“No, Natt!” Ella choked again, and suddenly she was upon him, her hands grasping desperate for his face, drawing it toward her. Finding the truth in his glittering eyes, truth and rage and death —
“You can’t,” she gasped, over the thunder of her shouting heartbeat. “Youcan’t.”
“You shallnotprotect him, woman,” Natt barked back at her, all roaring shaking fury. “You aremine. And you shall takejoyin his death with me!”
There was a pathetic-sounding whimper from Alfred beneath them, but Ella ignored it, and held her wildly trembling hands to Natt’s face, held her eyes to his — and nodded. Again, again, again.
“Yes,” she choked. “Yes, I should take great joy in this with you. But youcan’t, Natt. You’re finally the Speaker. Youneedto be the Speaker. You’ve given so much for this. You can’t just throw that away, and give these horrible men all the grounds they need to start a war. Youcan’t.”
The rage stuttered in Natt’s eyes, but there was a hard, vicious shake of his head, a choked noise from his mouth. “This foul man sought to steal you, and force you, andconfineyou,” he hissed back. “You are owed vengeance. You are owed his suffering, and hishead. You are owed afeastof his fresh blood!”
They were shocking, vicious words, from this shocking vicious orc. Not only for their violence, but also because — Ella’s breath choked — they were Natt throwing awayeverything. His brothers, his place as Speaker, everything he’d worked for all these years — for Ella’s vengeance.
Giving up everything, forher.
But Ella’s hands were still firm on Natt’s face, her eyes still true on his soul. “Yes,” she breathed, “I know, Natt, and it’s so lovely of you to offer me such generous gifts — but you’re the Speaker. You’remySpeaker. I need you. I can’t lose you to a war, for this foulscumwho pretends at being a lord.Please, Natt.”
It was truth, bare and pure and powerful — and Ella could see it finally sinking home, striking behind those eyes. You’re the Speaker. You’remySpeaker.
“I need you, Natt,” she choked. “Your brothers need you. Yoursonsneed you.Please.”
Natt blinked, once, and again — and suddenly, Ella knew he was here. He’d heard her. He saw her. He knew.
Heunderstood.
His answering nod was pained, bitter, reluctant — but it wasthere. Here, and the relief was alive, catching and sparking and flaring with light. So powerful that Ella nearly staggered with it, and she flung her arms around Natt’s stiff neck, and dragged him close.
“Thank you,” she breathed, into the delicious warm scent of him. “My wise, generous Speaker. Iloveyou.”
She could feel his rigid form finally beginning to soften against her, his head bending to her neck — when all around them, suddenly, there was noise and movement and shouting. And when Ella blinked up to look, there was — Natt’sguard. Yes, Dammarr and Varinn and Thrak and Thrain, all charging out of the trees at once. Coming to circle close around Natt and Ella and Alfred on the muddy earth, swords drawn, throats growling, black eyes glaring toward Alfred below them.
And behind them, somehow, there was also — Grimarr. Looking huge and deadly and terrifying, with Baldr and Drafli at each side of him, claws and teeth bared. And then, unbelievably, there was Jule, popping up from behind Grimarr’s shoulder — from where she’d been riding on hisback? — and giving Ella a friendly, cheerful wave.
Beneath Natt, Alfred had begun kicking and flailing and cursing again, but the rest of his men had been backed together by a band of even more orcs. Including Simon and Silfast, both massive and deadly-looking, with Stella close behind Silfast, and John, though he seemed to be entirely unarmed. And there was even Timo, who was still nearly as tall as the men, and brandishing a scimitar toward Byrne with surprising fierceness.
But there had seemed to be no actual bloodshed, yet, and every eye seemed suddenly focused on Natt, and Ella, and Alfred. On where Alfred was still writhing and shouting beneath Natt, as if all the commotion had returned his courage again. As if he knew, now that all these witnesses were here, that the danger was past, and he was safe again. A lord. Untouchable.
“How dare you try to murder me, you disgustingbrute,” Alfred spat at Natt’s face. “You are going toregretthis. Now” — he frantically waved toward the cluster of his cornered men — “get over here, Byrne! Help me! And gether!”
But Alfred’s men didn’t move — they were outnumbered by the orcs at least two to one — and John had casually stepped away from the group of orcs, his black eyes steady on Natt. “In section two of our Treaty, article four,” he said, with astonishing calmness, “reasonable force may be applied to prevent a woman being kidnapped. If that helps.”
Alfred was shouting again, but Natt’s growl had been steadily rising too, and he swiftly thrust aside both the swords he’d still been holding. And then he also placed Ella away from him, up onto her feet in the mud, with a sharp look that meant, stay.
And then, in one smooth, blindingly quick movement, Natt’s huge bare fist snapped back — and then slammed down again, straight into Alfred’s face.
The punch landed with a sickening crunch, and Alfred’s replying howl seemed to shake the air — but his flailing body beneath Natt had sagged limp against the earth, and then, suddenly, there was silence. Blessed, twirling, hurtling silence, broken only by the sudden movement of one of the dogs, who had belatedly rushed over to Natt, and started wildly barking.
The other two dogs eagerly joined in, jumping and dancing around him, and to Ella’s vague surprise, Natt reached a tired-looking hand to pet one of them on the head. And then the other ones shoved in, clearly needing to be petted too, and Natt actually obliged, running a familiar, gentle hand over their furry wriggling bodies, using his claws to scratch close behind their floppy ears.
But then he smoothly rose to his feet, and turned. And it was like his eyes were again locked to Ella’s, and hers to his, and he was being drawn to her, and her to him. And suddenly Natt was here again,himselfagain, his strong arms clamping close and powerful around Ella, his face buried deep into her neck.
Ella was clinging to him too, her muddy legs and feet wrapped around his waist, her arms clinging tight to his back. And she was finally weeping, the tears streaking freely down her cheeks, while Natt’s body under hers shuddered too, his harsh breaths lurching thick and desperate against her neck.
“Ach, my lass,” he choked. “I am sorry I frightened you. I am sorry I harmed you and failed you. You shall never smell so vexed and afraid again, I swear this to you with my whole soul —“
He abruptly drew back, his huge clawed hands cupping her face, tilting it up with a twitchy reverence. Pleading with her wet eyes to meet his bright ones, to find his truth.
“I ought never to have used you as I did,” he said to her, with another shuddery shake of his hands. “I ought never to have hurt you, or harmed you, or put you in such danger, for my own gain. I oughtneverto have kept my truth from you, most of all after you so freely granted yours to me. I was cruel, lass. I waswrong.”
