Page 44 of Fractured Shadows

I grin sheepishly as Bracken chuckles. “Well, now that we are all awake, shall we start breakfast? I don’t know about you, but I’m ravenous.” He winks, making me shake my head, and the others grumble but reluctantly relax.

My eyes flick to the lone figure at the other side of the fire, his eyes on me and filled with…

Heat.

Hunger.

The orc king looks ravenous too.

I gulp.

ChapterTwenty-Two

Zee and Bracken tease me about my morning screams, but I just roll my eyes as a grin tugs at my lips. My mind wanders back to my dream, wondering what it meant and why I was shown it. I mean, I had to have been, right?

The magic here is so unpredictable, and I can’t tell if it’s friend or foe.

All I know is that we have to get to that castle, so after covering our fire and tracks, we set off back into the forest with renewed speed. They all seem on alert after the recent attacks, so I keep quiet and watch my feet as I try to think about what the dream meant.

“Still thinking about my tongue, Goldie?” Bracken comments sometime later.

“Or tips to improve it,” Zee retorts, slapping Bracken’s shoulder as he passes before catching up to me and grinning. Grim is at the back, and Bracken is before him. Nero is in the trees, keeping watch, and our orc king is setting the pace. Unlike when we first met, he slows his strides and looks back to check on me a lot.

I can’t tell if he plans on killing and eating me or just plain, well, eating me.

Either way, the contemplative looks he shoots at me when he thinks I’m not watching has me on edge all day as I wait for something to happen. I know the others are picking up on my tension because they become extra attentive. Even Bracken quits his jokes and peers into the forest for threats.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise when we stumble onto one—or into one, I should say.

Krug freezes in front of me, a twig snapping under his foot as his head shoots around. “Run!” he roars just as a cage descends from the top of the trees and crashes down around him. Nero grabs me and hoists me up into a tree as Grim and Bracken circle the orc, protecting him and waiting for the threats. I don’t see Zee anywhere. “Where’s Zee?” I hiss at Nero.

“I don’t know. Hold on, love,” Nero whispers, sliding higher, but no one comes, and Grim releases a whistling noise, looking at the orc and then Bracken, telling him something with his eyes.

“Leave him. This way, we won’t have to kill him later,” Grim says. With that statement, he and Bracken fade into the trees.

I go to scream, but Nero covers my mouth and wraps me tighter in his arms, holding me immobile. I can’t see the others, only Krug.

He’s crouched in the tiny cage with his hands fisted on the bars. He snarls, gnashing his teeth, and his eyes are wild and unfocused. He’s not with us. Gone is the king, and in his place is a wild animal.

Moments pass, and then there’s movement below us as two hooded figures slink from the trees. “Looks like they left him. Lucky us.” One giggles, the sound slightly mad. “He’ll make the mistress very happy.”

The words make me sick to my stomach, and they must pierce whatever haze is in Krug’s mind, because he roars and attacks the cage with renewed anger and panic. I see his fear and remember what Zee said about his past.

Turning in Nero’s arms, I drag his head down to me and kiss him hard. It shocks him enough to cause him to loosen his grip, and I slide from his hold, tumbling to the forest floor below. Before he can grab me again, I jump to my feet and run out of the trees, sliding to a stop before the two figures.

“That’s my orc. Get your own,” I snarl, my hand coming up on instinct, and magic explodes from me, drawn by my anger. The two figures go flying back into the trees, and I hurry to Krug’s side. His chest is heaving, and his eyes are wild. I don’t think he even sees me as I search for a way to free him.

“Hurry, please.” His voice cracks. “Please, human, please.” His begging rips open my heart as I cut my hand on the bars, tugging and pulling as I try to free him, all while those panic-stricken eyes watch me hopelessly.

“Grab her too!” that mad voice calls, and I know they are coming back.

I hear thumps, and when I look, Nero is sliding toward them. I spot Zee coming from the trees behind them with blood on his face, holding two additional dead hooded figures in his arms. Grim throws two more on the ground as he bursts from the trees, and Bracken dances out with a grin.

“Looks like you’re alone and your mistress is going to be very angry. See, that’s our human.” Bracken strikes.

I trust them to protect us, so I examine the bars hurriedly before I step back. “Look away,” I demand, and with a snarl, my magic explodes out of me again, smashing the cage open. Krug immediately crawls free, collapsing on the ground, panting and shaking.

There’s a noise, and his head snaps up before a roar leaves his lips. Gone is the broken orc, and in his place is a feral one. He leaps to his feet with his claws out, his tusks shining as he roars again. Nero is the closest, and he freezes.

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