Heir of Dust and Wind

Chapter 10 - Answers

Ava woke slowly. 

It was as if the exhaustion caused by her lack of sleep in the previous two weeks had finally caught up with her. She had slept so deeply, even her nightmares hadn't broken through.

Blinking the sleep away, she became suddenly aware that she wasn't in her bed. This one was wider, and the sheets were cooler, made from a satin-like cloth, that felt very differently from her simple cotton sheets at home.

Jolting upright, she surveyed her surroundings. 

She was in a dark, spacious room that was only scarcely furnished. Next to the bed was a bedside table with a lamp on it. To her right was a windowfront, but the heavy curtains were drawn, so it was impossible to say what the windows looked out two. An open sliding door to her left revealed a simple but elegant bathroom. There was another, closed door, which she assumed led to whatever lay beyond this room.

How had she come here? And where exactly was here anyway?

As if her brain had chosen this exact moment to finally wake up completely, memories flooded her mind. 

The men in the bookshop, the portal, the dragon.

Her breath came out in shallow gasps and her heart hammered in her chest. This had to be another creepy dream. Or maybe not? The room certainly fit the style of the office that her memories had shown her.

A soft rustling sound made her turn towards the windows. A small shriek of surprise escaped her before she could stifle it with her hand. She pressed herself closer to the headboard, pulling the blanket up to her chin as if it would provide protection from what she saw in the dark corner.

She wasn't alone.

As her eyes continued to adjust to the gloominess of the room, she could make out the man from the bookstore. Trygve.

He was standing in front of an armchair. She assumed him getting up had caused the rustling that had made her aware of his presence. The darkness of the corner had apparently made her overlook him when had taken in the room for the first time. 

He was regarding her, face impassive, before dropping into a kneeling position on one leg. He put his hand above his heart and bent his head.

An image flashed through her mind again. She had seen that gesture before from another man. Gainor. He had done it when speaking to his boss back in the concrete room.

But why would this man now bow to her? If at all, it was her who should be thanking him for saving her life. Twice, she realised.

Irritatingly, the man in the office, who Gainor had referred to as Frode, she recalled, had also attacked them in the end, although she had no clue as to why. The last thing she remembered was the dragon-man shielding her with his body. After that everything was dark.

Belatedly, Ava realised that the man continued kneeling without so much as looking up at her. Meanwhile, she still cowered in the bed, pretending that the blanket could protect her from whatever he was. He was seemingly waiting for her to tell him that he could get up.

Well, there was only one way to find out.

"Please," she croaked, mouth dry. "Get up."

Her voice was barely audible, making her sound vulnerable and weak. Yet, Ava was glad she had managed to speak at all. She hated speaking to strangers, to begin with, and had a hard time overcoming her shyness in most other conversations. Being alone in a room with a huge man that could turn himself into and even larger, mystical and certainly lethal creature, didn't help at all. Still, somehow her yearning for answers and explanation had beat her timidness.