[Queen of Orcs 02] - Clan Daughter by Morgan Howell Read Free Book Online Page A

the darkness. “Is there road?”
    “Hai,” said Kovok-mah, pointing into the gloom.
    “We must follow it,” said Dar. “When it forks, we will go right. Road will go through hills where we can hide.”
    Kovok-mah gazed into the night. “Hills are far away.”
    “You can see them?” asked Dar.
    “Hai. Unless we run, golden eye will rise before we reach them.”
    “I can’t run,” said Dar.
    “I’ll run for you,” said Kovok-mah. He knelt down. “Climb on my shoulders.”
    Dar was disconcerted by the idea but realized they wouldn’t reach the hills otherwise. She hiked up her skirt and climbed on Kovok-mah’s broad shoulders, placing a leg on either side of his neck. He grasped her ankles, then rose. Dar felt as high above the ground as when she rode Thunder. She grasped Kovok-mah’s head to keep her balance, taking care not to pull his hair.
    “Are you comfortable?” asked Kovok-mah.
    “I’ll manage,” said Dar, not feeling comfortable at all.
    Kovok-mah spoke to the other orcs. “We must reach hills while it’s still dark. Follow me.” With those words, he commenced to run.
    Kovok-mah’s loping stride had an easy motion, and after a while, Dar grew accustomed to her perch. The road flowed beneath her, a dim, gray ribbon winding through shadows. The countryside was only a murky blur. As Dar sped through the darkness, she was mostly aware of Kovok-mah. Movement united them. She felt the pulse of his blood, the rhythm of his breathing, and the heat of his body as if they were her own. In her exhausted state, she imagined they had become a single creature, running wild in the night.
    At last, Dar became aware of black shapes rising in the distance. They entered the hills as the sky lightened in the east. Kovok-mah slowed his pace and left the road to pick his way up a slope and into trees. Dar remained on his shoulders until he gently lifted her from them. She was vaguely aware that the Embrace of Muth la was being marked. When the orcs sat down to sleep, Kovok-mah set her on his lap and folded his arms about her. He’s still warm from running , thought Dar as she drifted off to sleep.
     
    Dar awoke within a dense stand of undergrowth. It was late afternoon. She was lying on the ground. Zna-yat, Varz-hak, and Lama-tok sat close by, sound asleep. Kovok-mah and Duth-tok were nowhere to be seen. Dar studied Zna-yat’s sleeping face in a futile effort to discern what made him different from the others. Recalling the previous night seemed like trying to remember a fading dream. Did he really draw his sword, or did I only imagine it? It had been too dark for her to see the weapon. If he did draw it, what were his intentions? Though Dar made an unsettling guess, she was certain of only one thing: Zna-yat had lied to her.
    As lies went, Zna-yat’s was childishly transparent. He couldn’t have mistaken Dar, for he saw clearly in the dark and she had addressed him in Orcish. Dar concluded that Zna-yat was neither accustomed to lying nor good at it. Nevertheless, she was disturbed that he had lied at all, for she had believed that orcs were incapable of such deception. Once again, she was forced to reassess her beliefs. If Zna-yat was capable of lying, then he was capable of treachery. He might not confront her openly; instead, he might choose to use a blade in the dark. That possibility worried Dar, but it didn’t terrify her. She had grown used to danger. Zna-yat was just another threat among many. The trick is never to be alone with him.
    Dar’s ruminations were interrupted when Kovok-mah and Duth-tok pushed through the foliage. Each bore handfuls of mushrooms. Dar welcomed the food, but worried about the risks undertaken to gather it. “It’s dangerous to seek food in daylight,” she said.
    “It’s safer than taking washavoki food,” replied Kovok-mah, giving Dar a meaningful look.
    “From now on, I won’t need to take it. They’ll give it to me.” As Dar tore Theena’s skirt and blouse