"Miss Talia", Alpha Magnus called. "Are you expecting me to interfere with the issue of an Alpha refusing to make a she-wolf his chosen mate?"
"That's not what I'm expecting from you. That's what Alpha Edward is expecting.", Talia responded matter-of-factly. "He will twist this into an issue of Damon abusing his power and being incompetent, but the reality is that this meeting is called because Marcy didn't achieve her goal. Everyone knows that. However, what you don't know is that Damon found his fated mate. I hear that Luna Alicia is your fated mate. What would you do if someone tries to match you with another woman? Damon wouldn't accept Marcy or any other no matter how much pressure is put on him."
Alpha Magnus listened to Talia with a stiff expression.
Did he get her point? Sure. Based on the information he got, Damon's fated mate was right there in his office, trying to convince him to support Damon, however… "That's a touching story, miss Talia, but I don't understand why you are telling it now, here, to me. I thought I was clear that I don't have much time, yet you came here to waste it."
Talia suppressed her rage that flared at his condescending tone. "Waste it?"
"Are you really expecting me to meddle in Alpha Damon's choice of his Luna? Or in the efforts of Alpha Edward to create a bond through marriage with the Dark Howlers pack? You mentioned how Alicia is my fated mate. Three decades ago, I chose Alicia to be my Luna. And if at that time I decided to reject her and pick another woman to be my Luna, I wouldn't be kind to people standing in my way. Do you understand that?"
Talia's brows came together as she processed his words. Of course, she understood that, but… "This is about Alpha Edward trying…"
"Yeah, yeah…", Alpha Magnus interrupted Talia. "Alpha Edward wants to get more powerful. What's new about that? A better question would be, what's wrong with that? Alphas want to grow so they can protect their people, it's normal. Let's stop pretending how this is about mates, doing the right thing, and other sentimental crap because that's not how things work. If Alpha Damon was here, asking for my assistance, he would offer me something in return. He would offer me something that would make me happy so that I can make him happy. That's how things work, Miss Talia. There is no such thing as a free lunch. So let me rephrase my question. Are you here to offer me something, or just to waste my time?"
Talia couldn't believe this. Weren't Alpha Magnus and Damon on friendly terms? James told her that Alpha Magnus was selfish and thinking only about benefits, but she hoped that when facing her, he won't be so shameless.
Talia didn't need to look to her left to know that Tony's head was down and his hands were balled into fists. Tony didn't like this, but he didn't dare say anything against his father. This was wrong, so wrong.
"Damon is your ally. Will you turn your back to him now when he needs you because there are no direct benefits? What about the friendly relationship between your packs? What about Damon training and mentoring Tony? They are friends, good friends. Doesn't that count for something?"
Alpha Magnus looked at Talia mockingly. "You talk about friendship and Tony, but how does that relate to me?"
Talia couldn't believe this. "Isn't Tony your son? Isn't he the future Alpha of this pack? By helping Damon now, you will set a good stage for a good collaboration between Tony and Damon for years to come. Don't tell me you don't see it." Talia shook her head. "Of course, you see it, but you don't care because the only thing that concerns you are your benefits."
Alpha Magnus didn't like the way Talia spoke, but Axel was right there, glaring at him, so he controlled his temper and responded, "This is not about MY benefits. I am thinking about my pack. That's what Alphas do."
"Bullshit!", Talia squeezed through her teeth. "How about you drop the act and admit that this is only about you? If you are thinking about the Lightclaw pack, you would invest more in your son. He is the future of this pack, not you. But instead of training him, you encouraged Tony to travel and have fun. Tony trusted that you have his interests at heart, yet you denied him years of proper education and now people are talking about him as a failure. Damon is the one trying to fix your wrongs. Tony has good ideas, yet you are ignoring…"
"How dare you!", Alpha Magnus snapped. "Who do you think you are?"
"She is…", Axel stopped talking when Talia raised her hand.
"He doesn't need to know who I am, Axel.", Talia said while standing up slowly, unable to sit still as anger swelled within her.
'Shameless goat!', Liseli shouted in Talia's mind. 'Let me give him some pain.'
Talia ignored her bloodthirsty wolf and spoke to Axel while looking at Alpha Magnus.
"He doesn't deserve to know who I am. He is just a greedy Alpha who will ruin the lives of thousands so that he can enjoy a few years pretending to be important."
"Did you just…?"
"Insult you?", Talia interrupted Alpha Magnus as Liseli's rage amplified Talia's. "That's the least you should…"
'Kitten?', Damon's voice sounded in Talia's mind. 'What's going on?'
Talia paused. Why was Damon in her head? And he sounded concerned.
Damon was in a plane and Caden was telling him about the things that happened recently, in case the black runes flare again and Damon forgets about Talia. Caden's update was focused on the Dark Howlers pack and the dangers they were facing, without mentioning Talia. In that way, Damon's memory related to the pack business and dealing with Alpha Edward will be intact even with Talia gone.
Talia didn't think that their mind-link will work across such a distance, and she definitely forgot that he can feel her emotions.
Damon wanted to know what was going on, and Talia had no intention of telling him where she was.
'Nothing, Damon', Talia responded. 'It's just me thinking about what awaits for you at that meeting and backstabbing Alphas and… I got upset.'
'It will be fine, kitten.', Damon coaxed her, his deep voice healed the cracks her anger created. 'I will do everything I can to keep you safe. No one will jeopardize what we have as long as there is a fight in me.'
'I know.'
Talia knew that Damon would do everything he could, but what about her? Was she really giving it her all, or was she tiptoeing while trying not to offend anyone? Was there a scenario where everyone will be happy? Or was she supposed to look only after her interests, like Alpha Magnus and other greedy people?
Regardless of what the answers were, she didn't want to worry Damon.
'Focus on your thing, Damon, and I will do my part.', Talia said.
'Alright. I miss you.'
Talia smiled at this cheesy line, but the truth was that she missed him as well. 'I miss you too, Damon. Stay safe and… see you soon.'
