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The other orkin from Magna’s group started to stumble forward. Some from the tribe approached to provide help. Ruby stepped around me and headed to the injured. I grabbed her arm to stop her.
“Ruby, you don’t have to go,” I hissed.
“I’m a nurse, and they are injured,” she said, as if that settled it. “It is my duty to care for anyone who is injured, regardless of their prejudices,” she carefully removed my hand from her arm and headed to one of the heavily limping orcs.
Ruby approached him and looped her arm around his waist, allowing him to lean on her despite their size difference. I watched, stunned, as they slowly shuffled toward Emla’s cabin. If I wasn’t crying before, I was definitely crying as I watched. Agnarr handed Magna off to another guard before approaching me. He pulled me into a rough embrace, causing me to drop the belongings I’d been carrying. I buried my face in his chest, taking a deep breath. I needed to steady myself before we continued.
I pulled away and quickly wiped my face before retrieving everything I’d dropped. I looked up to see Agnarr watching me, clearly concerned.
“This doesn’t have to change anything,” he said, so only I could hear. “We don’t have to accept them back.”
“Astrid’s right. We should let the council decide—and we should bring Billie.”
“Now?”
“Let me drop this off in Ginny’s room. I’ll find Billie, and we’ll head to the longhouse. You find Astrid and the other elders and do the same? Tell Emla to leave the injured in Inga and Ruby’s hands. With the whole tribe helping, the move can still go forward while we meet,” I said.
“That sounds incredibly wise for someone who isn’t even jarlin yet,” Agnarr teased.
“I was a teacher for eight years. I’m always ready for a crisis,” I said wearily then headed to Ginny’s room.
I deposited Ginny’s belongings on her new bed and then went to look for Billie. She was officially in charge of today’s operations, so I knew she would be in the mix somewhere. It didn’t take me long to spot her directing a group of adolescent orkin carrying pieces of furniture.
“Put whichever of them is most competent in charge. You need to come with me,” I said.
Without missing a beat, she called out, “Thyra!” A young female orc carrying an entire dresser looked up. “Manage the team moving the furniture for the time being.”
Thyra nodded without pausing.
“Ready?” she asked.
“You have them in line,” I said, surprised.
“I helped manage a restaurant—I can manage a handful of teens. Who do you think makes up the majority of the hosts and servers? Kids under twenty.”
“Fair. Let’s go.”
We headed to the longhouse, picking up Jodis, Alvis, and Bram along the way. When we arrived, we found the rest of the elders also approaching. As we sat and I looked around, I realized we were only missing one.
“Where is Skaard?” Agnarr asked, taking a seat to my right.
“He wouldn’t come,” Astrid said.
“He wouldn’t come?” Agnarr asked, surprised.
“He said he didn’t want his presence to impact our decision. I assured him it wouldn’t, but he insisted, and we’re on limited time. We need to get this going. The longer we wait for a decision, the more problems it will create. With everything in flux right now, adding an unstable group of would-be dissenters isn’t ideal,” Astrid explained.
“Okay, then let’s put this to a vote first to see where everyone stands, then discuss,” I stepped in.
Astrid looked surprised.
“There’s no point in even hashing it out if we’re all on the same page,” I said.
“She does have a point,” Agnarr murmured beside me.
Astrid shrugged in agreement, “Okay, a show of hands for those willing to let them stay?”
I looked around the room as eight hands went up, including my own—and, to my surprise, Billie’s. That left only three not in favor of readmitting. I was even more surprised to realize those who hadn’t raised their hands were Vigot, Astrid, and Agnarr.
