***Cadiz***
I must have fallen asleep at some point during the night.
My body had simply given up after hours of sitting pressed against the door, fear and exhaustion finally dragging me under despite the terror that kept trying to pull me back to consciousness.
I'd slumped there against the wood, my head resting at an awkward angle, and at some point the world had just faded away into merciful darkness where I didn't have to think about underground chambers or hunting voices or the terrible possibility that I might never be safe again.
I didn't know how long I'd been asleep. It could have been minutes or hours, time had lost all meaning in the darkness of this room where I'd been hiding like a cornered animal.
Then a scent filled the air.
