Talia stared at the bonfire while standing at the edge of an irregular circle made out of dancing women, and she didn't move.
"Come on.", Zina tugged Talia's hand. "There are no rules. Just move while thinking about your perfect man. The Moon Goddess will respond when the timing is right."
Her perfect man? Talia pressed her lips into a line when Damon's image flashed in her mind.
Realistically, Talia knew that Damon was far from perfect, but she also knew that he was doing his best for his pack, and he saved her from the attic, and that had to count for something.
Damon was moody and he loved to tease Talia, but he was also gentle and caring and she saw him working seriously, and he held her when she was crying, and he took her to the amusement park, and he stood up for her when the nutritionist mistreated her, and… there were many things Damon did right.
At the end of the day, Damon was fighting his own battles, just like everyone else, but what made him stand out among all other men was that he never used his position to force Talia into anything against her will. And he smelled nice.
Talia was aware that Damon was off-limits, but if not him, then who? Keith? Pierce? Liam? Her options were rather limited because she didn't interact with many men... if she excludes the soccer players.
After giving it some thought, Talia decided not to think about any man, and to focus on the spectacle in front of her because this was about Talia, and not about a man, even if that man is Alpha Damon.
Dawn was already in the middle of the action, waving her arms and wiggling her hips. It was out of rhythm and comical, but Talia admired the fact that Dawn didn't care. She looked happy. Free.
Talia craved for that freedom where no one will look at her as a reason for bad things happening, where no one will punish her for the things she didn't do, or judge her, look down on her, where she can make her own decisions and won't depend on anyone.
Inhaling deeply, Talia stepped into the crowd of women, raised her arms, and closed her eyes while allowing the music to take her places she never visited before.
Damon's presence didn't go unnoticed, no matter how far he was from the bonfire and how much he suppressed his aura. But lower-ranked females (and males) didn't dare to approach him without permission, and regardless of how much they looked at him, Damon's gaze was fixed on one figure that was swaying in the throng of others.
It was easy for Damon to recognize Talia. She was the picture of elegance, moving at the beat of her own music, glowing brighter than the fire which towered above her.
To Damon, it looked like Talia was the only woman there, dancing only for him to see. Breathtaking.
Damon used every bit of his willpower to resist the intoxicating urge to go there and claim Talia as his in front of everyone to see.
Alpha Maddox's warning was sounding at the back of Damon's mind and Damon knew that he probably shouldn't come to the festival with Talia, because people are watching him and someone will notice Talia, but the Alpha in Damon refused to hide. If he can't protect his Luna, no one can.
Damon didn't realize when it happened, but he decided that Talia will be his Luna and the only thing he still needed to figure out was how he will announce that news to his pack and to Talia.
'Alpha!', the voice of general Ryker sounded in Damon's mind. 'We have a situation on the North-East of Darkbourne.'
Damon frowned. That was close to where he was. 'Where are Betas?'
'Beta Caden is at the West border investigating a group which tried to sneak into our territory, and Beta Maya is on the main road, South entrance to Darkbourne, handling the situation of three individuals who came with fake IDs.'
Damon puffed his cheeks. He knew that this would happen. Every time the Dark Howlers pack is hosting a celebration, there are groups of werewolves that are trying to get in and cause a commotion. That's why they increased security, and Damon knew that if his general is contacting him, it must be important.
Most of the people present in the crowd are werewolves, but it's inevitable that some are humans.
The priority of Damon's warriors is to maintain safety without disrupting the festival because big commotion will be a stain on their competence to secure their own territory, and it also might expose them to humans.
'What's the situation?', Damon asked Ryker through the mind-link.
'We found two werewolves hiding in the forest. They were communicating with someone, and refuse to say with whom, but I suspect they are part of something bigger.'
Damon looked toward the bonfire, and he could see that Talia was enjoying.
He didn't want to interrupt her, but he couldn't leave this issue unattended.
His warriors can't make others talk, but Alpha has his aura that can make others submit and force them to obey.
Damon decided.
'I'm on my way.', Damon told Ryker.
If Talia had a mind-link, Damon would notify her that he will back in a bit, but that was not an option and if he went there, it would cause a commotion.
With no better option available, Damon mind-linked Dawn and Zina, 'Watch over Talia. I will return in a bit.'
He was not sure what to do about the bag he was carrying. If there is an issue where a general requested for Alpha to come, the probability of Damon shifting into his wolf form was high and he didn't want to risk losing or damaging the toy he won for Talia.
Damon glanced at the group of guys who were standing nearby, and he could sense that they are from his pack. "Keep an eye on this bag. It belongs to the MVP of the tournament."
The guys nodded in understanding, and no one dared to ask why would Alpha hold onto a bag for Talia or why they needed to babysit it.
"What's the situation?", Damon asked general Ryker when he approached the group.
Two men were on the ground, kneeling with their arms behind their heads, surrounded by Ryker and three other warriors.
Ryker lowered his head in respect and responded, "We noticed them acting suspiciously and we followed them into the forest. They were exchanging messages with someone by using this…", Ryker handed a cellphone to Damon and continued, "I contacted Gordon to come and crack the passcode so that we can see the message history. He should be here shortly."
Damon knew that this spells trouble. Why would a werewolf need a cellphone? It's either because they were communicating with someone who doesn't belong to their pack or because the other person is not a werewolf.
Damon told his warriors to step aside, and then he turned toward two men who were kneeling on the ground.
"To which pack you belong?"
They groaned when Damon released his aura to suppress them.
Yes, Gordon (aka the IT wizard) will crack the passcode, but that will take time, and this was faster.
"The Halfcrest pack", one of the guys responded with difficulty.
"You are far away from home.", Damon said. "Why are you here? With whom were you communicating?"
Damon increased his pressure because he didn't have time for idle chit-chat. He wanted to be done with this and to return to his spot. Ideally, he will return before Talia notices his absence.
Two minutes later…
Damon's mind was working a million thoughts a second while thinking about how to deal with the situation.
The captured duo was part of a larger group that had a task to come to Darkbourne and spy on what's going on during the festival.
Damon knew that there is a mastermind behind whatever the perpetrators were up to because the two guys that were captured had spotty knowledge about their accomplices, saying that only the group leader knew how to contact everyone, and whenever they found information of interest, they were to notify their group leader.
They had a task to mingle with locals and find out as much as possible about the current situation in Darkbourne. That was not unusual, Damon was aware that spies are everywhere.
Their leader also told them to keep an eye on a few individuals; Alpha Damon, Beta Caden, Beta Maya, and the mysterious girl with copper-colored hair that was close to Damon (aka Talia).
Damon gritted his teeth while thinking how Cassie and Alpha Richard will pay for this. How dare they put a target on Talia's back!? It was one thing when Maddox told Damon about it earlier that morning, but now that he heard it from some sketchy strangers, Damon felt the urgency to deal with the situation.
Another worrisome thing was that the leader of their group was contemplating getting his hands on Talia.
The guys confessed that they saw Damon with Talia during lunch, but they were not sure if she is the target because she was the MVP of the tournament and other Alphas were also present. However, when they spotted Damon and Talia in the evening, that confirmed Talia is the girl they were looking for.
Damon's heart was racing. If they were following them, doesn't that mean they know that Talia is at the bonfire?
