At the Lightclaw pack, Tony and Kalina were expecting Talia in their suite that included a small living area.
Cornelia and James decided to stick around because Axel will come with Yasmin to give the token to Talia, and Cornelia wanted to see Yasmin before heading back to the Dark Howlers pack.
"To what do we owe this pleasure, Lia?", Kalina asked after the introductions were done. Both Kalina and Tony were surprised to see James (aka a teen from a hostile pack) and Cornelia (aka the new face).
"How come you are here without Damon?" Kalina glanced at Talia's neck and smiled at the sight of a pinkish mark forming there. "We saw each other only a few days ago, yet you seem so different."
"A lot of things happened, but before we start catching up, we need to take care of some business.", Talia said and turned to Tony. "I need to talk to your father."
"He is in his study, discussing things with his Beta. It seems there is something going on, and he will leave in the middle of the night. When do you want to see him?"
"Now.", Talia responded.
Tony's expression told her that it won't be easy. "I can tell him you are here, but there is no guarantee he will see you now."
"I need to talk to him, Tony.", Talia pleaded. "It's important."
"What's going on?", Kalina asked.
Talia didn't want to waste time, but she knew that Tony won't be supportive without knowing at least a part of the story.
"You all probably heard about Marcy leaving this morning.", Talia said and when Kalina and Tony nodded, Talia gave them a short version of how Alpha Edward was not pleased that he lost a pawn that could give him access to resources of the Dark Howlers pack, so he summoned the Council of Alphas. "They will meet at dawn. Alpha Magnus is preparing for that meeting. I don't know what Alpha Edward is up to, but he is definitely plotting against Damon." Talia turned to Tony. "I need your father to understand the situation and I hope that he won't side with the bad guys. If they get the majority of votes to suppress Damon and the Dark Howlers pack, Damon won't allow it to happen without retaliation."
Tony's face was arranged in a deep frown. He heard all kinds of stories about Alpha Edward, but was it OK to talk like that in front of James, aka Alpha Edward's son? And why was James more focused on the dark-skinned beauty by his side than on the verbal smackdown of the Red Moon? One should look at a woman like that only if they were mates, and James was definitely too young for such things.
Tony dispelled his thoughts about James and Cornelia because there were more important things to think about.
Tony realized that they might be on the verge of a massive war among werewolves, yet his father was keeping him in the dark. Tony felt useless.
He was the future Alpha with his mate by his side, and a pack, and Talia was just a not-acknowledged mate of an Alpha, yet she spoke with conviction that stirred other people to support her.
But no matter how strong Talia's heart was, Tony knew his father was, and he was aware that she was about to attempt the impossible. However, he didn't want to discourage Talia before she even tried.
"I will talk to him and do my best to secure you a meeting."
"Thank you, Tony.", Talia said with sincerity. "It needs to happen before he leaves. That's all I'm asking from you."
Tony glanced toward James and Cornelia. "Who else will be attending?"
"Just me.", Talia said. "If you can skip telling your father that James is here, that would be for the best."
Tony looked at James in confusion. Why would they conceal James' presence?
"My father doesn't know I'm here and I would like to keep it that way.", James said without further explanations.
Tony didn't comment on this. He went to talk to his father, and Talia checked her phone before turning to Kalina. "Axel will be here with his mate soon. No matter what you hear, I hope it can stay between us and please, don't panic."
Kalina's eyebrows shoot up. "I am already panicking. Tell me, how bad is it?"
"Alpha Edward feels that Damon is a threat, and he was using Marcy to get his hands on Damon's resources. Now that it failed, we believe he will turn hostile."
"Hostile? Like a war?", Kalina asked grimly. A war between the two largest packs will drag in everyone else.
Talia didn't deny it. "That's why I need to talk to Alpha Magnus. If Alpha Edward doesn't have the support of the majority of Alphas, they won't be able to start anything openly. In order to be more effective, tell me something about Alpha Magnus."
Kalina grimaced. "He is prideful and thinks that he knows everything. To be honest, I don't think you should talk to him on your own. At least go with Tony."
Talia didn't want to implicate Tony, especially if she fails. Tony might be punished. But then, Kalina wouldn't suggest for Tony to accompany her just because of moral support. "What will Tony do?"
"Alpha Magnus won't bully you with Tony around."
Talia needed a minute to understand Kalina's words. "Did he bully you?"
"I don't know if I would call it bullying but…" Kalina paused while contemplating how much she should say. "You see, Tony believes that women should get roles other than Omegas in this pack, and the pack members support him, yet Alpha Magnus thinks that's one of the radical ideas I planted in Tony's mind. Alpha Magnus didn't hit me or anything like that, but he made a point that I'm disturbing the pack and the order he is painstakingly maintaining, and that as the future Luna, I should know better. When we returned from your pack, Tony said how he is considering between Nate and Greg who will be his Beta, and Alpha Magnus lost it. The old guy is pushing for Paul to be Tony's Beta because Paul's father is the current Beta, and somehow, I was blamed for this as well because it seems that before meeting me, Tony was much more obedient, so… you get the picture."
Talia nodded stiffly. She got the picture alright. It was a picture of a grumpy old man in power who was suppressing anyone who might jeopardize him or his so-called order. But was it really hopeless?
Talia remembered one person. "What about Luna Alicia? How does she fit into this picture?"
Kalina shrugged. "Luna Alicia is a good person, and she is encouraging Tony to do what he believes it's right, but that's only in private. Whenever Alpha Magnus is in the room, she turns quiet."
Talia interpreted this as: Tony's mother is supportive but useless.
The more Talia thought about her upcoming chat with Alpha Magnus, the less confidence she had.
She imagined grumpy Elders, and how she would deal with them without Damon around. Even in her head, it seemed to be impossible.
How was she supposed to reason with him?
Talia's mind worked a million thoughts a second. 'Liseli, what do you think?'
'We can always suppress the bastard and force him to do what we want.'
Talia rejected that idea. 'What happens when suppression is over, and he retaliates? I can't go into that meeting while mind-controlling Alpha Magnus.' Assuming that's even possible.
'I can try to put pressure on his mind and brainwash him.', Liseli suggested. 'But that's risky. If I use too less, it won't work, and if it's too much, he might become a vegetable.'
'Can your ideas be less violent?', Talia asked.
Liseli snorted. 'Your less violent won't produce any results. You either want results or not. We are running out of time.'
Talia couldn't believe this. Talking with Alpha Magnus had close to zero chances of success, and violence was not an option. Now what?
