While they were in the forest, earlier that morning, Cornelia had shown James a few tricks and he saw the silvery light coming out of her fingers that reminded him of stories about the members of the Midnight Guardians pack. He thought those were lies or gibberish from a drunk person, but after meeting Cornelia, James realized that those stories were probably true, even though they might be exaggerations.
"Marcy spoke of witches", James said. "However, what if it was not witches but people who have other abilities? We all heard rumors that members of the Midnight Guardians pack have mystical powers."
"Those are not rumors.", Talia said and lifted her arm in front of her.
They all ended up staring at her palm which was glowing in silvery light.
"I am from the Midnight Guardians pack.", Talia said, dispelling the last shred of doubts from people who gaped at her.
Maya and Caden were secretly happy because now they could ask Talia about that white and dark light they saw when Talia was holding onto unconscious Damon.
"Talia…", Damon called with worry obvious in his voice. He didn't want her to reveal her powers in front of so many people.
"It's OK.", Talia assured him. "We are all friends and if we are going to make the existence of witches public, this right here is a good place to start."
Talia trusted Maya and Caden, and she knew that Mindy and Dawn will support her. Gideon is a shaman, and no matter how much he and Damon bickered, Gideon never did anything against Damon which spoke about Gideon's integrity. As for James and George, Talia was confident that they won't have bad intentions considering who their mates were.
"I don't know much about witches and I don't believe I am one, but I can do this.", Talia said and closed her palm into a fist, making the silvery light flash before disappearing.
"The light in the lake when Tanya was stuck at the bottom and Max went to rescue her... that was you?", Mindy asked.
Talia confirmed with a nod and spoke to everyone before Mindy could ask more questions, "We will make this work only if we open up. Secrets won't help. I agree with James. Marcy spoke about witches, but what if the Silver Flame Coven is not the only one out there? Or what if that applied to the members of my pack?"
Damon flinched when Talia said 'my pack' for the Midnight Guardians pack, but he didn't want to fuss about it. Soon, Talia will become his Luna officially (actually, Alpha, when he figures out technicalities of two equals leading one pack), and the Midnight Guardians pack will fall into the background, as it should. At least that's what Damon thought.
"Are you saying that we are not safe in your realm?", Cornelia asked while shrinking in her seat. The idea of her being used for breeding was extremely unsettling.
"At this point, I'm not sure.", Talia responded honestly. "That's why we are here. I want to get to the bottom of this and I hope you will help me."
James noticed Cornelia's discomfort, and he was quick to put his arm around her shoulders and give her a gentle squeeze of reassurance. His heart soared when Cornelia leaned on him, it meant that she trusted him. James liked that.
"How can we help?"
Talia was glad that James volunteered. "First, we need to know if this is current, or it stopped with your grandfather. Only by understanding what we are dealing with, we can come up with a plan to end it. At this point, we have only one lead, your grandfather's journals that Marcy mentioned. Do you know where they could be?"
James shook his head. "I was four years old when grandfather died, and I don't remember him. But I can look in the storage and see if I can find anything."
"It won't be in plain sight.", Talia said. "Check the safe deposit behind the portrait in the main study of Alpha Edward, and a hidden compartment behind the North wall in the library… the secret passage in the double-door of the third bedroom on the second floor…"
James' eyes widened as Talia spoke. "How do you know about those?"
"I know your packhouse probably better than you do.", Talia said mysteriously. She spent years sneaking around there, and at night she was free to explore.
"Make sure Alpha Edward doesn't suspect you.", Damon said while trying to divert James' attention away from Talia.
"I know what to do.", James said with confidence. He perfected his act so that Alpha Edward believes he was ignorant and obedient, and probably stupid.
"Will you go with James to the Red Moon pack?", Talia asked Cornelia.
"I…", Cornelia was not sure how to respond to this.
"We didn't talk about it.", James said while tightening his hold on Cornelia.
James didn't think about what will happen after he leaves the Dark Howlers pack. There was no time to think about such things!
But in just a second, James saw more than a dozen of red flags related to the idea of Cornelia cohabiting with him in the packhouse of the Red Moon pack. However, being apart from her was also difficult to swallow.
James looked at Cornelia and he felt his stomach tightening. Before last night he was not aware of her existence, and only a few hours ago he confirmed they were mates. James was still at a stage where he couldn't fully feel the bond, yet he couldn't bear the thought of being apart from her. That was not like him, but there was nothing he could do about it. He really wanted to tie her up to him, so they can always be together. But he needed a plan to keep her safe, because if his father finds out about Cornelia, it won't end well, even without the whole breeding-with-witches nightmare.
Talia didn't want to influence Cornelia's decision, but Talia knew firsthand how badly Omegas were treated in the Red Moon pack. Without her wolf or Aura, as an outsider, Cornelia will be categorized as the lowest Omega there is.
"I will go with George.", Dawn spoke to Cornelia. "I know a thing or two about Alpha Edward, and I assume that you shouldn't reveal your identity as James' mate, and that means you shouldn't go to the packhouse." Dawn turned to George. "Can she stay with us?"
George confirmed, and explained to the confused witch, "I have a villa that provides privacy. Dawn and I will be there with a handful of trustworthy staff. We can give you a bedroom, and you are welcome to stay with us. James can visit you when his schedule allows. However, if you plan to move about, you will need to be extra careful. Without a wolf, you will be just a human, and that's not favorable in the Red Moon pack. Your identity as my guest might give you some protection, but I'm not sure how far that will stretch." No one dared to bully Estelle and other Omegas who worked in his villa, but that was only when George was around. He knew that all kinds of things happened when he was not looking.
"I will be with you whenever James is not around. Talk it over with James before deciding on anything.", Dawn said to Cornelia.
George told Dawn a lot about the Red Moon pack without sugarcoating things, and he also spoke about James and how he is in charge of James' training, so Dawn knew that James and Cornelia will be facing a tough decision. James was underage, and his father controlled his routine. James never opposed his father openly, and he probably won't be able to protect Cornelia. On one side, James will want to be with Cornelia, and on the other, he wouldn't want to put her in a difficult situation.
Dawn bit the inside of her cheek while wondering if she was too hasty to offer their help. Sure, she wanted to help, but she will be an underdog also. Dawn was an Omega, and she will need to conceal the boost in strength that came with the Alpha aura after George marked her. And considering George's plans to take down Alpha Edward, the situation was not favorable. What was she thinking?
