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“You do not know the full story.”
“Then tell it to me. I want to know why you are miserable and why you insist on staying like that!”
I hesitate slightly, but finally say, “Before I was taken . . . Pellia and I . . . we fought.”
Friza nods. “Yes, she told me, though she only told me it was about Claiming. Why fight about that?”
That makes me hesitate again. Am I telling things that Pellia would rather were not shared? But I need to make Friza understand, so she stops pushing. So I continue, “We fought because I told her I loved her, that . . . I wanted to Claim her. She has things in her past that made it so that she did not react well to those words. She accused me of wanting to own her.”
“And you explained that’s not what Claiming means for orcs?”
“I tried . . . but she left before I could.” I finish lamely.
“Then all the more reason you should talk to her! This is all a misunderstanding. You would deprive yourself of the one you love over a misunderstanding? That does not sound like the Warchief I know.”
I shake my head. “You don’t understand. You weren’t there. The idea of me loving her . . . it made her panic. I will not risk upsetting her again, not when she is recovering.”
“She is done recovering,” insists my second, “or the healer would not have let her travel. You owe it to both of you to figure this out, not run from it!”
“You don’t understand,” I repeat, “and I am done having this conversation. You are dismissed, Friza.”
My second looks at me with fire in her eyes, indignation warring with duty, but I know that her pride will only allow duty to win in the end. So she nods at me, noticeably not doing the fists of respect on her chest, and leaves the room.
It only takes me a few minutes to realize that I’ve made a mistake. With Friza there to distract me, I at least wasn’t pining for Pellia, but with no one there to divert my thoughts, they settle on my beloved human and will not move away from them. For the next hour, I am tormented by my thoughts of her and of Friza’s admonishment. Could it be so easy as just talking? Could I have Pellia back in my life? But I am bound by my oath and I will not break it. I am an orc of honor and honor is all I have left, now that Pellia is lost to me.
I get no work done as I sit in my office stewing. When there is a sharp rap on the door, I am most eager to have someone, anyone, to break me out of my melancholy yearning.
“Enter.”
Friza enters again, looking annoyed. “The Council is at it again. They demand that a regent come and settle their arguments.”
Was there a Council meeting that I forgot about? It is possible. My mind has been all over the place lately. Standing from my chair, I say, “I will go. You did not let them bother Pellia, did you?”
Friza shakes her head. “No, I knew you wouldn’t want that. I told them I’d fetch you.”
As much as I disdain being something for my second to come “fetch” for the convenience of a bunch of humans, I amglad she did so. Pellia doesn’t need to put up with their nonsense so soon after returning. She should be gathering her strength, not have it sapped by whining insects, buzzing about with political agendas.
I follow Friza through the castle, but again, I am distracted. Everywhere we go, my body is tuned to Pellia. My eyes search for her presence.Just to make sure she is alright, I tell myself.She looked so small a week ago in her bed. But I don’t get a glimpse, which only makes the Mating Instinct in me more frantic.
I’m so focused on trying to find Pellia, I do not even notice that we have arrived at the Council Chamber and it takes me a moment to realize . . . I do not hear any voices coming from within. I look at my second, confused, and still step in. Only to find that the Council is not there, but Pellia is, standing on the other side of the room, across the Council Chamber.
I whirl toward my second-in-command and she merely shrugs. “Sorry, My Warchief,” Friza says, backing out of the room. “But I owed her a favor and this is how she aimed to claim it.”
Then my second is gone, the door shut behind her. I hear the lock turn and click, and then I am alone in the Council Chamber with Pellia.
She steps forward and I can feel my heart lighten, even as fear fills me as well. It is good to see her standing, looking hale and hearty, even as recrimination shines in her beautiful eyes. We are both silent for a few moments, as she moves forward, around the table and closer to me. The seconds tick away as we stare at each other. I long to rush toward her, to take her in my arms, to take her lips with mine. To let her know over and over that I belong to her, and that I hope against hope that she belongs to me as well.
Finally, when she is a few feet away, she speaks, breaking our charged silence. “You left me.”
Her words are like blows. They are succinct and accusatory, shooting straight to my heart. I respond, “I had to.”
“Why? Why did you have to?”
My feelings are on the tip of my tongue, but I swallow them down. I shake my head. “I cannot tell you that. Please do not ask me.” If she asks me, I will tell her again how I love her, how I long for her, and I swore I would not burden her with those declarations again.
We are silent again. I can see the hurt in her eyes, in the carriage of her body. I am confused. How could I be hurting her when all I am seeking to do is what she wants?
She breaks the silence again. “Very well. I won’t ask you again. But I won’t let you run from me any longer, Verrick,” Pellia speaks passionately, her voice raising slightly with her agitation. “I have something that I need to say to you.”
