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I ran and snuffed a lantern in passing. No point in making it easy for the monster to see me.
It hissed, and Palla screamed, “Ash! Ash!” She kept pounding as if she could break down the very solid door.
She couldn’t, and I hoped the monster couldn’t either since the pounding kept it distracted while I reached my dresser with its puzzle drawers. I knew what combinations to slap to open the ones I wanted. The dagger went in one hand and, in the other, one of my newest potions. Not new so much as stronger. I’d taken the sleep potion and made more of it and placed it in a glass vial. I had no idea if it would work against whatever was in my room.
Probably a dragon given it had that sinuous, serpentine feel with wings. They looked a lot more beautiful in the stories. With my tools in hand, I snuffed the lantern on my dresser, plunging the room into darkness. A room I knew well.
The monster snuffled. The hallway was quiet. I doubted Palla had given up. She probably sought another way inside. The only one was the window, and she’d never make it to the roof in time.
Sniffle.The dragon sought to smell me out, and I thanked the fact everything in my room reeked of perfume because I hated the smell of the alcohol that sometimes lingered from my guests’ breath. I remained still. Could the dragon see in the dark?
I couldn’t and had to guess where the dragon might be. The rattle of the bar holding shut the door gave me all the clue I needed.
I lobbed the vial of sleep and muttered, “Goddess Rotha, if you’re listening, I could really use your help with that potion. I need it to be strong. Fast acting. And long lasting.” I wished it really hard, eyes clamped shut, holding my breath lest I inhale some. The gas itself lasted only seconds before becoming undetectable.
It must have worked because I heard an exhalation and the rustle of scales as the dragon slumped.
I’d done it. I put the dragon to sleep! Now to get out before it woke up. My hands only fumbled a little as I lit a lantern and then gaped in horror at the beast currently wedged up against the only door. How was I supposed to escape?
I eyed the window. Climb down? I didn’t have rope, nor the time to tie together sheets and figure out how to hang them. The dragon had fit through my window, and while impressive when it attacked, asleep, it took up less room than a corshmel. I gave it a nudge. Large and cumbersome, but not as heavy as the bulk would imply. Like many birds it must have hollow bones but had fierce teeth and claws I noticed. Careful to avoid them, I shoved it to the side.
The dragon moved out of the way, I put a hand on the bar to heave it off.
I heard a slither from behind me. Surely it wasn’t awake yet? I whirled to see the dragon still on the floor, but a new one peered at me upside down in the window.
Thump.
A glance at the ceiling made me realize it wasn’t alone. I grabbed at the bar across the door, only to shriek as my ankle was caught and yanked. The monster on the floor had woken and dragged me to it.
I flung my knife and yelled, “Goddess take you!”
My aim was better than expected, planting my knife into its eye. Before I could celebrate, the second dragon loomed over me. I flung my vial, and the monster ducked. My sleep potion sailed through the gaping window out of sight.
The dragon lunged for me, and I ducked, but the room wasn’t big enough for me to evade it forever. The one I’d stabbed in the eye squinted at me with the eye that still worked. It stood in front of the door while the other advanced. It reached for me with a hiss, and I swerved, evading its claws, only to get slapped by its tail. I cried out as I hit the wall hard and slid down, slightly dazed. Before I could recover, it slapped me again.
Thunk. Thunk.
I heard yelling and banging through the ringing in my ears. Then an explosion that startled the monster before it could bite my face.
The dragon roared, and I would have sworn I saw flames. My eyes wouldn’t stay open. They fluttered, and my vision blurred. I thought I saw the flash of a glowing sword.
Then nothing until I woke in a bed. A luxurious one.
I didn’t know where I was until the King drawled, “About time you woke up.”
CHAPTERSIXTEEN
Amoment of elation filled me at the sight of the King, then annoyance. He’d ignored me for five days.
“Why am I here? What happened?” Even as I posed the question, recollection hit. I sat up in the bed. “There were dragons in my room.” Or did I imagine it? I put a hand to my aching head.
“Not anymore. They’re all dead.” A flat and grim reply.
“How am I alive?” A slap of my body showed me intact, if bruised. A miracle given what I remembered.
“I got to you just in time.”
“You saved me?” I couldn’t help the surprised lilt.
