The Goblin Bride (Beneath Sands Book 1)

it to the side so that she could see his face more clearly.
“This one is different.”
“You have said that already my queen.” He said softly, bowing lower when she looked at him with disdain in her eyes. “I merely acknowledge your words.”
“You acknowledge Ruric, but you do not listen.”
Her nail tapped the man on the chin, then reached behind him to pull the long blonde braid around his shoulder.
 “This one is female.”
 There was a ripple through the goblins, each one leaning forward just slightly as they scrutinized the creature before them a little more intensely. Even Ruric was holding his breath as he looked at the man who was not a man. Surely they would have recognized a female when they had one in their grasp. Yet he could not be certain that they would.
  For centuries the goblins had watched their female population diminish. Every generation had produced less and less females until his generation there had only been a small handful that had been produced. They were on the cusp of being wiped out by their own small genetic pool. There simply wasn’t enough of them, even though there were other tribes of goblins underneath the ground.
  Females were spread out between the tribes evenly so that there was a larger chance of genetic differences. That had been the plan for years. Unfortunately, it hadn’t been enough. By the calculations of their doctors there were only a few more years left before every goblin that was born would be male. It was a bleak existence for them, and the slow dying out of a race that had been here far longer than the humans.
  It was why Ruric could believe that they had not seen a female in their midst. Many of the goblins here had never seen a female other than their queen. She was aged, different from many goblins he had seen in his lifetime.
  And this was a female human. They were as unknown to his kind as the land they lived upon. He had not thought twice that all the other men had short cropped hair. Nor had he noticed it when the braid had fallen out of the hat. Most of the goblin men wore their hair long. It was their females that traditionally cropped their hair short to expose the long length of their neck.
  “Female?”
  The words came from one of the court members behind them. Ruric’s shoulders tensed at the sound. Dumar was one of the few goblins that Ruric despised. Since early on in their life the two had been at odds. One meant for importance and responsibility, and the other meant for nothing more than war. He knew how devious Dumar was and he knew how dark the creatures thoughts were.
  It made him nervous that he was showing interest in the female. He wanted to turn back towards the man, to give him a glare that would warn him to keep his tongue quiet for the time being. But he was still looking over the woman before him.
  As though a different light had been shone upon her, he was starting to notice the differences that his queen had mentioned. She was softer in the face than the other men, though he had originally guessed that was due to her age. Her neck was slimmer and longer, her hands more delicate. How were they to know what kind of precious thing they had brought down into their depths.
  “Perhaps she could be used to our advantage then, my queen.” Dumar slowly rose. The other goblin was much taller than he first appeared. All those pretty robes obscured him from view.
  “We have never been given the opportunity to discover if humans are genetically compatible with our kind.” Dumar certainly wasn’t pulling any punches as he voiced his thoughts. “This could be our chance to explore other options. I’m certain the other tribes would approve.”
  Ruric hated the silky tone of the other goblin’s voice. Unlike his own, it was melodic in quality. The rises and falls of soft trills were pleasing to the ear, entrancing sometimes even. Ruric in comparison was far too harsh. His guttural tones could never be considered musical, nor could they be considered soft. Other goblins had even compared him to humans in the way that his voice made their ears twitch.
  “For once I do agree with you.” The queen regarded the female closely, blinking slowly as if trying to gather all the information she could about the woman.
  For Ruric this was all confusing. Females were something none of them had any experience with other than the queen herself. To give such a prized gift to one of the court members would be to bestow a large favor upon the person. It would be the same as naming a successor in the eyes of the other goblins.
  The queen gently stroked a claw along the line of the human woman’s cheekbone. To their culture it was a soft touch, one that should have soothed and calmed. Yet as he watched, the eyes of the woman drifted shut as her shoulders started to shake. He could smell her fear and yet still she remained stubbornly upright. Her bravery was honorable as she faced something surely out of her nightmares.
  “Ruric?”
  “Yes my queen.” She had startled him away from looking at the female again, so fascinated was he by her strength and pride.
  “You have dedicated your life to my protection. I think it fitting now to release you from those shackles.”
  He nearly fell to his knees. To be released from a duty that had been his meaning of life since he was born, was the ultimate disgrace. That she would do it now, in front of the rest of the court, meant that she wanted it to be public. He had no idea what he had done to deserve such treatment, but he nearly howled as she said the words. It was as good as a death sentence in this world. The others would hunt him down and