Sweeter Tease (Sequel To Sweet Tease)

Chapter Seventeen

{Octavia's Point of View}

It took us the better part of a month to get everything ready and taken care of enough for us to be able to head to Egypt.  Both Winfred and Janessa wanted to come with my warriors and I, so I made a point to visit Marriana and get their time off approved (she would have approved it anyway, but I needed to explain exactly why they needed time off - even though she knew the basics).  We were loading the last of our luggage into the vehicles when Josephine approached me.  She seemed nervous, so when I threw the last of our luggage into the car, I turned to her and smiled warmly at her, holding my arms out for a hug.

"Mama." {AN: This is said in German, as is every time that Josephine calls Octavia "mama."}

Josephine stepped into the hug, pressing her face against my chest, taking a heavy breath.  She typically found comfort in my scent when she was worrying about something, and it comforted me knowing that she would seek me out to calm herself.

"What's bothering you, Little Star?"

I grew concerned when she stiffened in my arms.  It took a few moments for her to gather the courage to speak.

"When... You and mom get home, I want you to meet my girlfriend.  We're aware she's not my mate, but we're enjoying the companionship."  

I rubbed my hands on her back.  Sure, she was more than old enough to be dating, but that didn't mean I liked it.  She was still my little girl.  Thankfully, when she turned twenty-one, Winifred and I explained to her that she was not my real child, but that Winifred was her real mother.  We didn't tell her that she was a child of violent rape, but we did mention that her sire was no longer with us.  Maybe one day I would tell her that I murdered that bitch.

I grunted softly and moved my head to rest my forehead against hers, closing my eyes.  My left hand moved to the back of her neck so I could rub her pressure points gently.  We did this when she needed a calming presence.

"Your mother and I would love to meet your girlfriend.  As long as she's ready for the shovel talk."

I grinned when Josephine laughed and pushed me away, yelping.

"Mama!  She doesn't need it!  We're careful!"

I laughed, but pulled my daughter into a tight hug, placing a gentle kiss atop her head.

"You know I love you, right?"

She hummed gently, resting her forehead against my sternum, breathing softly.

"I never question it."

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"Is everyone comfortable?  Once we get to the air, it's going to be a long flight, so make sure you have everything you need in your carry-ons."

We sat wherever we wanted, since the flight was full of just us.  Winifred and Janessa were snuggled into my sides, while Ichure sat across from me.  My arms were falling asleep, but I didn't mind.

"So tell me about the town we're landing in."

Ichure stretched her legs out, grunting before she started speaking, relaying what she knew.

"Tyson and Thalia found out that the town we're landing in, Insynia, is not very big, but it's about a six hour drive from where the compound is in Fortenya.  There's about twenty people total, and as far as we can tell, they have lived there for generations.  The town is well cared for, and from what Tyson and Thalia gathered, the townsfolk consider the Anuubi a myth."

I scowled, closing my eyes before looking back at her.  Janessa started whimpering and squirming in her seat against me, so I moved slightly, pulling her against my chest so she could hear and feel my heart beating.  Once I had her against my chest, she started to settle down.  When she had finally settled back to a sound sleep, I looked back at Ichure and waited for her to speak.  When she raised an eyebrow, I sighed and went ahead with my questions.

"When we get there, how well will we be received, being twenty werewolves, a vampire, a succubus, and a witch?  Where will out base of operations be?  I doubt there is a place large enough to hold all of us long enough to gather enough intel to be able to get our daughter back before her eighteenth birthday."

I watched as Ichure bit her bottom lip and smiled, which then turned into a grimace.  She made a noise similar to a cat chirping at its human.

"Oh, dear Octavia.  I've taken care of our housing arrangements."

I stared at her skeptically, but I also knew that she would handle that kind of thing if she needed to.  It took us roughly another hour before we landed at the airport in Egypt.  After we had all cleared customs, we managed to catch the cars that were to take us to the small town we were staying in.  Three hours later, we had a small army of antsy werewolves that were ready to bust through the cars we were in.  Stepping out of the cars, I noticed that we were standing in front of what looked like a warehouse district, but it was only one building.  Confused, I turned to look at Ichure, who simply laughed.

"The building had been being used as a cannery for a few years, until they went out of business.  Looters and thieves took care of most of the machinery, and it really didn't take much money to renovate the building into a base of operations.  It's more like a makeshift military hospital, with everyone staying in the same room, separated by curtains, but everyone has a real bed.  I did get them to put in actual shower stalls and actual toilets, so we're not completely roughing it.  Really the only room that the building has is the meeting room, at the very back. I did also convince them to put in a kitchen, and large freezers and fridges.  They fully stocked them, but depending on how long we'll be here, we may need to refill them."

I nodded, thoroughly impressed with how much effort and consideration had gone into the building, considering the only tie we had to one another now was our son, since we had broken the half-mate bond days before we left.

"I hope we don't have to stay long, but thank you for making it as comfortable as possible for us, regardless."

I smiled warmly at her before looking back at my small pack.  Taking a breath, I enjoyed the heat it brought me before I addressed my people.

"Alright guys, let's get to work!"