He spotted her.
“There you are! I was just coming to get you.”
He sounded angry. Impatient. He marched toward her, his heavy steps making the ground shake.
“What?” she asked, backing away from him.
He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her toward the building, his fingers digging into her flesh hard enough to bruise.
Audrey planted her feet and fought him, twisting her body, trying to break his grip.
He was surprised enough to let her go, stepping back to look her up and down.
She knew he could see that she was armed to the teeth, daggers strapped to her thighs and waist, and the bulge of her gun visible at her lower back.
“It’s true, then. You’re an orc hunter.”
His voice sounded resigned, like it wasn’t just downing on him now what she truly was. He’d known or suspected it for a while, and the gear she was wearing only confirmed it.
Audrey retreated until she was on the road. She had to make sure there was enough distance between them, so he wouldn’t grab her again. For now, it was just the two of them, facing each other. The last thing she needed was for him to drag her into the middle of his horde.
She squared her shoulders and met his gaze. Or tried to. She couldn’t see his eyes in the dark, through his skull mask.
“I didn’t want to believe Brumis the Bold,” he continued in the same calm, half bewildered, half resigned tone. “She said you’re a fighter. That you knew what you were doing when you two sparred the other day. That you brought your own daggers. Why would an orc tribute bring weapons to her orc mate’s home, Audrey?”
Audrey pursed her lips and stared at him defiantly. She didn’t like how he was putting her on the spot. Of all the things she’d prepared herself for, this wasn’t one of them.
Orcs started pouring out of the community center behind Morgath, forming a semicircle around him. This was exactly what she’d hoped wouldn’t happen.
“Who are you, Audrey?” Morgath asked. “Why are you here?”
Audrey saw Jorrad the Brutal standing near the front of the crowd, his scarred face twisted into something that looked like amusement.
That smug expression made her snap.
“You want to know who I am? I am a survivor!” She raised her voice, so all could hear. “Fifteen years ago, you and your horde swept through the town where I lived with my family. You left it burning.”
She pointed at Jorrad.
“He killed my mother, my father, and my brother. I saw his face with my own eyes. I was hiding in the storm shelter, but I could see everything on the camera feed. I saw him coming out of the house covered in blood and bits of flesh. I even have proof. I still have the recording from back then. I couldn’t do anything with it, because once the peace treaty was signed, all crimes of war on both orc and human sides were wiped clean. As if they never happened.”
She was shaking, panting, but she stood her ground.
“I was an orphan, unable to get any kind of justice. Lost in the system for years before I joined a group of orc hunters. Yes, I hunt orcs for a living, and for pleasure. For ten years, I’ve been getting justice for those who’ve been denied it. Now it’s my turn. I came to kill Jorrad the Brutal with my own hands. Then kill you too,” she finished, looking at him. “You’re the captain who allowed that atrocity to happen.”
Morgath went still.
Jorrad took charge, pushing his way through the crowd like he had every right to lead in the captain’s silence. The orcs moved aside without question, parting to let him through. He grabbed someone by the scruff of their neck and brought them forward, dragging them like they weighed nothing. Audrey saw that it was Owen, his face bruised and his hands bound behind his back.
A few other orcs marched Tyler, Cole, Natalie and Shauna to the front, pushing them roughly until they stood in a line beside Owen.
Audrey felt like she was living a nightmare, watching her team brought out like prisoners on display. This wasn’t how it was supposed to happen.
Brumis the Bold stepped forward, grinning at Audrey.
“What are you going to do now, little hunter?”
Chapter Twenty-Four
