Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
“I’ll see what I can do, orcs like working at night and Tigor, this is his place.” She fans her hand through the air. “He barely sleeps. But…” She gives me a sympathetic wink. “…I get it. I need ten hours these days.”
I nod as the orcs reappear from a hallway and I’m both relieved and disappointed there is no more sign of the hard-on that greeted me a minute ago.
“Tigor will try to keep the noise down at night, right, Tigor?” She nods toward the orc with the erection but he only grunts in return, his gaze fixed on me so hard I take a step back from the doorway.
“You should have sent your…” He narrows his eyes, forehead furrowed. “Your husband to deal with this. You should not be knocking on doors in the middle of the night by yourself.”
He snaps his tongue over his lips and I see a smaller one underneath. I’ve been around orcs, but I hadn’t noticed they have two tongues before.
“Husband?” I repeat, my focus still on that double-trouble tongue. I shake my head as he growls, his face twisting in what I think is anger.
“Yes, husband.” He snarls that last word and I open my mouth to reply, but before I can there’s a flash of light from behind me and Tigor’s glowing eyes dart to the street.
It’s known that orcs have great night vision so it’s strange for them to have some sort of spotlight.
Tigor’s pancake-size palm comes down on my back as he steps around me, shifting me in one confusingly gentle but deliberate move behind him.
As I turn, the bright light makes me blink.
“Don’t get too comfortable, Lakktra,” A human male shouts from the street. There’s more chatter and laughter from behind the light as Mol flips a switch by the door illuminating the street with a bright porch light.
“This all is going to be Ma’Slatha territory.” Another voice rises. “So go ahead, fix up that place, make it more comfortable for Yarek when he moves in!” He looks behind him where there is a mammoth orc sitting in the back seat of the open-top military style vehicle. He has ten red straps down his braid, and is baring his teeth our way.
“I’ll move in next door, take that little hottie as my pet.” The human says, turning to his comrades with a open mouth smile.
Tigor is down the steps in a blink and I’m on his heels at least for the first couple steps. I don’t know who these bastards are, but no one is taking my home. I’ll die defending it.
My heart speeds thinking of Darrel sleeping upstairs. If there’s going to be trouble, Dominic left this afternoon on a supply run so it’s just me and my sort of adoptive younger brother to face off with whatever trouble comes calling.
“I see right through that t-shirt! Nice nipples, I can almost taste them…” A lanky human with goggles, wearing the douchy orc-appropriator style leather straps and Mohawk, wags his tongue at me as I glare back trying to keep up with Tigor who is almost to the street in five steps.
Goggles guy hops off, along with two other humans, but the orc keeps his focus on Tigor. Mol’s growl comes from behind my shoulder as he settles in just behind Tigor.
They meet the humans at the curb, fists clenched as Raven’s voice calls to me from behind, telling me to step away.
I’ve been known to not make the best of decisions when I’m angry. That’s why the social workers had to move me around so much in foster care. I had what they call, ‘An attachment disorder coupled with an explosive and unpredictable temper’.
Translated…I don’t trust easily, and I don’t take any shit.
I’m next to Tigor before he can object. “You think you can take my home? I’ll build a moat around it and shoot flaming arrows from the roof if necessary.”
Tigor spins, mouth open looking at me as the guy with goggles lunges forward, darting his hand out before I can swat it away. His fingers clamp around my throat.
Time seems to slow. I reach up and grab his forearm to tug it away, but as my fingers grip his wrist there’s a metallic flash in front of me and a scream.
His hand drops from my throat in one easy pull but I’m blinded by a spray of warmth and the coppery tang of blood fills the air.
There’s more screaming as I’m thrown to the ground, wiping the backs of my hands over my eyes only to draw them away covered in crimson smears. And I realize what’s happened.
An armless hand lays on the grass by the curb as Tigor and Mol make quick work of the other three humans, throwing them like dolls into the street as goggles guy cowers behind the vehicle, staring at the remaining stump as he tries desperately to stanch the flow of blood.