Adar

Chapter 2 : The meeting

"We are coming in," said the guardsmen through the door opening.  

Adar stayed silent. What are they going to do? Have they finally decided to kill me? These thoughts ran through Adar's head as he heard the key being inserted in the lock. 

The guardsmen opened the door, letting light from the hallway torches enter. Adar was sitting at the wall opposite the door.  Suddenly three men came from behind the guardsmen and entered into the room. They grabbed Adar and lifted him up to his feet. They turned him around and smashed him face forward into the wall. Two of the men grabbed Adar's arms, twisting them behind him. The third man began to bind his wrists with rope.  

"Is he secured?" The guardsmen asked.  

The third man finished binding Adar's wrist, turning to look at the guardsmen. He was taller than the guardsmen by a head. He had a large chest; his arms were easily the size of the guardsmen’s thighs. He wore a gray and black uniform as did the other men.  

"Langstrom himself sent us to retrieve him. He will be more than secure. If he does not cooperate, then he will be in pain. " 

The guardsmen stepped aside as the three men hauled Adar out of the cell. He was non-resistant as they pulled him along, roughly. There was no point in fighting. He could feel blood trickle from his nose onto his upper lip. The men had smashed his face hard into the wall. 

Surprisingly, no noise came from the other cells, considering how boisterous the people usually were. They stopped at the door near the end of the short hallway.  

The guardsmen opened the metal door that lead to the stone steps. Adar could now see the stone carved work. They led upwards to another metal door. Torches lined the wall parallel to the steps.  

The three men formed a triangle around Adar as they lead him up the stone stairs; two men ahead, each man on either side of him, and the third large man was behind him.  

The two men on either side were built, but the one behind was a mammoth compared to the others.  He was seemingly the head of this group. 

Adar was only an inch or two shorter than the other men, but only reached to the top of the shoulder of the third man.

One of the front men opened the metal door at the end of the stairs. Light shone into the dark place. Adar flinched at the sight of sudden brightness. It had been a long time since he had seen anything but dark. The room he now stood in was a large, rectangular room, walls painted blue. Two windows were on the longer sides of the room; red velvet curtains decorated the windows. Trees could be seen outside, along with bushes. 

Adar stood side opposite the side of the doorway of the new room. It had no door, showing directly into the hallway.

He heard the third man close the metal door behind them.  

They immediately led him into the hallway. The floor was furnished wood, a professional job, he thought. 

Adar saw that the hallway was large, and several doors were on each side of the long wall.

The men led Adar into what was most likely the main hall of the building. He could see stairs lead up to a second floor which resembled a balcony, doors placed along the walls of it. The rugs placed there were made of animal skins. 

The men led Adar up the stairs, and then headed for a door at the end of the second floor hallway. Adar turned back to look down at the first floor. A large double door was at the entrance of the building. 

The building, Adar thought, was constructed as a mansion with added features, such as a cellar conformed to be a prison.  

The door at the end of the hallway was opened and they entered into a large rectangle room. Several men were standing at the corners. They glared at Adar as he was lead in. All of them wore their gray uniforms, as well as their black leather shoes. Many of the men held muskets, some held their swords. There was a desk, opposite the door, near the end of the room. A man was sitting at the desk, his elbows placed on it, hands clasped.