Page 7 of Ava's Love of the Dragons
He left without fanfare and without giving her another glance. She would have given him everything she owned as thanks. Although apart from the necklace around her neck with the broken heart pendant, she didn't have anything of value with her anyway. And she wouldn't have given that up after all.
As he left the shed, she crept after him and lingered at the door. With her senses on high alert, she waited and listened. When she was sure that at least ten minutes had passed, she pushed open the door and slipped out into the night.
Chapter 4
Ava crept past the rocks she had passed on horseback just hours before, unable to prevent the feeling that her pulse was doubling in speed with every minute. She expected to be greeted once again by a horde of border guards, with the captain at the forefront, already sharpening his knife. But the soldier who had freed her seemed to genuinely mean well by her. Or rather, by himself and his family.
No one was in sight, no one to be heard. She didn't even see the patrol guarding the border. Nevertheless, she paid attention to each step, so as not to betray herself with a careless move. She was still too close to the soldiers to march briskly.
The stars shone and the moon provided additional light, allowing her to roughly make out the rocky ground. Here and there were loose stones, so she walked carefully. The path leading to Belmonde wound temptingly down the hill, but she took her liberator's advice seriously. She would not go to the capital city. Besides, there was nothing in the city that she was looking for.
She had to head east. That's where the cave was located, where Lilly and the dragon child had stayed. But she wasn't naive enough to believe they were still waiting in that hideout.It was more likely that Kilian had taken the dragon child and Marcus had taken Lilly under his wing. Who knows what story Rob had fed them. Surely he had come up with a credible explanation to convince everyone that Ava would not return.
She quickly crossed the path and plunged into the shadow of the hill without being noticed by the border guards. The greater her distance from them became, the longer her strides grew. Still, she was careful not to make any unnecessary noise. After all, there was a possibility that other patrols were roaming the area.
Belmonde lay to the south like a pearl of the kingdom. It beckoned with its walls and towers, creating an illusion of safety that Ava would not find there. She ran cross-country over meadows interspersed with boulders and barren plains, giving the capital city a wide berth.
As she circled the city, she glanced at the sparkling lights, the fire bowls on the ramparts, and the candles burning in some windows. The architecture was impressively beautiful. And there was water and food there. The mere thought made her insides rebel. When had she last eaten? In the afternoon in the cave. It hadn't been that many hours ago, yet her stomach growled. No wonder, the adrenaline was wearing off and she had been through an unimaginable odyssey.
But she took it as a positive sign. Her body was no longer in a state of alarm—a victory she hadn't counted on. She'd rather be hungry than tied up and sweating in the hut.
Undeterred, she put one foot in front of the other and kept her gaze fixed on the mountains that loomed in the distance as a dark mass. Somewhere out there was the cave. Maybe she would find a trace that would lead her to Lilly and Marcus. Maybe she was even close enough to the dragon child that she could call to it or communicate with it to find out where her friends had gone.
The night passed and she allowed herself no rest. By sunrise at the latest, the border guards would notice her absence and then start the search. By then, she would need to have reached the mountains so there would be places for her to hide. Here on the barren plain with the few mounds that could hardly even be called hills, the soldiers would have been able to see her for miles once they got to the hilltops. The men might even have been able to see over the elevations from the backs of their horses. Apart from a few tall blades of grass, nothing was growing here that would have offered her protection.
But as the morning sun fought its way over the mountain peaks in the east, she was still miles away from the mountains. She hurried on, not knowing where she found the strength. She ran and ran, but the day began and with it the sun illuminated the surroundings. She was still too close to the border. Too close to Belmonde. Too close, too close, too close!
A meadow stretched out a few hundred meters away, its grasses growing hip-high. Better than nothing! She rushed in and fought her way through the stalks. Theoretically, she could hide among them during the day as long as she crouched, but she didn't know if she could last another day without water. Her tongue was sticking to the roof of her mouth and felt like a swollen foreign object. And if the soldiers came along and had that magic stone with them, they would probably find Ava even if she was lying motionless like a fawn amidst the dense grasses. After all, the men had noticed her even in the shelter of the rocks.
The smell of fried eggs and bacon wafted to her nose. She stopped in disbelief. Were there mirages in steppes? Were her senses playing tricks on her?
She slowly let her gaze sweep over the green area and the distant hills until she spotted a wagon parked at the edge of the meadow. The brown-gray tarp covering it blended in with thesurroundings, which was why she hadn't noticed it before. Next to the cart, a thin column of smoke rose towards the sky.
Her stomach growled, but she placed her hand on her belly, and it immediately fell silent. Good. Quietly and with her head ducked, she approached the wagon. With each step, the breakfast smell grew stronger. Eventually, she heard someone whistling cheerfully.
Was this a human Venus flytrap, luring innocents with high spirits and seductive aromas, or was she at the right place at the right time?
She slowed her steps, circled the cart in a wide arc, and looked for a suitable hiding place. Under the cover of tall grasses, she crept closer until she stopped and observed.
A merchant was sitting on a flat boulder. His hat lay beside him and he wore clean clothes. He whistled cheerfully while rummaging in a basket that stood at his feet. In front of him was a small stone circle with embers in the middle, and on top of it rested a pan in which breakfast was sizzling.
"I hear you. Come on over." His voice sounded friendly, not at all surprised.
How had he noticed her? Was he one of the soldiers, traveling incognito?
Frozen like a pillar of salt, she didn't dare to breathe until he raised his gaze and looked directly in her direction. There was no way he could see her through the dense grass! Or could he?
"I won't hurt you if you don't hurt me." He laughed cheerfully. That couldn't just be for show, could it?
Cautiously, she ventured out of her cover, and let out an appreciative whistle. "Good morning, my lady. Have a seat and tell me what brings you to these parts so early. Neither village nor town is within walking distance."
She eyed him suspiciously, but felt silly doing so, for he exuded a natural charm that could win anyone over withinseconds. She probably would have trusted him with her entire life story if she had been the type.
"Good morning. I'm on my way to meet my friends. We were separated."
He gestured invitingly to the stone next to his. "Hungry?"
She nodded, whereupon he pulled out a plate and fork from his basket and held them out to her. "Have a seat, I'm happy to share."
