SUN #2
"We’re True Mates, Ragnar," I say in a solemn, serious tone. But that won’t do. My excitement rushes through me like a flood, and then I burst out, "We’re fucking fated!"
My face is breaking into a grin I can’t control. Laughter escapes me, unrestrained, a bit crazy, mixed with… tears. Yup, I’m going mad.
Ragnar slowly pulls out and lowers me to the ground, but I sway, my body still in shock.
He blinks and blinks, looking even more stunned than I am. It sinks slowly.
Then he raises his hands to his temples and rubs them like he’s trying to make sense of what just happened. He looks completely wrecked.
"Shit… I would’ve never believed this if it didn’t happen! Never! How is this even possible?"
Trying to compose myself, I let out a loud breath, but it turns into a silly giggle. I have no idea how to answer him. Did he really ignore all the telltale signs too?
The First Touch? The way I could sense him so intensely? That inexplicable pull drawing us toward each other, even when we knew it was dangerously reckless? Potentially deadly?
Pretty much, we both ignored all of it.
"Sun, purple alphas are only supposed to match with rose omegas!"
Feeling ridiculous, I titter and chortle, wiping the tears from my eyes.
"Yeah, yeah! But you’re not exactly a pure purple… and I’m not exactly a typical alpha either." I gesture meaningfully toward my crotch.
Ragnar stares at me for a moment, then suddenly joins my chuckles, like he just can’t help it, amazed by the miracle of the whole thing.
"Fuck, I finally get why my claws and fangs started pushing out before I charged that bastard, Vito! And I wasn’t even twenty percent into my full imago form!"
I blink. That’s only possible when an alpha enters fighting mode, and only when he's defending his True Mate. It’s virtually impossible for a regular alpha during casual fights.
"According to science, purples can deploy it only at the peak of imago , and even then, it has to be triggered by a strong protective instinct, not just pure rage."
"Why didn’t you tell me that was also rare for purples? It was a pretty strong clue."
Ragnar lets out a breath. "I was just dead set on how impossible it sounded. Two alphas? It’s ridiculously uncommon."
We both chuckle again, a little sheepish now.
"So what? You and me… we’re just a couple of freaks? Two halves of the same soul, so they say?"
I throw my arms out, still cackling, maybe a little hysterically.
"Looks like it! But I don’t give a shit. What matters is that… I found you."
My voice drops on those last words, becoming almost shy. Because everything’s changed now.
So fast. A whole new reality in a matter of minutes.
From this moment on, Ragnar and I are bound for life.
The energy coil between True Mates has sealed. Which means, if I die, he dies. If he dies, I won’t survive either.
Our lives are fused, we won’t be able to stay apart for more than a week or two. We’ll be able to heal each other… and stay young for decades.
The incredible magic of True Mates will shape our lives, giving us excellent health, longer lifespans, but also placing… limits on our freedom.
I know everything about this. My parents are True Mates, after all. For years I watched and envied them, secretly resenting their love, but now, well. Now it's another story!
"Ragnar… everything has to change now. What I told you, that in six days you have to take me out of this place, it’s still on. Even more now than ever," I whisper, getting more serious.
"Okay, but what about your family?" he asks, with a deep line on his forehead.
I take a slow breath. "The thing is… I got a message from my brother, Snow. Remember him?"
"Yes."
"A few days ago he sent me a letter with one sentence: Don’t be afraid to come home exactly ten days from now ."
Ragnar tilts his head. "Can he be… trusted? Moon had slip-ups. A lot of them! He saw paths that weren’t materializing."
"Well, what’s reassuring is that Snow’s ability isn't like Moon’s.
No sensing multiple, ‘fluctuating’ paths.
It’s more like a powerful intuition, an ability to read energy and slightly influence it.
At least that’s the gossip in my family.
Storm used to babble about it a lot, so I didn’t treat it seriously.
Snow himself remains secretive about it, so nobody knows the details.
But one person I trust is my dad, and he always said: Snow’s never been wrong.
Not once. If he says it’ll be safe, I believe it. So I want to take that risk."
Ragnar nods slowly.
We’re still standing in front of each other, a bit awkwardly, unsure how to proceed, how to react to everything that just happened. It’s obviously overwhelming.
"Okay. So it’s a plan," he says tentatively. "I’ll help you both escape. Not much prep needed. When we do it, we do it. For Summer, it’ll be easy. The moment I get the signal that my parents are safe, we set the date."
"Only your parents you need to worry about? No uncles, cousins?"
