The Wharf

Episode VIII

After Ollie’s abrupt departure, Maiyah found herself facing quite a different set of challenges than before. While she no longer had the need to hide Brugo, nor was she required to fulfill her normal list of chores, the poor barmaid was saddled with all the work Ollie normally did, which was far more than she’d ever realized.

There were the books to do each day, along with ordering fresh supplies, assigning duties, and paying wages to all those employed at the tavern.

The problem was… Brugo was in constant need of attention, often refusing to let Maiyah out of his sight. It was an unusual change in the little one’s behavior, since Ollie had gone. It was almost as if the baby were searching for him, from the moment she brought him down each morning, til they retired to her room for the evening. It seemed odd that the baby would notice Ollie’s absence, and Maiyah wasn’t entirely sure that it was all just her imagination.

What she did know with certainty, was the increase in Brugo’s crying sessions. He’d barely made a peep when she was hiding him in her bedroom, but now he seemed to cry all the time.

It made no difference whether she fed him, changed him, or even tried to play with him. No longer was it safe to leave the baby by himself, as he began to find mischief wherever he was, at the moment.

Somehow, he learned how to open doors, drawers, and any cupboard that wasn’t padlocked! Maiyah spent all her free time cleaning up his messes, which seemed to be everywhere.

Days turned into weeks, with Maiyah struggling to keep the tavern running, in Ollie’s absence. At times, she would feel so frustrated with her situation that it filled her with anger towards the aggravating Orc. She told herself that it wasn’t her problem, so this was the time to simply walk away. She could be well and clear of the place, before Ollie ever returned, and surely someone else could care for baby Brugo.

But then, at night, while she sat beside the sleeping babe, Maiyah knew that she could never abandon either the child, or Ollie. The orc was the only family she had now, just him and Brugo…

As time went on, Maiyah began to have troubling thoughts about Ollie’s version of things, as well as, how abruptly his behavior had changed when he read the letter she’d given him. How she now wished that she’d broken her own rules. She should have read the letter first, before giving it to the orc.

Why would Ollie lie about the timing of when he bought her from off that ship, so long ago? There wasn’t any way that the sleeping baby was older than she was, as Brugo couldn’t be more than a year old, possibly two. Maiyah, herself, was nearly grown into a young woman, and she hadn’t been more than seven or eight when she first set eyes on Ollie.

And, why was he so quick to hand her the tavern key? The business of running the place had always been his passion. Something wasn’t right, and Maiyah knew it. But, as to what wasn’t right, the answer was yet to reveal itself.

A great distance from the old shanty town, Ollie found himself journeying along an old familiar trail, heading toward a distant seaport, rather than toward the orc’s clan. He’d already decided that he would not seek them out, as they had turned their backs on him after he abandoned Shelor, and his son. There would be no warm welcome from any of his clan. Some wounds run deep, and stretch beyond one’s lifetime, never to be mended.

Ollie felt a pang of guilt over leaving the way that he did, vowing never to return to that world, after the way things went with Shelor’s clan. The circumstances were partly his fault, but much of the blame truly lay with the leaders of both clans. They had ruined everything for the young couple, and when Ollie left, he felt certain that he would never look back.

It wasn’t Maiyah’s fault that she wasn’t orc, by blood. How could he choose between the human child that he’d raised, and the woman he loved, not to mention his own son!

All that the orc had ever wanted was a family, his own clan. Maiyah was just as much a part of that clan, as his wife and baby. For a time, he had actually believed that it might work out…

He split his time between the tavern, and life within his wife’s clan. But, for as much as he tried, Ollie wasn’t able to convince the clans to allow his human daughter to join them. Even Shelor had accused him of loving Maiyah over herself, and their son. Things quickly fell apart, after that. Both clans threatened to turn him away, unless he abandoned the tavern life, as well as, his human pet, as they called Maiyah.

Now, the orc found himself separated from his clans, his wife and son, and his life upon the wharf. And, to make the orc feel even worse, he bitterly regretted the lies he’d offered Maiyah, shortly before they parted. He was a coward! How could he tell her the reason why things had gone the way they had? She would be devastated at such an awful truth, just as he now felt.

In shame, the orc made his way along the trail until it split, and then carried on down the path that led to the sea, instead of inland, toward his warring clans. There, he boarded the first vessel in need of an extra sailor, and sought to forget all that he was leaving behind…

Deep in the heart of orc territory, amidst a myriad of battle encampments, sat Brugo’s mother, Shelor. All orc were born to be warriors, whether male or female… it was the way of their people. Shelor had seen many battles before, though none since the birth of her son. It now felt different, somehow, though she found it difficult to understand the reason why. She should be proud to fight alongside her clan, and even more proud to die upon the battlefield. That was every orc’s pursuit, especially hers! At least it had been, at one time.

Sitting before the fire, listening to the men as they talked of the upcoming battles, all Shelor could do was think of Brugo. Her heart ached at the thought of never seeing him again, never feeling the touch of his fingers tangled in her hair, nor holding him in her arms. What if she die in battle, without knowing what happened to the child? After the way she had crushed Ollie’s spirit, over the human child he’d raised, Shelor understood why her husband would never come for her, now. The least she could hope for was that he would care for their son, in her absence. Surely, he would do that.

Shelor had watched from a distance, on the day she’d left Brugo behind the fish shed, just outside her husband’s tavern. The young barmaid that found the baby, fit the description Ollie had given of his human daughter, from what Shelor could remember. The girl looked kind, Shelor thought, and had felt sure that the baby would be kept safe. As she sat watching the flames flickering in the darkness, Brugo’s mother pray that she had made the right decision…

Back in the small shanty village, miles away from the orc battlefields, and oceans away from Ollie, Maiyah watched over the baby, as if he were her own. Night after night, she sat by his bedside as he lay sleeping, hoping with all her heart that Ollie would one day return. And, with the babe’s mother by his side!

Maiyah pray that perhaps one day, they could all become a family. The young barmaid hadn’t any memory of a mother, so the idea of a family began to wash over her like a comforting, warm blanket.

Many times, long after the streets lay empty and quiet, and when sleep refused to come, Maiyah walked along the dock, listening to the sound of the waters. Would Ollie ever return? A nagging doubt had begun to grow, as to whether the orc had simply fled, abandoning both her and the baby.

In truth, Ollie didn’t owe Maiyah anything, nor was he obligated to her, in any way. She had been nothing more than a purchase, a worker for his tavern, so perhaps he hadn’t cared for her so much, after all…

Will Ollie return from the sea? Can Maiyah keep the tavern afloat, and still manage to care for Brugo? Will Shelor survive the impending battle?

Until next time…

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