Page 12 of Ava's Love of the Dragons
Rob had noticed her disappearance.
"Come here immediately, or I'll forget myself and dishonor the dragon cave on the spot!" He screamed her name incessantly as he ran through the vaults. And he was running straight to her, as if he knew where she had disappeared to. But she hadn't even disappeared yet! She was standing in the pantry, practically stuck in a rock crevice, and couldn't move forward.
Lilly pulled relentlessly at her hand, but it was no use. Ava signaled her to run away. She shouldn't risk her life. But the girl stubbornly shook her head.
What would Rob do to Lilly if he found out she had tried to help Ava escape? Would he show no mercy even to a child?
At the thought, she turned pale, wanting to release her hand from Lilly's and go back into the dining room before the dragon fighter discovered the girl. But Lilly held her tight, so she didn't get far. Quickly, the little one slipped past her, pushed her into the crevice as far as possible, and stood in front of her.
Ava couldn't believe it. Did she seriously want to count on Rob's sympathy? That would never work!
Immediately, she pushed forward to protect the girl, but the little one shook her head, put her finger to her lips, raised her hands, and squeezed her eyes shut. A delicate lilac-colored glow appeared, rising like a wall in front of them and concealing the rock crevice as if there were no passage in the wall.
Rob's footsteps drew closer, and the next moment he came running around the corner. He looked directly at the spot where Ava and Lilly were hiding, but didn't see their faces. His gaze swept over them as if he couldn't see them at all.
Angrily, he clenched his hands into fists before his voice took on a coaxing tone. "I understand, Ava, I was too hard on you. Come here, and we'll find a solution together."
When she didn't answer, he immediately dropped the fake friendliness act and switched to a hostile tone. "If you'reseriously trying to run away, I swear to you that these breaths are your last!"
As if she hadn't already, if it were up to him... Did he really think she was that gullible?
She stood stock-still behind Lilly, barely daring to breathe or move so as not to break her concentration. Lilly kept her hands raised continuously and her eyes tightly shut, while the purple glow hovered steadily in front of them.
Ava knew exactly what the girl was doing, even though she had never seen anything like it before. And she knew what Lilly was risking.
Everything.
Slowly, she placed her hands on Lilly's shoulders to give her strength, to show her how grateful she was. To show her that she didn't judge her.
Rob ran out and searched the next room. He combed through every corner, passed by them more than five times without seeing them, until he cursed loudly and left the cave with determined steps.
Yet they still waited, wordless, motionless, almost frozen. As the dragon fighter didn't return, eventually Lilly let out an endlessly deep breath, lowered her hands, and collapsed in on herself. Ava caught her.
"Incredible. Thank you, Lilly, but you shouldn't have done that. You must never put yourself in danger for me!"
The little one turned around. She was deathly pale and exhausted. "I'd do anything for you." She smiled tiredly, causing Ava to hug her tightly to her chest.
"Thank you."
"We need to go."
She was right.
"Is there an escape route I can fit through?"
Lilly nodded. "On the other side of the cave. That's the way I was originally going to come through, but Rob was in the way. I'll show you." Quick as lightning, as if she hadn't just used up all her energy, she took off running.
How she had missed this girl.
Ava followed her, and they reached a narrow passage through the rocks. It was wide enough for her to pass through. Still, she hesitated.
"Are you sure Rob isn't waiting for us somewhere in there?" Uncertainly, she looked into the passage and then back at the main cave, which was still deserted. They hadn't seen him go out. He could have been hiding anywhere. Or frantically searching the area.
"He'd never fit through here. Besides..." she bit her lip and glanced briefly over her shoulder at Ava, a heavy admission of guilt in her eyes, "...he can't see it."
So the girl had already used her magic before to save Ava, and had followed a damned sophisticated plan.
Her admiration for the little one grew.