"Just them. My dad had a twin, Sven, military guy, total playboy. Left a trail of pregnant omegas in his wake, five, I believe. I’ve got like seven cousins, but I’ve only seen them a couple of times, at my grandparents’ and Uncle Sven’s funerals. So, no bond there."
A short pause.
Ragnar coughs lightly and asks, "So… in six days?"
"Six or five, if I’m counting right."
Ragnar furrows his brows. "Listen, one thing. The Ferros are planning something. It might be connected—"
"Yes! I know! It’s supposed to happen in about five days. A hit on a public figure, someone whose death will make headlines around the world."
"Exactly," Ragnar says. "One time I overheard the Ferros are cooking up something big, but no details."
"Whatever it is, I have a feeling it could help us."
Ragnar nods. "Seems logical."
We lock eyes. The air between us still sparkles.
"Do you think this miracle we talked about… could actually happen?" I whisper. "That the attack triggers a domino effect that ensures my family’s safety?"
Ragnar sends me a crooked, uncertain smile. "I choose to believe it. Before, I was… super skeptical and pessimistic. To the point of giving up on any chance at all. But I don’t want to give up anymore."
I exhale, long and slow, then murmur, "I still can’t believe it. It hasn’t sunk in yet. Do you know I fainted at the exact moment of your accident?"
Ragnar lets out a huff of disbelief. "Even before we closed the ‘energy circuit’?"
"Yes. Obviously, we’d already started… bonding."
There’s a long silence between us. We just stare, both of us in what seems like permanent disbelief.
The whole thing really did catch me by surprise. It just doesn’t feel real, or even fathomable.
"People are usually happy, almost ecstatic, when they find out…" I mutter and bite my lip.
Ragnar gives me a crooked smile. "They probably don’t have a problem with the mafia."
"Fair." I try to compose myself. After a few hesitant seconds, something starts to bother me.
"Aren’t you a bit afraid? We don’t know each other that well."
He averts his eyes for a moment, gazing out the gazebo window.
"I am aware. But somehow, it doesn’t bother me." Then he looks back at me with a soft smile. "The True Mate encounter is basically a promise from Fate."
"A promise?"
"It’s like a deal, Fate says: ‘You don’t know him, but I promise you, it’s worth it.
You’ll be perfectly in tune, not only physically and genetically, but also— " Ragnar taps his head, " —mentally . We can sync so easily and vibe with each other like with no one else. So it’s a guarantee. Even if we barely know each other now, we can be sure we’ll work out. "
I grin. "I like it. The promise of love…"
Ragnar’s expression shifts, becoming more pensive, more melancholic. "Yeah. One we can build on. Work on."
Biting my lip, I slowly join him by the window and fix my eyes on the garden.
"When I first saw this garden, I thought… how perfectly it matches my taste. Lately, I’ve had this silly vision for the future: that you and I could have a business like this one day.
Landscape design. Merging modern, minimalist beauty with nature… "
Ragnar’s face lights up a bit. He glances at me with something like amazement.
"Really? You’re into gardening too?"
"Sure I am. My dad loved it. I always secretly admired his work, though I pretended not to. Just me being a brat."
"I’m pretty confident we’ll find even more common ground," he says with a wink.
"Yeah… the problem is, will we get the chance to explore it?"
Silence falls. Both our faces drop the moment I say it. My words are a grim reminder we’re still far from free. True Mates or no… this is still The Sun Fortress around us.
Ragnar watches me for a moment. Then suddenly says, "Sorry to bring this up, but does Anzo…" he trails off, "I heard that when True Mates sleep with someone else, it causes serious discomfort. Even pain. So if you and Anzo…"
I cut him off, sparing him the awkwardness. "Anzo never fucked me with his own dick. He forces me and Summer to top him."
Ragnar blinks, looking somehow even more shocked than when he found out we’re True Mates, if that’s even possible!
"Summer’s power helps me get hard. It’s a sick freak show, I’ll tell you that."
"That’s… crazy."
Ragnar’s face says it all. He’s clearly struggling to picture it. He’s not the first person to react that way. I guess mafia stereotypes run deep.
"So yeah. I don’t get aroused. Not even a bit."
"Fuck…" he mutters, scratching his head, again turning his gaze toward the gazebo window. It’s clearly a lot to process.
All of it is too much, honestly. I feel the same, a sensory overload.
This whole day’s been insane. But on top of that, something is stirring inside me.
Today, everything’s shifted. A new flicker of hope has emerged, the sense that there’s a way out. And I desperately want it to stay.