Talia didn't respond, and Damon continued talking.
"If you die, I will follow right after. Don't think that it won't happen because I won't rest until I find who caused your demise, and once I make sure they are in hell, I will lose the reason to exist, and then the Dark Howlers pack will collapse."
Damon's voice softened. "The pack is depending on their Alpha and Luna to guide them; without us, they are vulnerable, like a boat in the stormy sea without a helmsman and there will be no one to take over the wheel because no matter how many skilled warriors we have, without us, other Alphas will make them submit. The stubborn ones will be killed, and the submissive ones will be enslaved."
Talia lowered her head. She knew that he was right, but still… "So, what do you expect me to do? To hide while my friends risk their lives to fight off the bad guys?"
"Not to hide.", Damon responded. "But I don't want you on the front lines either. I know that you think I'm exaggerating. And I probably am. Not everyone will be out to kill you, but they will want to capture you, manipulate you, to make you submit. Imagine that a rogue gets his hands on you. Will Keith dare to jump on him if the rogue is holding you by the neck?"
Talia shook her head, silently admitting that he won't.
Damon didn't want to push it, but he wanted her to understand the gravity of the situation. She was a Luna now, the Luna of the largest pack in North America, and there was also the point of Talia being the Alpha of the Midnight Guardians pack, and she needed to stop acting like her existence was not important.
"You are a kind person, Talia", Damon said, and Talia knew this was serious because he used her name this time. "You value life, but don't assume that others are the same. Some people out there will kill for the slightest provocation without blinking. They use and abuse others and don't even bother to justify it."
Talia's chin shook as Damon sent her mental images of a scene in the forest. She was being restricted by a muscular rogue, and a few more guys stood there and held wolfsbane-laced weapons. Keith, Liam, Pierce, Caleb, and Sandy were forced to kneel and to submit under the threats of the rogues because if they refused, the rogues would harm Talia.
"I know you have powers.", Damon said. "But if your guards have knives under their throats, will you dare to act? Can you take out all the bad guys without harming your friends? Can you guess what will happen next?", Damon continued probing. "You are important, so they will take you away without caring what's going to happen to you as long as they get paid. In their eyes, your guards are useless, and the rogues won't hesitate to dispose of them. Keith and the guys won't fight back because the big guy will harm you if they retaliate. By stepping forward recklessly, you WILL put them in danger."
Damon raised his hands and wiped the tears from her cheeks, wet pearls that were trickling down silently and wetting the bedsheets which covered them from the waist down as they sat facing each other.
"Sorry, kitten. I had to do this so that you understand. You are a queen now. For the Dark Howlers pack, you are the most important player, the most powerful one, and you shouldn't move unless absolutely necessary."
Talia blinked. "Are you using a chess analogy?" She never played the game, but she read about it.
"The whole life is a game of chess, kitten. You are not a pawn. You are a queen. My queen. I want you to stand tall and protect yourself and me, and let your guards do their job because if we fall, it's game over."
Talia almost smiled at Damon's words, but her expression froze when she saw that he was serious as he continued.
"There is another thing… I will treat you as my equal. In front of our people, we need to be united, and if you don't agree with my decision, tell me in private. Last night, I told your guards not to party, and you contradicted me."
Talia remembered it, and she didn't think it was a big deal. "You didn't order them. You only asked if they have the luxury of time to party."
"It was obvious that I didn't approve of them going to the Shifters. They got it, you got it, everyone got it, yet you still stepped forward and told them to go ahead with it."
Talia bit her lower lip. He was right. She didn't mean to undermine Damon's authority, she only wanted her friends to have fun, but she ended up talking over Damon.
For an outsider, she probably looked shallow, boasting how she had Damon wrapped around her finger. Damon was wise enough not to start an argument in front of others, but for them, he looked like he was too love-stricken to contradict her.
Talia felt irritation and helplessness bubbling inside her. Why did being Damon's mate come with so many rules and restrictions? Will her life from now going to be about watching her words and expressions? How can she enjoy it like that?
Talia looked at Damon who patiently waited for her to speak and Talia steeled her resolve. She will learn. If Damon could take over the pack at the age of seventeen and not only survive and protect it but make it better, she can definitely learn how to be a good Luna. Besides, she was not alone; she had friends and she had Damon, and she needed to clarify, "I'm sorry. It was not my intention to challenge your authority, I was just speaking my mind."
"And that's fine. You have a beautiful mind. I love your mind, kitten. Remember, you are an Alpha also. Your wolf and your spirit match mine and you have every right to challenge me, and I will do the same to you. However, our disagreements will be handled in private."
Talia nodded at Damon's words, and he had to add, "If you didn't say anything last night while we were outside, Sandy and the guys would go home. Once you convinced me that I was too strict, I would mind-link them that they can party as long as they do it in moderation. They would get their party, and not think of me as a henpecked husband."
"I didn't…"
"I know.", Damon cut her off. "But this is more than just my bruised ego. Right now, all Alphas are keeping their eyes on me. I can't trust that any of them would stick his neck out to save mine."
"What about Max?"
"I consider Max to be my friend, but if he needs to pick between siding with me and watching over his pack, I'm not confident he will have my back. The reality is that not every situation is black or white. Most of the life is shades of gray and we need to pick an option that minimizes our losses without the possibility where we can save everyone." Damon released a long breath. He didn't want to sound like a paranoid person who didn't trust anyone.
