6. Agis

Agis

D awn light filters through the cabin windows, painting stripes across Serenity's body. She's curled against my chest, golden hair spilling across my green skin like rays of sunlight. The mate bond thrums contentedly between us, but guilt gnaws at my gut. Each quiet breath she takes feels like a gift I don't deserve.

I memorize every detail: the curve of her shoulder, the way her lashes fan against her cheeks, the small smile playing at her lips even in sleep. A lock of hair falls across her face, and I gently brush it back.

"You're staring again," she mumbles, eyes still closed.

"Can't stop." I touch her face with one finger. Her skin feels so soft compared to orc skin. "It's what orcs do."

"Tell me about what orcs do." She looks up at me. Makes my chest feel tight. Even messy from sleep, she looks better than anything I've seen.

"We guard our mates. New ones especially." I pull her closer, breathe in her smell. "Bond is strongest at first. Makes us... want to keep others away."

She trails her fingers over the tattoos on my chest. "Is that why you growled at that ranger we passed yesterday?"

I feel my ears heat. "You noticed that?"

"Hard to miss." She grins. "Though I thought it was kind of sweet."

"Sweet isn't a word used to talk about orcs."

"Well, get used to it." She pokes my chest. "Now tell me more about orc customs. What else should I know about being mated to you?"

I don't answer right away. "Old times, male orcs showed they were good by hunting big things or fighting. We built houses ourselves. Got the best meat. Fought anyone who insulted our mates."

"What about now?"

"That's the hard part. Our ways don't work here." I look around the cabin. Too small for an orc. "Can't hunt in a place that protects animals."

She props herself up on an elbow, looking thoughtful. "So make new traditions. You could help build the new animal enclosures - that's creating a home. Take me hiking - that's like hunting, just without killing anything." Her eyes sparkle. "Though maybe leave out the fighting part. We have enough trouble with poachers."

Something wakes up inside me when she talks about keeping orc ways. "You want that? To do orc things?"

"Of course." She kisses my chest. "It's part of who you are. And I want to know all of you."

All of me.

The words twist in my gut. The poker chips hidden in my belongings feel like they're burning a hole through the floor. How can I build anything real while keeping such secrets?

"What else?" she asks, oblivious to my inner turmoil. "Tell me about your people. Your family."

I tell her about growing up in the mountains with my siblings, about our dwindling clan and the desperate search for true mates. "We were strong fighters once, but fighting humans hurt us bad. Then sickness came. Worst was when mate bonds got rare. Without true mates, not many baby orcs."

"That's why Talon's mate and her pregnancy are such a miracle," she says softly.

"Yes. We thought we were dying out. Some still think we are." I stroke her hair. "That's why finding you... it means more than you know."

"Even though I'm human?"

"Because you're human." I kiss her head. "Shows orcs can change. Make new things."

She's quiet for a moment. "Did you come down from the mountains looking for a mate?"

"No," I say. Shame makes my skin hot. "I came for... other reasons."

She waits, but I can't tell her about the gambling, the people who want money, why I ran. Not when she looks at me like that, all trust.

"Want food?" I ask instead, like a coward.

"Starving." She stretches luxuriously, and the sheet slips lower. "Though food can wait."

As I lose myself in her again, I vow to find a way to save her center without gambling. Need to be a good mate. Make new orc ways that work for both of us.

If only the cards didn't call so loud from the forest. If only I could be the orc she thinks I am.

Her lips find mine, and for a bit, I think I can be better.

"Teach me how to say 'I love you' in Orcish," she whispers against my mouth.

My chest gets tight. "Kral zur matha," I say, words rough in my throat.

"Kral zur matha," she repeats. Human voice makes it sound pretty.

And right then, I know I'll do anything—anything—to be worthy of those words.

***

Axes hit wood while Talon and I cut trees by the bear place. Every swing doesn't stop me thinking about the sounds in that forest cabin—chips clicking, cards moving, people betting. My hands shake on the axe, I want to hold cards instead.

The thoughts take me back to that night in the casino, six months ago. The night I lost everything.

The special room is red and gold, full of smoke. I have won big money —enough to pay bad people, enough to start new. My pile of chips is the biggest at the table.

"One more hand," Romano, the casino owner, keeps saying, pushing another whiskey my way. His eyes gleam like a predator's. "All or nothing. Double your money or walk away broke.”

Should see the trap. Should know why he gives drinks, why he lets me win. But orcs are proud, and I am very proud that night.

"Deal," I growl, teeth bared in what I think is triumph.

One game later, I owe money to people worse than any I know. Romano smiles mean while his men grab me. "Pay in one day, Orc. Or we start taking pieces."

I leave everything in my hotel room—clothes, weapons, the few family heirlooms I haven't gambled away yet. I run with just the clothes on my back and shame burning in my gut.

"Brother?" Talon's voice cuts through the memory. "You're not here with me."

I blink. "Just thinking about Serenity," I lie, but the words taste like ash.

"No." Talon drives his axe into a stump with a thunk and turns to face me. His eyes, so like our father's, see right through me. "You're thinking about gambling. I know that haunted look."

The axe slips in my sweaty grip. "How did you—"

"Because I'm your brother." He grabs my shoulder. Makes me feel steady. "And you watch those woods like a hungry wolf. Tell me."

The words pour out like blood from a wound—the debts, the threats, the shameful running. My voice breaks when I speak of Serenity, so pure and good, trusting me without knowing the monster I truly am.

"I want to change," I say quietly, words harder than any bet. "For her. But the casino calls me. My hands want cards..."

"They say wanting never goes away," Talon says softly. "But it gets easier with help." He meets my gaze. "Let me help, brother."

"How?" My voice sounds small, like a baby. "How do I silence the call?"

"First, by telling Serenity the truth. She's your mate—she'll understand. The bond demands honesty."

I hit a log hard. It breaks like bones. "What if she doesn't? What if she looks at me like our people did? When they made me leave?"

"She will understand," Talon insists. "But she needs to hear it from you, not discover it on her own. That betrayal would be far worse."

He's right. I have to tell her. Soon. Before she finds out some other way. But first, I need to figure out how to save her center without gambling. There has to be another way.

"There is," Talon says, seeing how worried I am. "We'll find it together. Family helps family get better."

"Can't lose her," I say quietly. "Can't."

"Then fight for her," Talon says. "Not with cards. With truth. Be good mate."

I nod. For her, I can do this. For her, I must.