SUN #5
There’s still this atmosphere of rush and 'what we need to do now, we may still be in danger’ in the air, as nothing really has settled, so I try to stay alert and focused, despite the protests of my beaten-down body.
"Did we actually escape?" I dare to ask, my voice cracking. "Did that miracle we talked about actually happen?"
His face is swollen and scraped up. But there’s the faintest smile there, a little sad, but with a glimmer of real, palpable hope.
"Yeah, Sun. We made it."
"What about Rocco? If he takes over the business, he might decide it was our fault his family got hit so hard. What if he wants revenge?"
Ragnar stays quiet for a moment. "I think before he even considers doing anything, he’s got way more pressing things to deal with, like making sure he clears himself of any connection to the attack on Blue Lowen. That gives us time. Time to prepare, just in case."
Silence falls. Ragnar keeps his eyes on the road, brow furrowed, the crease between his eyebrows deepening.
Something in me is rising. Quickly. Before I can stop myself, words fly out of me,
"I want to go to my parents’ house," I say, my voice cracking. "I need to see my dad. I need to see him!"
Let’s be honest here—I feel completely wrecked, my lips trembling as the emotions spill out of me. It’s embarrassing, but I don’t give a fuck.
Ragnar’s face immediately softens. With the hand that had been supporting Summer’s back, he reaches out and gently brushes my cheek.
"Of course, Sun! Do you want me to come with you? Or would you rather we stay somewhere else and wait with Summer?"
"No!" I blurt out. "We’re True Mates. We’re supposed to stay together. That’s how it works, isn’t it?"
He looks at me for a long moment, his gaze searching.
"You know… Sun, I would understand if you needed a little space. The truth is, we don’t really know each other outside of those interactions we had at the fortress.
It wasn’t the real you. And it wasn’t the real me.
I know that I told you the whole ‘Fate’s promise’ thing about TMs, but still, it’s natural to feel—"
I laugh bitterly. "But I believe in this promise , Ragnar. Even if we weren’t exactly ourselves, we should give Fate a chance to prove he chose us to be perfect for each other.
Even if we were total strangers, even if we didn’t know a single thing about each other, I’d still feel…
excited. And hopeful!" I smile shyly. "I don’t want to waste a single minute putting off getting to know you. I feel… thrilled… I mean, I would, if I weren’t about to faint… "
This tirade obviously was too much for me. My vision spins, and I almost collapse, but Ragnar catches me with one arm, awkwardly shifting to keep hold of both Summer and me at the same time. It’s certainly an acrobatic feat.
Mauro reacts quickly, running over as soon as he notices. He helps me to a fallen log nearby so I can sit.
Then he steps away again, typing something rapidly on the display.
Ragnar sits down beside me. Summer’s limp body still hangs over his shoulder. The omega’s face looks blank, even though his eyes are open. Bruises cover his neck and arms. Like me, he’s only wearing a filthy T-shirt and shorts.
"He needs medical attention," I whisper, gently touching Summer’s messy caramel-gold braid.
Ragnar starts to answer, but Mauro comes back holding up his phone.
On the screen it reads: "My ride will be here in 15 minutes. By some miracle, he just happens to be in the city. He came a few days ago to take care of some paperwork, and now he can take me with him. It feels like Fate!"
He steps back again, as if wanting to give us space.
But Ragnar suddenly speaks up,
"Wait. Can you tell me what Anzo did to you to ‘break’ you—his words? He said he gave Summer the same thing."
Mauro looks down at Summer’s still face, his eyes are open, but he doesn’t speak.
Then he types again:
"I don’t know the name of the drug, it meant to mess with my memory, distort my sense of time, make me doubt what was real.
But I had help. Somebody helped me remember.
So all the drugs really did was make me stop talking, my world just kind of…
imploded. It took me a long time to start functioning again, but I never fully recovered. That’s all I can tell you. Sorry."
"Do you think it’s ever reversible? Because he’s only been on it for… what, three and a half days?"
Mauro’s face shifts slightly, like he’s not sure how to answer. Then he types:
"If it was a strong dose, it might have affected his brain. I received tiny doses over time. But maybe he’ll get better? After all, he was able to take Anzo down, that means he’s still in there."
I gently touch Summer’s arm. He flinches slightly, like the contact makes him uncomfortable.
"Summer… can you hear me? Can you say something?" I whisper just to test it.
He blinks slowly, like he’s trying to say yes, but no words come out.
