Page 2 of Convincing His Little Bee (K!nktober #2)

TWO

Downing his drink, Tor managed to keep a grimace off his demon-glamored face. The idiots surrounding him were…well fucking idiots but they would notice if he wasn’t also acting like an idiot.

The troll to his left laughed uproariously at his own joke, slapping the rickety table, shaking it with the force. Setting his empty tankard down, Tor laughed with the rest of the assembled idiots.

The ale he’d finished churned in his stomach.

Normally one to hold his liquor better than anyone, Tor felt like heaving it all up the longer he sat there.

All of the jokes flying around the room were degrading or racist drivel.

Tor wanted these people out of his fucking territory.

He wanted their heads on spikes to warn others that their kind wasn’t welcomed.

His drakonid roared in his skull, pushing Tor to get rid of the glamor and change.

Calm, you know we have to do this a certain way .

He spoke to the drakonid inside of him, reassuring his inner beast. He wasn’t separate from his drakonid but the instincts that came with his full form had a mind of their own.

His drakonid wanted to shift into his full form, set the run-down bar ablaze, and devour everyone in sight.

Logically, Tor knew there were innocents here.

More than that, he knew there were powerful men invested in this business.

He couldn’t just rampage it all down. He had to go about the destruction of this horrible group invading his territory the right way.

Tor wasn’t willing to risk the lives of his own pack over this fight.

The bar occupied a dilapidated, worn, and crumbling building. It probably didn’t even belong to anyone. Clearly, not their main headquarters.

A hastily erected bar top sat along one wall, tables with mismatched chairs dotted around the room. A large wooden platform had been set up on the wall across from the bar. An amplifying cone sat on a stool to the side, ready and waiting.

It had taken months for one of Tor's men to get entrenched enough to get them invited to an auction night. Taking a newly filled cup from a tired looking young orc waitress, Tor cast his gaze about the room again.

Maybe thirty people were present, more than he expected.

Mirkek, a member of his pack guard, sat with a group near the stage.

Half naked women and men adorned their laps as the group played a gambling game with cards.

Mirkek was often overlooked as a Nāga shifter, not a creature native to the Crimson Reaches.

A perfect cover for him to get in with the lowlifes popping up in droves.

Drugs, booze, sex, and weapons were traded and admired all around the room. Tor had brought a smattering of older, but high quality, weapons in case he needed to trade with anyone to look the part. So far, participating in the drinks and jokes had done what he needed.

He wasn’t there to cause a fuss. Only to observe and get information.

His inner drakonid grumbled at him, listening and watching with keen senses.

On edge, the beast felt the strain of unwanted people in his territory.

However, within the last few minutes, the push from his beast increased more than the odd situation called for. What’s going on?

The atmosphere in the room shifted, conversations quieted down, and the main door opened to Tor’s right. Two tall, well dressed ogres walked in, surveying the space before gesturing to someone outside.

A goblin.

Goblins were odd creatures. Tor didn’t know much about their kind.

Short, wrinkly, gray skinned. They were known to be tricksters, not the type of being to be trusted.

How this one had gotten to his current standing wasn’t common knowledge.

Tor would have been shocked at his sudden appearance but Mirkek had warned him of the species in charge of the operation.

Several more ogres filed in behind the boss. They made their way to the empty table in the middle of the room, the goblin taking a seat cleared for him so he had a perfect view of the makeshift stage.

A vampire, who Tor had noticed sitting at the bar, jumped onto the stage. He wore a velvet suit, shined shoes, and jewels in his ears. He grabbed the voice amplifier and smiled with full fangs on display.

“Welcome one and all! We are here tonight on behalf of Mr. Lough. Can we all have a round of applause for his generosity?” The vampire gestured to the goblin who jumped up with a wide smile to stand on the table.

Even standing on the table, Mr. Lough wouldn’t have been as tall as most of the creatures in this space.

The man waved as everyone around him clapped, cheered, and whistled.

Eventually the goblin took his seat again and gestured for the vampire to continue.

“We have a special night. Some great weaponry on auction first and then…well, something new that Mr. Lough is testing out. I think you’ll like it but I’ll keep the surprise a while longer.” The vampire winked at them, strutting across the stage as he spoke.

“I heard they got a human for sale.” The troll next to him whispered right in his ear.

“Oh?” Tor raised his eyebrows, trying to appear interested instead of nauseous. None of these creatures should be anywhere near a delicate human. Are the rumors true? Tor needed to find out if Mr. Lough had started to sell people. Creatures. Humans…

Bad enough that the goblin had brought drugs and weapons into Tor’s territory.

The drakonid wasn’t a naive leader, and not everyone in his territory were part of his pack since his area encompassed several cities as well as outlying farm and natural lands.

Drugs and violence happened in the cities, but the authorities kept it minimal enough that Tor never needed to step in, nor did the leaders of the cities ask for his assistance.

Until Mr. Lough and his group showed up almost a year ago.

The sale of drugs and weapons had increased tenfold.

