Alpha Adam frowned. He was confident that Damon would get the hints by now. Or did Damon want Alpha Adam to be more obvious?
"The word is that you met some kind of trouble, and we can help."
The way Alpha Adam looked smugly at his Beta, made Damon's insides churn.
'Don't blame them.', Caden said. 'It's a smart move to ask for favors now when you are in a pinch. We don't know who are the other two Alphas coming, but if Alpha Adam sides with us, we will even the numbers with Alpha Edward among the current crowd.'
'They want me to make Jade my Luna.', Damon reminded Caden. 'That's his bargaining chip and he hopes I'm desperate enough to take the deal.'
'You don't need to accept.', Caden said cautiously. 'As long as you are ambiguous now…'
Damon didn't hear the rest. Just the thought of Jade flaunting her status as Damon's anything made Damon's temper flare to the point of wanting to punch someone. How can Jade compare to Talia? No one compares to Talia. NO ONE!
Damon's insides churned as he wondered, would he accept the deal if he didn't remember Talia? How would he scrape that dirt? Even if Talia forgave him, he would never forgive himself. The idea of him causing Talia pain again, and making her act like his assistant or anything other than his equal was making him feel like his heart was being torn out of his chest.
'CRACK!'
The glass in Damon's hand burst, making a mess of amber liquid and glass shards on the counter of the bar. There was some blood also as a piece of glass was stuck in his palm.
Damon pulled the glass out and waved at the bartender to clean the mess and give him another drink.
"It seems my state of mind is not the best to discuss collaborations, Alpha Adam."
Alpha Adam's smile froze. Was Damon rejecting him?
Alpha Cristian turned to ask everyone present, "When are we going to start?"
"Two more Alphas are on their way. They will be here within minutes.", one of the Guardians that was standing at the door responded.
Alpha Edward was eager for those two to remaining Alphas come. He was confident that one of the two was Alpha Magnus from the Lightclaw pack because they spoke the previous evening.
As for the last Alpha coming, Alpha Edward didn't know who it will be because responses were kept by the Guardians, but he didn't care who it was because he was confident that he will have the necessary majority to move on with his agenda.
Alpha Edward knew about Alpha Adam's plan that involved Jade, and after seeing Alpha Adam's sour expression that matched his Beta's, Alpha Edward was confident that Jade will fail in becoming Damon's Luna. After all, Damon rejected so many better candidates, and Jade was not known for the virtues required for a Luna. Why would Damon want to give status to a female who was set on traveling and exposing her body on a catwalk and in magazines? On top of that, Jade had numerous confirmed previous relationships, so there was that.
The door opened again with an announcement, "Alpha Anthony Ambert and Beta Nathan from the Lightclaw pack."
Everyone gaped at two young men who entered, unsure if they heard this right.
Alpha Edward's mind was spinning and he was not aware that he was walking toward Tony and Nate.
"Since when are you the Alpha?", Alpha Edward asked sternly, like he was addressing two mischievous boys.
Tony patted the token that was attached to the breast pocket of his jacket. "My father retired and I'm the Alpha now." Tony was surprised that his voice was steady. He actually sounded confident! Talia told him to look at everyone like they are trash that can't touch him, and the strategy worked!
"Impossible! How could this happen!", Alpha Edward exclaimed.
Tony looked at the man for a moment before asking, "What makes it impossible for an Alpha to give the position to his son? I am of age and I have my fated mate. Didn't you attend the event last month where we celebrated Kalina as my future Luna? Are you so old that you forgot?"
Maddox snickered at Tony's snarky remark and everyone wondered if Alpha Edward will explode.
But how can Alpha Edward cause trouble? If it goes beyond bickering and provocations, the Guardians will make their move and they might expel him from the meeting, and that would ruin everything.
Seeing that Alpha Edward was not responding, Tony lifted his chin smugly. "As for how I became the Alpha of my pack, relevant people know about it because they attended my Alpha ceremony."
"Do you mind?", Nate's voice sounded from behind Tony. "You are blocking the way."
Alpha Edward took a step back reluctantly, and Tony and Nate passed as they walked toward the bar.
Tony shook hands with Maddox, Damon, Cristian, and Adam, and Maddox asked, "Seriously. When did that happen?" He pointed at the token that was hanging on Tony's breast pocket.
Tony leaned closer to Maddox and spoke in a low voice, "I could tell you, but then I will need to kill you."
Before Maddox could say more, Tony raised his hand, indicating to Maddox to wait. "This is not the place to discuss such things." He had no intention of telling anyone what transpired in his father's study.
Damon was also curious. What trick did Tony pull for the old man to give him the spot? Damon knew very well that Alpha Magnus had no desire to retire, yet here was Tony, with his hair slicked back and a sharp suit and a token representing his pack. Did Alpha Magnus lose his mind? Damon knew that Tony didn't have the power nor mental fortitude to lead a pack.
Seeing that everyone was looking at him with a bunch of unspoken questions, Tony smiled smugly. Talia told Tony that he was the only Alpha in attendance who knew about her identity as the Alpha of the Midnight Guardians pack, and that made him feel important. He decided to give a small teaser in the form of, "I can tell you that me coming here as an Alpha is not the biggest surprise for today."
Maddox's mouth formed an "O" shape as his eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"Alpha Damon", Alpha Adam called grimly. "Only one more Alpha needs to come before we start the meeting. I think you know what kind of a deal I want."
Damon was exasperated. Why was this guy set on spoiling Damon's already bad mood? "And what kind of a deal is that?"
"It's about Jade.", Beta Milo said. "She is interested in you and the two of you have a history…"
"Hissss…", Tony's exaggerated sound interrupted whatever Beta Milo was about to say next. "I will assume you didn't hear that Alpha Damon already has an awesome woman by his side. If you know what's good for you, you will stop pimping your daughter."
Everyone gaped at Tony. Since when was he that brave?