"Let’s take him to my house. My dad will take care of him. One of our cousins is a doctor, and we can ask him to come over and examine Summer. That way we avoid hospitals and giving out personal info."
Ragnar frowns, but nods. "Alright. Of all places, weirdly, that might be the safest. Hide in plain sight, right? Besides, before all of this happened, Summer said he wanted to go wherever you go. Follow Sun."
We all sit quietly on the fallen log, staring at the road, waiting.
Eventually, a green car shows up, then slows down and stops. Inside is a beta, about sixty, with a thick beard. Something in his face vaguely resembles the Ferro brothers.
Mauro gets up and walks over.
The beta steps out and signs something. Apparently, he knows sign language just as well as Mauro does. Mauro signs back.
The beta glances our way and says tersely, "Alright, we’re off. Goodbye."
Mauro turns back toward us, nods, and waves.
Then the two of them get in the car and drive off.
In a few seconds, they disappear around the curve of the road.
Ragnar and I sit in silence again.
"Was it his uncle? I’m not sure if he’s from the Ferro side, though," I mutter.
"Their dad’s family used to own a pretty big lumber mill and some large forest plots.
All the Ferro brothers inherited parts of the woods from their dad.
I looked into it when I was doing some research on the Ferros before I took the job at the fortress.
It’s possible Mauro owns some land too, and that guy might be his uncle on his dad’s side.
But I’m not sure. They’re private people, not connected to the mafia. "
"Mauro and Eliano seemed to be in a hurry to leave The Sun. Can’t say I’m surprised." I sigh.
"Yeah. Now Rocco and Ennio will be in charge there, probably with help from their other uncle, Vincenzo Ferro, and his sons. Not exactly a great replacement from the younger brothers’ perspective.
Ennio is stern and emotionless, and Vincenzo’s more of an old-school mobster, so they’ll probably reset the Ferros back to how they were before Anzo. "
Silence returns. We sit like this for a while, both lost in thought.
But one thought starts to take over. Soon, I have to say it, just throw it out of me.
"Free at last! I still can’t… believe it," I mutter, feeling like I might faint again. Hunger, dehydration, and pain are all hitting me at once. "But I feel… like shit."
Ragnar’s face softens again. "This nightmare is ending, Sun. You’re going home, you just have to hang in a little longer."
He leans toward me a little, his eyes radiating warmth.
"You are very strong, you know? And through all of it… you didn’t lose yourself. You stayed remarkably true to yourself and pure—"
"That’s bull!" I protest. "I’m not pure at all… Just ruined."
"You clearly don’t know what I mean by ‘pure’," he says. "You’re not ruined, Sun, far from it. You’re like a wildflower growing in hostile soil. And you still bloom."
I barely hold back a smile.
"That’s the most beautiful compliment I’ve ever gotten. You know what else acts just like that?"
"What?"
"Weeds!"
Ragnar laughs softly. "Well, weeds are stubborn. You can’t easily kill them. They survive everything. And some of them are… beautiful."
I can tell he’s trying to cheer me up. His smile is soft and encouraging, like he wants to give me a little more strength to push past this dizzy, almost-fainting feeling, even though the adrenaline is still buzzing in his own veins. So I smile back, big, feeling grateful.
With all this chaos swirling around us, through all the motion and turmoil, one thing stays the same.
I genuinely enjoy being in his presence, wrapped in his energy, seeing the care in his eyes, the hint of tenderness.
It makes me feel tingly, like there are butterflies in my stomach, and I’m definitely not used to that.
Those feelings, the excitement about being near another guy, have seemed long forgotten to me.
"For now, I feel only dirty and exhausted, that’s for sure," I mumble.
His eyes are on me the whole time. "It’ll pass. You’ll bloom again."
He slowly leans in and leaves a soft kiss on my cheek, and I… blush. What an unexpected feeling.
My relationships were never about that intimacy, closeness, not since Dogger. So I’m out of practice. No one looks at me like Ragnar, beyond my dad, like they actually see me.
But maybe I could… open myself up to feeling important to someone again? To be the whole world to someone one more time?
Almost weird, not to be just a 'fuckboy'. I’ve been like that for the past two years, if I’m being honest. It wasn’t just Anzo, nobody really meant anything, and I didn’t mean anything to anybody beyond my ass and looks .
We’re still sitting there, staring at the road.
Every now and then, I glance down at my stomach, at the hole in my shirt where the bullet went through, realizing that everything that happened today is going to hit me later, once the adrenaline wears off, and it won’t be easy.