She jerked her head toward Kesst, noting again, this time with a horrible sickening feeling, that he was also slim for an orc, with softer features, and large dark eyes. And the reality of this was slowly settling in, had Simon truly only hired her because she reminded him ofthem? Oforcs? Becausethatwas what he truly wanted?
The amusement had slipped at once from Kesst’s face, and before her Tristan visibly blanched, his eyes gone very wide. “Ach, no,” he said hurriedly. “Simon and I — I wouldnever—”
He shot a helpless glance toward the Salvi orc, who had begun to look as though he regretted starting this, his gaze uneasy on Maria’s face. “Ach, Tristan has always been mine,” Salvi said firmly. “He shouldneverchoose to touch a Skai, ach,sæti?”
But that only made it worse, the misery pounding in Maria’s ribs, at the back of her skull. So Simonhadperhaps wanted Tristan, then, and been rejected. Maybe the same with Kesst, as well. And since, apparently, even these otherorcsdidn’t want to be associated with the Skai, maybe it made perfect sense why Simon had agreed to buy her. Because she reminded him ofthem. Of anorc.
And while Maria had once thought herself an adequately attractive woman, or at least a handsome one — a duke had married her, after all — six years of marriage had already badly diminished her confidence. And now it felt like these orcs were stomping upon it, mocking, jeering at her orc-like face.She is only woman I buy.
Maria suddenly felt dangerously close to weeping, and she lunged away from these orcs, before they could see it, before they could laugh. Hurling herself unseeing toward the door, ignoring the instant rising swell of voices behind her. It didn’t matter. Itdidn’t. She was only here for her freedom. For revenge.
She was multiple steps down the rapidly darkening corridor before she realized there were no lamps here, and she had no light, and there was surely no hope of navigating this damned mountain in the dark. So she just stood there in the blackness, her breath heaving, her hands over her face, twitching at the sound of footsteps, jogging closer.
“Maria,” said Baldr’s voice, hoarse and breathless. “We did not mean to hurt you, or insult you. We all wish you to stay, and make Simon a good mate. I swear this. Ach?”
Maria twitched again, her hands jerking away from her face, and when her eyes caught Baldr’s they were wide and dark, flickering in the light of the lamp he was carrying. “Iswearthis,” he said again. “And Tristan and Kesst are oft named as the fairest orcs in this mountain, ach? Skailikefair, pretty, unmarked things, and they crave this in their mates most of all. You areblessed, to look as they do.”
He’d waved a clawed hand at his own faintly scarred face, his voice tilting toward something like desperation. Saying, clearly, thathedidn’t look like that, that he wished he looked likeher— and Maria again rubbed at her eyes, and dragged deep for breath.
“I’m just,” she made herself say, “quite tired, I think. If you could please take me to my room — Simon’s room, I mean — that would —”
Baldr nodded without delay, striding rapidly down the corridor, his face turned intently away from her. And gods, now she’d insulted him too, the one orc who’d been so consistently kind to her. An orc who’d clearly been rejected by the Skai, too.There is naught binding you to us…
“You ought not to compare yourself to others, Baldr,” Maria made her wavering voice say. “You are a very handsome orc, and I am sure anyone who properly knows you would adore you, just as you are.”
She could hear Baldr’s swallow, catching in his throat, and his glance toward her was equal parts bright and bitter, his mouth a thin line. “You are very kind, Maria. But —”
His voice halted there, his eyes abruptly darting away from her, narrowing on something down the corridor. “Ach,” he said, under his breath, almost more to himself than to her. “Simon has returned.”
Simon has returned. And despite the chaos still chattering through Maria’s thoughts — she reminded Simon of anorc— she still felt something lurch, sudden and eager, in her chest. “He has?”
“Ach,” Baldr replied, though his eyes were still narrow, and she could see him inhaling, slow and purposeful. “But mayhap —”
His body had hesitated, his gaze darting uncertainly around them, and Maria again felt the unease rising, scraping deep inside. “Could you take me to him? Please?”
Baldr kept hesitating, clearly reluctant now, as if he washidingsomething, again. And Maria was so gods-damnedtiredof secrets and lies, and she turned to fully face him, her teeth gritted tight. “Please, Baldr,” she said. “If you really want me to stay, you will take me to him.”
It was probably manipulation, or even hysteria, but Maria truly didn’t care anymore, and instead stood there, and waited. Until Baldr looked away, nodding, and lurched back to a walk again.
And as they weaved through the twisty Skai corridors, passing yet more frowning, leering orcs, Maria began to hear noise, up ahead. Noise that sounded like raised voices, like shouting, with one orc’s distinctive deep voice booming louder than the rest…
“Youknew,” it bellowed, rumbling through the air, plunging into Maria’s belly. “You hid this from me. Youlie.”
Baldr’s eyes had closed, a pained expression flitting across his face, but he kept walking, not even looking where he was going. While another voice echoed around them, speaking in black-tongue, hard and clipped and mocking.
“No,” Simon’s voice growled back. “Iaskedthis of you. You spokefalseto me. Your scent was there. Didyoudo this, also?!”
Baldr was visibly grimacing now, and as they turned into a familiar-looking corridor, his hand clenched against Maria’s arm, holding her still. And Maria didn’t need telling, at this point, and she stared at the sight up ahead, at the mass of orcs filling the corridor, at the one massive orc in the midst of it all.
Simon. Tense. Furious. With dark streaks and splatters all over his trousers, his bare chest, his face. And backed against the wall before him was another orc, one who looked vaguely familiar, because — Maria’s breath caught — she’d already seen him today. It was one of the orcs who’d been with Ulfarr, while he’d spoken to her and Baldr in the corridor. While Ulfarr had mocked, and threatened, andlaughed.
And this orc was laughing too, as though Simon’s rage were ajoke, and that — Maria twitched — was because Ulfarr was here too. Standing close beside this laughing orc, easing his huge form between him and Simon.
“You have no right to Enforce Skaap over this,” cut in Ulfarr’s voice, dragging thick and awful through the tension choking the corridor. “Not when you yourself have broken our clan’s ways, and half our orcs no longer support you. Ach?”
The words spewing from Simon’s mouth were all in black-tongue, deep and dark and choked with rage. And the orc he’d been accusing only kept laughing,laughing, while Ulfarr crossed his arms over his chest, his chin rising, the image of superior condescension, of victory —
Until Simon —lunged. Somehow snapping his huge form around and behind Ulfarr, dragging out the laughing orc by the neck, while the orc’s guffaws choked into silence —
