Keegan stepped slightly closer to my side, and I was grateful. The last thing I wanted to do was offend the very orcs who’ve stood by our side.
“But there are always a few who stray,” an orc explained.
“How many?” I asked.
The first orc shook his head. “Not many, but enough to cause damage if left unchecked.”
“And they’ve aligned themselves with her,” I said.
“They’ve aligned themselves with power,” he corrected. “The Priestess offers it.”
That didn’t sit well with me, but that was because I’d never understood the desire for it.
“They’re choosing her,” I said.
“They’re choosing what they believe she can give them,” he replied. “That doesn’t mean they understand the cost.”
Silence settled over us for a moment, the weight of that truth pressing in from all sides.
“They’ve been seen near the outer edges,” one of the shifters said. “Not close enough to cross the Wards, but watching. Waiting.”
“For what?” I asked.
“For an opening.”
Of course they were. My shadow mark itched more.
“Have they made contact with anyone here?” I asked.
The orcs exchanged glances before one of them spoke again. “Not directly. But there have been attempts.”
My stomach dropped just a fraction. “Attempts how?”
A breeze ran through the air, and I shivered.
“Messages,” he said. “Whispers sent through channels we don’t use anymore. Old alliances. Old ways.”
“And?” Keegan asked.
“And they’ve been ignored,” the orc said firmly. “By us. All of us, which is why we didn’t mention it.”
Relief flickered, brief but real.
“But that doesn’t mean they’ll stop,” the shifter added. “If anything, it means they’ll push harder.”
I nodded slowly, because that tracked with everything else we were seeing.
“They’re desperate,” I said.
“They’re opportunistic,” the lead orc corrected. “And that’s often worse.”
Twobble cleared his throat beside me. “So, to summarize, we have rogue orcs, an impatient Priestess, a missing Gideon, and a goblin who risked his life to help him.”
I glanced down at him. “When you say it like that—”
“It sounds like a very busy day,” he finished and licked his fingers, and I had absolutely no idea what he’d just put in his mouth.
I looked back at the orcs. “If they try to make contact again, I need to know immediately.”