Violence, homelessness, and petty crime skyrocketed.

Enough that the leaders of both main cities in his territory had alerted him.

Tor had been investigating and trying to learn everything he could about Mr. Lough ever since.

Tor made appropriate noises with the crowd as the flamboyant vampire introduced weapon after weapon.

A lot were old, others had rare enchantments, a few were from hard to access realms. Tor had no idea how the goblin had gotten his grubby hands on any of the weapons but those were the least of his concern.

The drakonid even placed a few low bids.

He didn’t actually want to win anything. But he did need to blend in.

A break in the action caused the crowd to surge in volume and drunkenness.

Newly purchased weapons were being admired, waved about by clumsy hands.

Mirkek had bid on and won a dagger spelled to siphon magic from its victim for a brief period of time.

The drunk shifter showed it off to his fellow gamblers who looked on in awe.

Fake drunk , Tor could sense it through their pack bond.

The man was a pro and Tor sent pride toward him, receiving a tingle back with an embarrassed acknowledgment.

His inner beast perked up, pushing at his senses.

Tor tried to push him further back, they couldn’t risk detection.

The glamor he wore over his mostly human looking form was still only a potion that some creatures would be able to sense on him.

Well hidden in the dark, surrounded by drunks…

as long as his drakonid side stayed buried.

To the creatures near him, he looked and smelled like a demon.

Drakonids like himself were not only rare, they were viewed as mythical by many cultures.

Most had disappeared from the realms and those that didn’t, wouldn’t show up in a bar like the one Tor sat in.

Everyone would know who he was if he let the beast free. People might not know what Torranock’s face looked like, but most in The Crimson Reaches knew of a Drakonid Alpha in the realm.

Fine! Inhale, asshole! His inner drakonid shouted and then slunk deeper inside, keeping quiet, away from detection.

Inhale? Tor set down his beverage, trying to subtly take in the scents around him. It wasn’t…pleasant. The troll next to him smelled like he didn't bathe regularly. Tor wasn’t sure what his inner beast wanted him to smell.

The crowd hushed, the vampire announcer whispered with the goblin at the front table. Only two of the boss’s ogre guards stood nearby. A slight floral smell trickled into his nose. Flowers ? Tor peered around but before he could notice anything the troll beside him elbowed him in the stomach.

“I think it’s about to start. You ain’t won anything yet, maybe now’s ya chance.” The man wiggled his eyebrows and turned back to the stage. Tor brushed off the weird scent, gone already and so faint he wasn’t sure it was even real.

“Ooookay everyone!” The vampire spoke into the amplifier as he made his way back to the stage with a skip.

“We’re ready for our last auction of the night!

It’s a big one. Mr. Lough has worked so hard to bring this selection to you so let’s make this introduction a huge success and hopefully we’ll have more in the future! ”

Everyone in the bar shouted and banged on the tables, yelling their thanks to the goblin. The vampire settled everyone down. “Bring them both in,” A sparkle shown in the vampire’s eyes that Tor did not like. Tor swallowed the bile trying to come up while keeping his face passive.

One of the boss’s ogres walked in from the area they used for the weapons. Behind him, trailed two beings, the other missing guard bringing up the rear. Tor watched, fists clenched under the table as the two small creatures were prodded onto the stage.

Mine. Mine. Mine.

Tor’s inner beast muttered in his head. The floral scent from before slammed into him, wafting off the first small creature. Calling directly to him .

Fucking hell.

Mine.

I know, shut up so I can focus!

Tor leaned forward, gaze darting between the two creatures as the vampire spoke.

“First we have this little fae, a beautiful specimen for you. Great for any collection. Spelled chains are included in the price, we need to keep this one locked down.” The vampire gestured at the fae, the one whose scent called to Tor.

Tiny. Delicate but fierce. Tor tried to memorize everything about them.

They stood about five feet tall, their hair a yellow blond, cut in a shaggy style close to their head.

Yellow-amber eyes glared at the crowd, a scowl on the fae’s perfect face.

They wore a plain cotton shirt and baggy black linen pants, no shoes covered their tiny toes.

With the vampire’s prodding help, the fae turned around so the crowd could see their wings. The fae refused to flutter them no matter how much the vampire cajoled so they hung limp against their back.

“Go fuck yourself.” The fae shouted loud enough to be heard in the back of the room, even without the amplifier. Good for them.

Even limp, and at rest, the wings were the most mesmerizing things Tor had ever seen.

Translucent with a green and yellow sheen, four wings sprouted from between their shoulder blades.

Their shape and veining reminded him of small insects from Earth.

Bees . The fae’s juicy, plump ass made Tor’s mouth water, wanting to take a bite out of it.

With a start, he realized he was rock hard in his pants and leaking. While the floral scent of the fae overwhelmed him, Tor smelled the arousal of many of the other creatures in the room. He wasn’t the only one lusting after the small creature.

Mine. Mine. Mine.

He wasn’t leaving that bar unless he had that fae in his hands.