SYNCHRONICITY (The Lone Wolf)

3

Sebastian changed into his swimming trunks and almost left his tiny flat without his sunglasses, but turned on a dime, unlocked his door and retrieved them quickly. Then, he bounded down the stairs and walked outside the house and around the corner of the large covered wrap-around porch, past Bill's covered motorbike and through the private gate. He saw Sonny look out his back door when he latched the gate and waved to him. Sonny nodded and waved back to him.

"Sebastian!"

He looked toward the back door to find the old gruffy Marine standing on his back porch. "Yeah?"

"Should I set a plate for ya?"

Sebastian removed his sunglasses. "Got it covered, thanks!"

"Alright then! Where are ya headed?"

"No idea," he beamed and returned the sunglasses to his face and waved again as he turned and headed down the private path to the beach.

He looked up and down and saw Alison's towel as well as the boy's toys and towels laying on the sand. He turned his head to listen and heard their voices directly in front of him; he looked straight ahead of him and saw them playing on the sand bar and he felt his heart tighten. He made it a point to look at his watch and muttered a spell to act as an alarm, letting him know when it was time to turn back so that he could get the lunch that was promised to him.

He looked up to find the boys hopping up and down, waving their arms wildly, as they called out to him. He smiled and waved back at them. Alison stood up and waved and he bowed his head to her and he saw her smiling brightly.

He trotted east to see what, if anything was in that direction. Before too long, his watch chirped at him and he sighed heavily. He knew there would be time to go sightseeing, but he was enjoying being off on his own...he sighed and kept going. He came to the end of the beach and saw a large bridge to his right. He knew that Alison had to cross it every time she rode her bicycle to Mary's house.

Alison...

Suddenly, his heart squeezed tightly and he had difficulty breathing. He tasted salt water in his mouth and remembered that Sonny had told him that the tide comes in wicked fast...her last known location was on the sandbar that Sonny told him about...and she had the boys with her.

He had no choice: he had to utilize the Emergence spell to get to her...he'd take the hit and pay the fines levied upon him if he had to...it very well could be a matter of life and death! He disappeared from the beach and materialized in his room as it was the only safe place that he could think of. He was thankful that he had forgotten to lock the door a second time as he all but flew down the stairs, ran out the front door and raced around the house. He jumped the gate and saw elderly people pointing toward their location. Someone with a Catamaran was taking the boys from her grasp and they were screaming for her to get on the boat with them, reaching their little arms out toward her, struggling against the man who held onto them. She pushed the boat away and the man paddled for all he was worth.

Sebastian ran as fast as he could into the water and felt the undercurrent almost take his legs from beneath him and he let it take him to her. He dove in and swam over and called out to her when he surfaced. He could feel her exhaustion, trying to tread water, trying in vain to keep herself afloat. He found that it was difficult swimming to her...the current was moving her away from where he was trying to get to. He watched in horror as she went below the surface and screamed out her name, taking in water, himself. Then he felt something that felt like warm, wet velvet brush his leg and looked down, and seeing a fin, he grabbed it. The dolphin sped him toward her and he released it just as quickly, the riptide, moving him toward her. At last, his toes touched the sand bar.