Talia ran up the stairs like the wind with Maya struggling to catch up to her.
Talia could feel Damon's pain clearly which came with his internal scream that threatened to break her heart into pieces. Regret. Sorrow. Desperation. Self-loathing. And she knew that he remembered, at least some of it.
"Damon!", she called from the door, and she crumbled to her knees by his side.
He was lying on the floor with a layer of dark mist around him.
'What is this?', Talia asked Liseli with her hands hovering an inch above Damon, fearing that if she touches him she might make it worse.
'He is fighting the dark magic.'
'Can we help him?'
'His Betas are watching.', Liseli said. 'I thought you wanted to keep your abilities a secret.'
Talia lifted her gaze to see Maya and Caden at the door with confusion and concern obvious on their faces.
'It doesn't matter.', Talai said to Liseli.
Caden wanted to go by Damon's side, but Maya held him back. Somehow, she had a feeling that Talia's got this.
Talia's hands started glowing in silvery light that mixed with the dark layer around Damon, making it turn grayish.
'More, we need more…', Talia urged Liseli.
Liseli didn't respond, but Talia knew that Liseli agreed. Damon was fighting not only with the dark magic, but also with the negativity because of what happened, and this was Talia's way of assuring him that she was by his side.
Maya and Caden stared at the scene in front of them that looked like it came from a science fiction movie.
Talia's whole body was glowing in silvery light that was merging with the darkness around Damon, making them look like a real-life Yin Yang sign.
'Damon… Damon… Do you feel me?', Talia spoke without using any words. 'I need you to wake up. I'm here. I need you. It's OK. Please, wake up.'
Talia didn't know if he can hear her, but she hoped she was helping him dispel the wretched magic that shut down the amazing connection they were sharing.
Talia's body trembled from exhaustion, days without sleep and not enough food took their toll on her body, but Talia didn't give up. She couldn't.
Some of his darkness seeped into her hands, but she didn't care. For weeks, Damon was by her side, patiently waiting for her to feel the bond and recognize him as her mate, and this was her turn to show support, in the only way she knew how.
She remembered when they met in the kitchen of the Red Moon pack. His expression was stern and scary, but later Talia realized how that was his way of showing concern. Damon wasn't upset that she was in the kitchen getting food, he was upset because she was hurt. She knew that now. From that moment onward Damon was obsessed with Talia's wellbeing, and even though there were moments she didn't know why he was doing things he did, now she was confident that he was doing everything he could to keep her safe.
In his silly, overbearing, reckless way, he was protecting her even when he jumped on rogues only to get himself stabbed with a wolfsbane-laced knife. Silly Alpha.
"Come on, Damon…", Talia spoke in a whisper. "You can do this. I am here. We can do this. Come back to me."
The silvery light was bright to the point of making everything in the room turn white and then it flashed in a blinding surge before it dimmed completely.
Maya hovered above Talia who was now slumped above Damon.
"What do you think?", she asked Caden.
"They are alive.", Caden responded and visually inspected two unmoving bodies, happy that they stopped glowing and the grayish mist was gone, and he hoped that was a good thing. "Let's move them to bed."
Maya and Caden lifted Talia with ease and placed her on the bed, and Damon was next.
Without opening her eyes, Talia scooted closer to Damon and put her hand on his chest.
Maya shook her head while observing the duo.
"What?", Caden asked.
"I wanted Cornelia to show me magic, yet Talia was right here, hiding a secret."
"Don't overthink it. I'm sure she has her reasons for hiding it.", Caden said. "It's best we pretend we didn't see anything until she reveals that on her own."
He tugged her to sit on the sofa. "Let's sit and watch over them. This might be a long night."
"What can we do if something happens?"
Caden shrugged. "Be a witness. Make sure no one disturbs them. That's what Betas do for their Alphas."
Damon groaned lowly, and before he opened his eyes he felt a warm presence by his side. It was a familiar shape that fit perfectly with the curves of his body, and the sparks that ignited wherever they touched confirmed it was Talia.
He opened his eyes to see Talia's hair spread over his chest and smiled a little in relief. All the negativity he experienced must be a nightmare because there was no way that he forgot how important Talia was, and even if he didn't remember her, he wouldn't leave her behind in an unknown place. And she was right there, in their room, it was all good.
"Are you yourself?"
Caden's question made Damon look that way and he frowned. Why were Caden and Maya there?
"What do you mean?", Damon asked. The rumble in his chest made Talia stir and he tightened his hold on her.
"I mean. Do you know who I am? Do you know who she is?", Caden gestured toward Talia, and Damon's stomach sank. Was it possible it was not a nightmare?
Damon responded with a nod.
"Talia went through a lot of shit to get you back, Damon.", Caden said. "You brought Marcy into the packhouse, and she believes you will make her his Luna."
"I will fix it.", Damon said.
"I hope so. Are you OK now?"
Damon was not sure how to respond to this. Was he OK? His mind was in turmoil and his emotions were a mess, and Caden was talking again.
"Can we go to our room? If you feel anything is off with your head or your body, mind-link me. Don't keep this shit from me, man. This is so much bigger than you and your ego. I thought I lost you. We all did."
Maya didn't speak, but her troubled expression told Damon that she felt the same way as Caden.
"I will.", Damon said before calling, "Caden, Maya… thank you."
The Beta duo nodded, and they left the bedroom in silence.
Damon turned to look at Talia and he cradled her in his arms, pulling her as close as possible to his body, needing that physical touch to confirm that she was there, and this was real instead of those horrible images of him running through the forest, sitting at the dining table with Marcy by his side, leaving the cave after he shoved Talia away… His body trembled because he somehow knew that those were real also. How the hell was he going to make up this to Talia? How was he going to get over the heart-wrenching pain in his chest because he hurt his mate?
