Page 104 of The Orc Warrioress and the Elf Lord

“You remember Dathor?” she said.

“Everyone remembers Dathor.” Hathrak slugged back the rest of his ale. “Did you know that he went back to that keep of his and threw out the orc army and allied with his cousin—because he’s half elf, you know, so he has their blood.”

She furrowed her brow.

“He and the steward of that keep are fighting off the orc army.”

“I thought he killed the steward of the keep.”

“Must have faked it,” said Hathrak. “Must have planned to double-cross us all along.”

“No, it was my fault,” she said. “I sent him home.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you know he wanted an alliance.”

“Yes, he’s got that now. He’s an elf sympathizer. He always has been. Always will be, I suppose.”

“I convinced him that we should try to work with the elves for an assassination. We met with a group of elves who opposed Findas, and I told them that if they killed the king, they could then send word to our father and that he would halt an attack for my safety. Which I knew was a lie, but I thought it wouldn’t matter, that I must do whatever I could to take out Findas.”

“Odd that here I am, negotiating in much the same way for you, however.”

“Except you just said that you were not ever going to attack Cirlahir!”

He laughed, drinking more of his ale.

“Anyway, they had me stay in the castle with Iahir. I was posing as his…” She search for the right orcish word. “Woman,” she finally settled on.

Hathrak set his ale down and surveyed her. “Were you.”

“It was a ruse,” she said.

“But you were travel companions.”

“I don’t know. He sort of followed me around, truly,” she said. “But then I was glad to have him. He has a lot of money, so that was welcome. He could pay for all manner of things.”

Hathrak shrugged. “I suppose.” He got up. “Well, I will relay what I think is pertinent of this to our father, beloved. You will not be punished as a deserter. And you may have your choice of where you’d like to be stationed. We are in the middle of talks with the elves now, but we have no intention of giving up the keeps in the north that we have taken. We think that the southern elves will not care what we do in the north, and we are also intent on having some representation in the government.”

“Truly?” She stood up, too. “There are those kinds of talks.”

“Dathor’s ramblings did have an effect, I think,” said Hathrak. “Perhaps, before he came to Bilkwood, no one had any notion of what they thought might happen after we invaded the capital. But he forced us all to think of it. It is going to be something. But the orc army will remain present in Lothnehil, and there will be a place for you.”

She smiled at him. “Thank you, beloved. For speaking for me.” She was grateful, truly, she was. It was only…

Well, it was nothing.

This was likely the best thing that could have happened. She should have appealed to Hathrak right away. If she had ever thought of him as really her brother, perhaps she would have, but she had not, truly. She had practically forgotten he existed, and she had assumed he had forgotten about her.

“I wish I had thought of you more, beloved,” he said to her. “I’m afraid, after we parted ways, I did not think much at all of you until I heard you had deserted, and then I wondered about you. But even so, it was not until I heard you were being offered up to me that I did anything. I did not look for you. I did not send anyone else to find you. I am not what you would want from family.”

“It’s all right,” she said. “I can take care of myself.”

“Well, we will break camp in the morning and shift direction. We are heading to Matlinrir next to see if we can get them to leave that city to us. But I will send someone with you to the capital, along with a missive for our father. Yes?”

“Oh, I cannot stay with you, with the army?”

“I must follow protocol, I think,” said her brother. “If I did not, it might look as if I was harboring you and protecting you from punishment as a deserter. We both know you are not, and our father will know, too. But it is best to do things properly, I think.”