She hurried in and took pictures of all the vials on his shelf. She photographed each label carefully, then sent the pictures to Shauna with a text to translate them.
Her phone died. Audrey swore under her breath and shoved it into her pocket. But it was fine. She had the radio, and The Tusk Hunters would let her know that way. Once they translated the labels, she’d know which of the potions might come in handy.
She went to the locked door and took out the skeleton key, but she heard voices outside before she could unlock it. She gave up, knowing she wouldn’t have time, and went to look through the window.
Morgath was talking to a young orc who had distinctive human features. Smaller tusks, pointy ears, light green skin. He was shorter than Morgath and leaner, dressed in mage’s robes and a chain of linked metals around his neck.
The young mage listened to the captain with attention, nodding and asking questions. He seemed confident, standing straight and looking him in the eye when he spoke.
Audrey walked out before they could come inside and find her. She hoped she’d be less suspicious that way, showing them she had nothing to hide.
She ran to Morgath, looking as innocent as she could manage, and threw her arms around his neck.
“I wanted to see you,” she said, her voice muffled against his chest. “I missed you.”
Morgath laughed. He kissed the top of her head but didn’t get more intimate than that. He pulled back and gestured to the young orc.
“This is Nezhar the Sharp. My new apprentice.”
Nezhar bowed his head.
“It’s an honor to meet the captain’s mate.”
“It’s great to meet you too,” she said.
“I’ll see you at dinner,” Morgath said, squeezing her arm gently. “How are you feeling? Better?”
“Oh, yes. Much. I think we can remove the bandages.”
“I’ll do it later.”
“No worries, I can do it myself. I’ll ask the girls for help.”
Morgath nodded and added that he needed to test Nezhar some more, so he would be busy all day. She kissed him again, rising up on her toes, then watched him and his apprentice disappear into the hut.
As she walked back to town, Audrey thought of her plan. She wanted to slit Jorrad’s throat herself. Maybe with a magic infused blade. She would need to find one, though. Maybe Morgath kept the weapons he was infusing with magic in the locked room. That made sense, right? Or maybe, if his vials contained poison, she could poison Jorrad, then slit his throat with one of her daggers.
Either way, she was getting this done. Then she was out of here. She would put it all behind her. Maybe even retire from the Tusk Hunters.
Chapter Twenty-One
Audrey crossed the town as quickly as she could without drawing attention. She kept her head low and forced herself to walk at a normal pace.
As she neared the house, she spotted a group of orcs ahead on the street. Her stomach dropped when she recognized them. Brakus the Immovable and Raknar the Steadfast were moving down the road, talking loudly with Jorrad the Brutal. They were walking toward her, and there was no way to avoid the encounter without looking suspicious.
Brakus was telling Jorrad that the krags were fine, just tired after the long trip. He said he was feeding them well and brushing them daily, making sure they recovered their strength. Audrey stopped dead in her tracks.
This was him. The orc who’d killed her family fifteen years ago. The orc whose face had haunted her nightmares and fueled her every waking moment since she was ten years old. He was right there, walking toward her.
She felt sick to her stomach. Her hands started trembling, and she clenched them into fists at her sides. Her vision blurred at the edges. Cold sweat broke out on her skin, and her mouth went dry. But she forced herself to stay still and keep breathing.
The orcs spotted her and their conversation died. To her despair, Raknar stepped forward with a smile, clearly intending to make introductions.
“Audrey, this is Jorrad the Brutal, one of our finest warriors who just returned from an important mission. Jorrad, this is Audrey, the captain’s mate.”
Jorrad leered at her, his dark eyes traveling slowly down her body and back up again. He bowed his head in what looked like forced respect.
“So, this is the human who made Morgath the Skullreaper change his mind?”