The footfalls got closer and some part of him hoped it was just Uncle Zhao. The door swung open and that part of him was severely disappointed, disappointment gave way to dread before the man spoke up.

  “You woke up early”

  “Who are you?” he hadn’t meant to shout but the roller-coaster of emotions he was feeling made him blunt

  “quite blunt! Sit and I will answer any questions you have.”

  There was a small struggle within Gabriel but in the end he sat down on the bed, the man nodded in acknowledgement and leaned on the side of the door

  “who am i? You may call me monk Chen. Where are you? You are at Chen Sun monastery. Why are you here? To hide, if I am reading the situation right. Are there any other question?” monk Chen waited.

  Gabriel was having a hard time processing the information and linking it to how he had come form a tent to here, a monastery but one question came to mind

  “Where is my uncle?”

  “Where is your uncle? Zhao Bing? He should be back in Henan province by now, If I am not mistaken. Any others?”

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  “Why?” Gabriel couldn’t finish the question, he didn’t want to show it but he was scared, scared of the answer scared of this place, scared of the situation he had found himself in.

  “Why? I will call vice chancellor Nobunaga tomorrow” said elder monk Chen “and you can ask him that question. In fact you can ask him all the questions you have, I will get you something to eat.”

  Gabriel watched elder monk Chen stand up straight and make his way deeper into the house, once he lost sight of the monk, Gabriel breathed a sigh of relief. If he understood the explanation, he had not been captured by Samsara at least not yet or ever he hoped. But what had then happened? How had he separated from his uncle or arrived in a monastery and uncle Zhao in Henan from the Indus valley all in the same night. Except if it wasn’t the same night but how could that be? How long had he been asleep. It had to be those eyes in the dream, someone had done something to him but what. What had happened to him? Could the monk know? Should he ask? Was the monk to be trusted?

  “Here, your food” monk Chen said, snapping Gabriel out of his thoughts with a steaming bowl in his face “Eat up. Once you are finished, rest a while, the morning will soon be up.”

  Gabriel grabbed the bowl and thanked the monk. The monk nodded once then left, going back to whatever he had been doing before. Gabriel picked up the chopstick and stirred the noodles.

  It looked sufficiently watery and smelt delicious, Gabriel entertained the thought of poison after he had taken a few spoons but he was far to famished to entertain the thought for more than a second. Granted he hadn’t felt hungry at the time he had awoken but as soon as the food appeared before him it had taken over. All he wanted to do was eat.