me.