Page 51 of Ondine: Vol. 2

16

Bonfire

Sebastian

We drive the boys on the river highway around Cash City and then up the canyon road.

We stopped and bought them some things from the supermarket. Headphones, candy, soda, charging cables, clothing, backpacks…they start to get chatty after they eat the candy, and the last stretch of the drive they are so obnoxious. It’s midnight by the time we reach the monastery.

I help anyway I can as Freddie wakes up certain monks and gets the boys settled into rooms. I sit on a porch looking out into the dark woods as he talks with Alpha Kam-po about everything that’s been going on.

I miss Ondine. I wish any of this was distracting enough for me. I need my pack. I need my omega.

Freddie says goodnight to his handler and comes over to me.

“You can stay in my room. There’s a pull out couch.” And then he adds, “Thank you for being here with me.”

He pulls out a cigarette and lights it.

“I’m happy to have been involved. I know Jake will want to help out with all this, too.”

He leans on the railing and blows his smoke out into the darkness. I wonder why he smokes so much. Does it help with his feral tendencies?

“I feel so good to have helped these kids, but there is so much more to do.”

“Do you need me, Freddie? I’d like to return to my pack.”

“No, no, no. It’s fine. Here, let me see if they can fly you back home.” Freddie gets on his phone and calls his travel agency. In no time, his helicopter is booked. “It’ll be here in a few hours to get you. You should get some sleep.”

I nod.

“She likes you, Sabbies. A lot. Is that what you’re worried about?”

I close my eyes and hold in whatever feeling I’m feeling.

“Until she’s got my mark on her, I think I will continue to be worried.”

“Come here. I’ll mark you.”

My eyes fly open and I laugh, then rub my face with my hands.

“Go fuck yourself, Freddie.”

He makes a jump to grab me and I leap out of the chair and back away from him. “Get over here! I’ll bite you right now!”

“Don’t you fucking dare!”

His giant scary grin makes me worried he’s not joking. But when he jumps again and grabs me, I let him pull me into him.

His mouth descends onto my neck, but he just gives me a hard, playful bite. I wiggle and push to get away, but he holds me firm.

“I’d do it, if I didn’t think it would make Ondine sad she wasn’t here for it. She told me something about us, do you want to hear it?”

More than anything, I think. Freddie sees the thought on my face and leans in to my ear to whisper, “She wants to watch us together. She says that for you and I, she wants to be there for it.”

“She wasn’t upset about what we did on the couch?”

I’d been worried about it all day.