It was a fair point, Rosa rather felt, but John’s answering snarl was immediate, surprisingly vehement. “You have risked our entiretreaty, Simon,” he hissed. “Leave it to a Skai to throw awayyearsof work and planning, so you could enjoy an aimless and reckless brawl withbandits!”
“They attack first,” Simon said stubbornly. “And I no kill.”
John’s bark was sheer frustration, his hand yanking against his hair. “Only because I have six medics out there fighting to keep them alive!” he shouted. “Do you not know how much this shall cost us? Do you not know what tales these men shall tell, when they run back to Preia to report to their war-hungry masters?!”
To Preia. To Lord Kaspar’s home. His fatherDuke Warmisham’s home.
And wait, those men had truly come fromPreia? And they were lurking around Orc Mountain, lying in wait for whatever hapless orcs they might find? This couldn’t be a thing that was actuallyhappeninghere, could it? Especially if it was themenbreaking their own treaty?
“Menbreak treaty,” Simon rumbled back, in an unnerving echo of Rosa’s own thoughts. “Men attack eight lone orcs this moon. Eyarl almostkilled, two nights past. Now, men have fear. Men no attack again. Weaker orcssafe.”
He waved his huge hand at John, as if to suggest that John was one of these weaker orcs — a sentiment John clearly disagreed with, his entire body thrumming with anger. “And this plan was made with care, with all five clans, was it? With those who now must address the fallout from your deeds? Or, mayhap” — his lip curled — “you sought leave from the captain to do this?”
As he spoke, he shot an angry glance over his shoulder, to where two more people were striding into the room. One of them was Jule, flashing Rosa a tired-looking smile — and behind her was yet another massive orc. Not quite as big as this Simon, but still shockingly large, with huge sloped shoulders, and a grim, scarred face.
“Simon did not seek leave from me,” the new orc said to John, his powerful voice heavily tinged with danger. “But neither have you gained leave to condemn him in my place, brother.”
John betrayed a very faint wince, a dark glance toward Simon. “And shallyounow condemn him, Captain?” he asked coldly. “Shall you keep from him the help and the tools his clan needs to do their work? Shall you set upon him the same checks you set upon me?”
This captain strode across the room toward them, reaching a huge hand to clap against John’s shoulder. “We have spoken of this at length, brother,” he said firmly. “When it comes to women, we must tread with great care. Ach, new Ka-esh woman?”
His dark eyes settled upon Rosa’s as he spoke, his mouth drawing into something that might have been intended as a smile, but still made Rosa flinch, all the same. And behind this new orc, thankfully, Jule stalked over too, and gave an exasperated roll of her eyes as she drew him back to a slightly less intimidating distance away.
“Didn’t I tell you, Rosa, manners are a lost cause around here,” she said. “Rosa, this is my mate Grimarr, of Clan Ash-Kai, the orcs’ captain.Right, Grimarr?”
“Ach, ach,” said this Grimarr, with a sideways glance at Jule that seemed almost affectionate, or amused. “We welcome you to our mountain, new woman. Now, brother” — his gaze slid to John — “shall it please you to stay and gloat, whilst I condemn Simon for what he has done? Or shall your time be better spent caring for your new woman, and seeking means to help us through this?”
He wascriticizingJohn, Rosa realized, when John had already been working on this situation for what felt likehours— and John visibly stiffened, his face blanching, his mouth thin and tight. “I shall go,” he said, very smoothly. “But first I wish to see Efterar, for a short time, when he is free.”
Efterar’s head snapped to look at John, his eyebrows rising — and after a brief exchange with Simon, he strode over toward them. And at John’s clipped request, Rosa soon found herself the subject of yet another examination, while John silently stood and watched, his arms crossed, his eyes still glinting with anger.
“You’re doing better, Rosa,” Efterar said to her, once he’d carefully rested his hands first to her head, and then down to her belly. “But you’re still severely underfed, and fatigued. After this, you should get plenty of rest, eat at least three times a day, get regular sun and activity, and drink as much of John’s seed as you can. You’ll want more fresh seed in your womb, too, especially if you’ve come around on the son, because this is” — he frowned down at Rosa’s waist — “two days old, now?”
Wait, what? Rosa’s severely overwhelmed brain was struggling to follow this, and she drew up her tattered thoughts, made herself speak. “Um, what does that have to do with anything? Not that I don’t want — I mean — I’m not alreadypregnant, am I?!”
She shot John a chagrined, fearful look, but he only kept glaring at Efterar, who in turn was still intently focused on Rosa’s belly. “No, not yet,” Efterar replied vaguely. “But fresh seed makes a stronger son, and helps ready a woman for his growth and birthing. Just ask John, he and hismedicsclaim to be the experts around here.”
The wordmedicswas spoken with unmistakable scorn, and Rosa wasn’t surprised when John growled back, low and harsh in his throat. “And thus I and mymedicsknow, Ash-Kai, when you do not,” he snapped, “that this woman is too small to birth an orc-son. As we have told you. Doyouwish her to join the twenty dead women we orcs have already made this past twelvemonth?”
Rosa’s head jerked toward John, her beleaguered brain again wildly whirling, but Efterar seemed wholly unconcerned. “You should not put so much weight on this,” he countered. “You are a small orc, brother, and you Ka-esh have the most successful births of us all, once you actually get to business. It’s not like you’re Simon, here.”
Rosa shot an uneasy glance toward Simon, who was now deep in an unpleasant-seeming conversation with Grimarr and Jule. The actual words drowned out by another growl from John beside Rosa, sounding choked, frustrated, aggrieved.
“Our survey, which is founded inresearch,” he said, clipped, “has given this woman a fifty percent likelihood of birthing my son alive. Do you have aught of worth to say to that, Ash-Kai, beyond this deep insight that I am Ka-esh, andnot Simon?”
Efterar shrugged, his eyes still frowning at Rosa’s belly. “No,” he said. “But her body does seem to like your seed. She wants more. I can just —feelit.”
Rosa’s face flooded with heat, and thankfully John seemed just as provoked as she felt, another harsh bark vibrating from his throat. “Ach, that changesall,” he growled back. “Let us wager herlifeon what youfeel, Ash-Kai. When you are done here, mayhap you shall go see how youfeelabout all the Preian men Simon has almost killed on our behalf today. Men who only nowlivethanks to mymedics!”
With that, John spun on his heel, and stomped out of the room. Dragging Rosa close behind him, back out into the pitch-black of the corridor. His strides long, fast, furious.
And though Rosa could no longer see his face, the strength of his anger seemed to crackle into the darkness all around them. Anger at Simon, who’d apparently risked an entirepeace treatywith what he’d done. At Efterar, who’d ignored John’s legitimate-seeming points, in favour of his own thoroughly unfoundedfeelings. And anger, even, toward this captain, who’d censured John in front of his brothers, and putchecksupon him, whatever that meant.
And in the whirling chaos of Rosa’s brain, strongest of all was the need, compulsive and irrational, to reach her free hand toward John. To stroke him, smooth and purposeful, just like she’d done earlier today. To feel the tension dissipate, just slightly, under her touch.
“On a scale of the kinds of days you usually have,” she heard herself venture, soft, into the spiralling darkness, “how bad was today?”
Beside her John grunted, the sound bitter, mocking. “Ach, bad enough,” his voice snapped. “These men have been seeking just such a brawl for many moons now. And now that they have gained this, they shall run back to Preia, flaunt their wounds that we have staunched, and claim we attacked with no cause. We must hope that Lord Otto is yet fat and content enough to once again come to our aid, and keep us from yet more war, and more —”
