Chapter 16

Drundak straightens his spine so his voice can carry through the hall. "She tells me she came through a portal in the Sacred Woods, Chief. She's not from this world. There are no orcs where she comes from."

There's a long beat of silence, then the hall explodes in chatter. I'm sure they think they're murmuring, but their whispers are so loud that I easily understand what the orcs closest to me are saying.

And, just like Nell, they don't sound disbelieving.

Thorn looks away from me at Drundak, breaking the spell he had me in. I release a breath I had no idea I was holding. I didn't even know that was a thing. Holding a breath accidentally. Movement in the corner of the table catches my eye.

The woman from yesterday walks in. Like Thorn, her presence demands attention, and I can't help but follow her with my eyes. She commands the room with an air of cool fury. Her long, red hair cascades down her back. Pointy ears peek through her strands, adorned with large hoops that glint in the firelight. She has sharp, dark red eyes that scan the room, settling on me with a piercing gaze.

I square my shoulders, reminding myself I can't show weakness. Even if she's more beautiful than many humans I've met. Intricate tattoos curl around her muscled arms, exposed by the short-sleeved, tight tunic she wears, paired with fitted leather pants. Scars pepper her arms. A warrior, through and through. I bet she's Thorn's queen.

She's even carrying the baby from yesterday. Fear curls inside my stomach. Oh, no. Are they offended because I didn't want to give their son back?

The woman pauses next to Thorn, narrowing her eyes at me.

"Did I hear it right?" she asks, arching an eyebrow. "She slipped through a portal in the woods? Coming from another world?"

"You heard right, Ursha," Drundak responds with a nod.

"Then let's either send her back or kill her already. Humans are not good enough for orc clans. I find them rather ugly and too weak to work the fields," she says, her voice laced with mockery. The baby mumbles in her arms, oblivious to the tension.

Warmth crawls up my face. "I'm as ugly to you as you are to me," I blurt out, tasting the lie on my tongue. "And it wasn't my beauty or lack of it who saved that baby yesterday, so I don't think that matters."

I clamp my mouth shut, surprised by my bravery. Maybe bravery is not the word. More like stupidity.

My lungs are heavy as I stare at Ursha, studying every microexpression. Shit. It's stupidity. One hundred percent stupidity. She's going to kill me.

That's it. Screwed up by my tongue. My whole life, I held it back so my hometown would like me, and they never did.

Now? I'll be lucky if they give me a quick death.