Eena was pacing while Grizzly was lounging in the bed.
"How can you be so calm? You two conned an entire clan."
Grizzly chuckled as he sat upright.
"We didn't con anybody. We used their rules and won."
She stopped pacing and stared into his eyes.
"You got lucky. What about Ryan? Your plan almost broke him."
He lit a cigarette.
After a drag, he spoke.
"I didn't know about Bjorn's plan with Ryan. Later, he said we needed a little extra push."
He stood up and tried to take her hand.
"Come on, Eena, we won and everything worked out."
She slapped his hand away.
"I know, but what bothers me is that you are telling me this now."
The realisation hit Grizzly like a truck.
He spun her around and hugged her.
"I'm sorry. I should have kept you in the loop from the beginning. From now on, there are no secrets."
For a moment, her face was hard, as if she would strike him.
Her face softened, and she hugged him back and kissed him on the forehead.
"No secrets is a bit much. How about no big secrets?"
They stood there in each other's arms for a few minutes.
They were interrupted by Grizzly's phone.
Never Gonna Give You Up was his ringtone.
He sighed and answered.
He was silent for a minute and answered.
"Good, carry on."
He started laughing.
Eena looked at him with a frown as she sat down on the bed.
"What was that?"
Grizzly sat next to her.
"That was Femur. Ryan and Eragon healed and broke out of the Amazon he had fought."
She stood up and went for the door.
Grizzly darted and blocked her way.
"Whoa, where are you going?"
She put a hand on his shoulder and moved him aside with ease.
"I am going to talk with them."
He grabbed her wrist and spun her so that she fell on the bed.
"They went out without telling us. They want to keep it a secret, wait for them to tell us."
He bent down and kissed her.
She started laughing.
"For a moment, I forgot what it felt like to be young. What do you think went through their minds when they hatched their plan?"
Grizzly kissed her again.
"The only thing that went through their minds was air, and you are young."
She started giggling and kissed him back.
As the two of them had a quiet moment, Eragon and Ryan were knocking on Bell's door.
When the door opened, they saw a mess of red hair spilling over simple pink pyjamas.
When she saw Ryan, she tried to hide behind her mane.
Eragon was the first to speak.
"B, I need a favour."
The girl frowned.
"What kind of favour?"
Ryan looked around and spoke for the first time.
"May we come in?"
Without hesitation, she let the two men enter.
She sat on her bed and tied her hair back.
"What do you guys want, and why does it have to be now?"
Ryan stood still while Eragon paced, speaking.
"We kinda messed up. Ryan felt bad for the Amazon chick, and I healed her. I did too good a job and we snuck her on a ship to the Blood Rose."
Bell's mouth fell open at this revelation.
"What do you want me to do? What can I do?"
Ryan stood in front of her.
"If asked, tell anyone that we were with you all night."
The girl thought hard and started to object.
"I don't want to lie to-"
Ryan knelt before her and took her hand.
"Please, Isabelle. After Eragon healed her, we learned her life was in danger."
A small blush was on her face as Ryan held her hand.
She didn't pull her hand back as she spoke.
"What kind of danger?"
Eragon spoke with anger in his voice.
"She had her vocal chords removed. This was to keep the secrets of the Matriarch."
Bell blinked a few times.
"Is that what you meant when you say you did too good a job?"
Ryan looked up at her.
"Yes. She can speak now and said that Reina would kill her. We couldn't let that happen."
She placed her other hand on his shoulder.
"Ok. If anyone asks, you were here all night."
The two smiled and were lost in each other's eyes.
What broke the moment was the sound of the door opening and closing.
Eragon had left without a word.
At the sound, Ryan shot up and very slowly let go of Bell's hand.
"I must go. Thank you for your help."
As he made his way to the door, Bell grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.
She kissed him on the cheek.
"Good night. You are a good guy, Ryan."
As he left, he walked in a daze all the way to his room.
Inside his bed, Eragon was playing games.
"That was quick."
Ryan moved to his bed.
"What do you mean?"
Eragon gave him a sly smile.
"You two were lost for a moment there. That is why I left."
A blushing Ryan climbed into his bed.
"I don't know what came over me."
Ergon put away his game and switched off the light.
"I do. She is worth it, dude. Just keep doing what you're doing."
Ryan went to sleep with a smile on his face.
The next morning, Ryan was woken up by Eragon's ringing phone.
After a short conversation, Eragon stood up.
"That was Grizzly. He called us for a meeting."
Ryan felt a hand grab his heart.
"Did he say what it was about?"
Eragon shook his head.
"Nah, but he said we should be at his place in thirty minutes."
Ryan took a deep breath.
Grizzly probably found out what they had done.
He was willing to accept any punishment.
The duo got dressed in silence.
Ryan decided to speak as they walked to the door.
"Do you think this is about what happened last night?"
Eragon shrugged.
"I don't think so. Grizzly sounded too calm. Wait for him to talk first so you don't incriminate yourself."
Ryan smiled as they made their way to the old man.
With every step, Ryan's anxiety grew.
What if they were found out?
Would he be banished?
Before he knew it, they were at the door.
Ergon knocked and entered at the same time.
Grizzly, Eena and Bell sat around a big table.
They each had a steaming cup of coffee.
There were two extra cups, and one was twice the size of the other.
Grizzly gave his small salute, Bell smiled and nodded, and Eena stood up.
She walked to the young men.
"Did you boys sleep well?"
Eragon nodded.
"Like a baby."
Ryan nodded as his anxiety fell from his heart.
"I did, thank you."
She walked with them to the table.
Grizzly spoke first.
"The reason why we are here so early is because we are going to escort the Orcs back to their village in three days."
Ryan listened and frowned.
"Orcs have hundreds of tribes. Why are we taking them to one village?"
Grizzly nodded and lit a cigarette.
"Aleksandar spoke with the leader of the Barren tribe. They will take in all the Orcs and help them go home."
He nodded at Grizzly's explanation.
After a big drag, he continued.
"The Orcs are being processed, and we will talk with a representative tomorrow."
Ryan decided to ask a question.
"That all seems standard. Why were we called in for something that happens tomorrow?"
Grizzly answered the young man.
"It is mostly to give you kids a chance to go home for a while. We have been working nonstop for weeks. Eena and I will go to the village, and you three can take a few weeks off."
Bell spoke with a smile.
"Grizzly, I want to go with you guys. How many people can say they went to an Orc village?"
Eragon spoke up, too.
"I didn't do much up until now. It is the least I can do."
Bell punched his shoulder.
"You just want to play games with the kids."
The Draconian shrugged.
"Maybe."
Eena looked at Ryan and asked.
"What about you, Ryan? Do you want some time off, or do you want to come with us?"
Ryan smiled at her and glanced at Bell for a moment.
"There is nowhere else I would rather be."
With a smile, Grizzly declared.
"You kids take the day off, and we will gather here at eight in the morning."
Eragon groaned.
"Is it too late to take the time off?"
Without missing a beat, Grizzly answered.
"Yes."
As the three left Grizzly's place, Ryan sighed in relief.
"For a moment, I had thought we were found out."
Bell walked next to him.
"Don't worry. They didn't ask me anything about you two."
Eragon slapped him on the back.
"See. You were nervous over nothing."
Ryan nodded as they made their way to his room.
There were many games to play on their day off.