Fighting hearts

Seven

Roth was delighted by the prospect of having four hours alone with Evie.

He thought the walk to the farmhouse went smoothly. Evie's questions came a bit as a surprise. He never expected them to discuss how he felt about sleeping with women, but it was nice to be so honest and open with someone, and he was happy that Evie opened up to him as well. She was vulnerable with him, and he believed she was because she trusted him wholeheartedly.

However, the way Evie spoke about Carlisle worried Roth. It worried him for her sake but also his. What would happen if he ever caught their boss doing something to her? Roth couldn't be held accountable for his actions then. He would probably break the man's face. Roth wouldn't just lose his job then. He would end up in prison. The fact that he would go against his boss to protect a woman wouldn't matter. They lived in a world where money was power. Roth may have the power to break Carlisle's little body into pieces, but Carlisle had the power to ruin his life. And his mother's life. And his sisters'. And then what?

Fuck, he was probably overthinking this whole situation. He shouldn't do that. Evie had said she was alright, that nothing serious was the matter, and he should believe and trust her. And above all, he should enjoy this moment with her, right here and now.

"It's always a b-bit stuck," Evie groaned, banging her shoulder against the front door of the farmhouse. "But it seems to be particularly difficult today!"

"May I?" Roth asked.

Evie smiled and nodded. "Yes, please." She stepped to the side to give him space. "Before I make an even bigger fool out of myself."

With one little push, the orc had opened the door. "It was just a little jammed."

"Well, I feel embarrassed now."

Roth chuckled. "Don't be." He knocked on the wooden door. "This will be the first thing on my to-do list. In fact, I will fix it today."

"Won't that be a lot of work? I'm not sure if this place will ever be mine, so I would hate for you to put a lot of work into it."

"It'll only take a few minutes. I just need to reshape the door a bit so it won't get jammed again. This usually happens because of humidity. Because the wood swells a bit."

Evie stepped inside and looked at him over her shoulder. "You sound so knowledgeable. Like a real professional."

Roth laughed as this was just basic knowledge to him and had nothing to do with being a pro, but she was sweet for praising him.

They entered a small foyer. For sure, the space was in desperate need of some tender love and care, but there were no real issues as far as Roth could tell at first glance.

"I want to paint something fairytale-like on the walls," Evie explained. "As you know, red lung often targets the little ones, so I want this sanatorium to cater mostly to them."

Roth admired Evie for wanting to help the patients. "Orc children, in particular, I believe?"

"That's right. Orc kids, from infants to ten-year-olds, are most at risk," Evie replied. "But in the end, everybody can get this horrible disease."

Evie looked sad. Roth wanted nothing more than to hold her, but that would definitely be out of line. Was she thinking about her nephew? She had mentioned he passed away because of red lung a few years back.

Luckily, Roth's loved ones had always been spared that ill fate. He'd known a few kids in the neighborhood who passed away because of it, but the last person in his family who got red lung was his father's twin sister. She died when she was only eight years old. Roth had always imagined it was traumatic for his father because the man never wanted to speak about it.