Page 20 of Orn and the Real Girl
“Sara?” Mother Tonn croaked, her bottom lip splitting from just that one word; they all looked dehydrated, lips pale and flaking and cracked. Her chin wobbled, precious tears welling in her dark eyes. “Sweet Delenaa,no. I’d so hoped they wouldn’t get you, too.”
I shook my head, blinking away tears and stepping closer to their prison. “I’m not captured, Mother. I’m here to rescue you.”
“But how?” a younger blond witch with large doe eyes named Callie asked. “There’s so many of them. And they have the aid of their…of thatthing.”
A particularly sharp scream pierced the air, followed by a bellow of rage and a faint wet spatter. My coven all shrank back, huddling even closer together than they’d already been. The Mothers all began murmuring a prayer.
I laughed nervously, fiddling with my coat buttons. “Well, I’m not alone. I…I met someone while I was wandering around looking for help. And…he’sveryhelpful.” I swallowed, almost tearing a button loose from the intensity of my nerves. I wanted so badly for them to accept Orn. But now that I was staring this moment full in the face, I realized I was also nervous that they wouldn’t acceptme,knowing I was an orc’s mate.
Squealing and growling floated down the tunnel towards us and I winced, my coven backing as far away from the bars of their cage as they could, eyes wide and faces somehow going even more pale.
“Sara, child, you mustrun,” Mother Frannie hissed. “Whoever your companion was, I think he has not been successful. Please, these people are very dangerous—“
Her voice failed her when a roar shivered the air, followed by pounding footsteps. Some of my coven began weeping, moaning that the worst torture they’d endured was that the horrors wouldn’t stop coming.
My face flamed. I knew that roar. I even knew the steps, despite only having him in my life a few days.
Orn slid into the cavern, eyes blazing and both sweat and blood spattered over his olive green skin. Somehow he’d lost his shirt, and the tight braid I’d woven his long black locks into was coming loose, wisps of hair flying wild around his head and sticking to his damp skin. He was terrifying, but he was also beautiful, and I was in awe.
With a flick of his wrist a hatchet went flying through the air, striking the hideous altar with a grinding sound and a squeal that was suspiciously organic. Something cracked, andthen the altar was on fire. Purple flames licked over the surface, consuming everything, despite much of it being inflammable, until it was a pile of bitter-smelling ash on the floor.
Before I could address that, or any of my other concerns, Orn was on me, hoisting me into the air by my waist and pressing his body against mine. He claimed my slack mouth in a hard, desperate kiss, and I could not help but lean into it, relishing the sensory contrast of soft, sweet lips and hard tusks. A large hand gently fisted my curls at the nape of my neck, and despite myself I moaned, legs wrapping tight around his hips.
One of the Mothers cleared her throat, and I gently pushed Orn away from me and eased myself down to the floor. Orn looked furious, his wild eyes darting to the frightened coven as he growled deep in his chest. It was such a low sound I felt it more than heard it.
Smoothing my clothes and hair back into place, I swept a hand over Orn’s terrifying form and attempted a smile. “Everyone, this is the companion I mentioned.” I grabbed his arm and held it, heart in my throat. “His name is Orn, and he’s really very sweet, I promise!”
No one in the cage looked like they believed me. I stifled a sigh and let Orn go. “So it went well?” I asked him, digging around in my pack for more reagents. “What happened to your shirt?”
He snorted. “It couldn’t keep up. Weakness must be left behind, when the blood song calls.” He lifted his huge battle axe, twirling it like it weighed nothing. “The cult is no more. I will do a final sweep while you finish up here, but I can only hear us, now, in these caves.” He flashed me a feral grin. “The scent of wrong already fades.”
I paused, smiling up at him as I pulled my basic lockpicking spell out from what I’d brought. “Thanks for taking care of that, honey,” I said, realizing too late my mistake.
Orn loosed another growl, this one louder, and scooped me up into a bridal carry faster than my eye could track. I squeaked, clinging to his neck by instinct. He kissed me again, hard, then began to kiss and nibble my jaw, my neck, hitting all the spots that lit me up and turned me on as if he could somehow see them. Maybe he could—this blood song thing was wild stuff.
“Orn!” I gasped, grabbing his head and doing my best to hold him still. “Focus, big guy.”
“Iamfocusing, sweetness,” he smirked, easily overpowering me and resuming his searing kisses. I scoffed, trying again to restore order.
“I’ll never call you anything sweet ever again if you don’t put me down this instant, Orn.”
That finally got to him. He stopped his ministrations and set me down, pouting and looking like a mistreated puppy. I swatted at his arm, refusing to fall for it. “Behave yourself or I’m sending you outside, mister. Am I clear?”
“Aye, dove,” he grumbled. After a moment he seemed to collect himself a bit and hefted his axe onto one shoulder, the thick muscle bulging with the effort in a way that was distinctly delicious. “Shall I free your folk, then?”
“You can’t!” Mother Tonn shouted, shuffling just a little closer and pointing at the bars of their cell. “They’re spelled. Touching them stills the heart and sends the soul to their foul god.” I shivered, backing away from the innocent-looking lattice.I guess that means my lockpicking spell is useless,I thought. I had to spread the thick paste over the lock in order for it to work.
Orn considered the bars, his free hand stroking over his chin and rasping the stubble there. “How far to one side can you manage to get without touching the bars?” he asked them.
“I’m…not sure…” Mother Tonn said slowly. “But we can try and see?”
Orn nodded. Once everyone was packed tightly on the right side of the cell he examined the empty space critically, his dark eyes darting between the empty side and the full side. He grabbed my arm and guided us both back a few steps. “Cover your faces,” he told my coven. They did, too weak and curious to protest. And then he was moving, swinging his huge axe in an arc and sending it flying at the bars in front of the empty section of cell. Witches squealed and gasped, huddling still closer, but his aim was true.
The bars were no match for that axe, no matter how strong their curse was. Wood splintered and flew through the air, following the path of the axe and littering the dirty floor. A high-pitched ringing filled the room, and then more of the evil presence filling the cavern ebbed away, the space immediately brighter and more open. Orn retrieved the hatchet he’d used to destroy the altar earlier and used it to widen the hole he’d made. Then he strode in and hefted his axe back up onto his shoulder. He nodded at the wide eyes and slack faces turned up at him. “Ladies,” he said, tilting his head in a respectful nod.
“I like him,” Brekka declared, and at my best friend’s words the tension broke, everyone laughing, some until they were crying and having trouble breathing.
ORN STOOD CLOSEbehind me, his arms wrapping around me and holding me tight to his feverishly hot body. My coven slowly trickled out of their cell, joining us in the main cavern chamber. In the improved lighting of the main cavern I was horrified at the state of them; the dimness of the cage hadhidden much of their condition, it turned out. I pulled away from Orn and jumped into action, ripping into my pack and pulling out the food and water we’d packed and handing it around to my fellow witches.
