Damon and Talia spent most of the day in meetings where their discussion about portals and asking witches for help expanded into talk about current issues. Keith, Liam, Meg, and Kai joined them in the study to exchange ideas about training warriors.
It was later in the afternoon when one of Oracle's helpers came to ask about the ceremony that they were all reminded about the feast and the pack run, so they dispersed to get ready.
Talia was sitting in front of a massive dressing table and looking into the mirror to see her reflection with Damon standing behind her while tending to her hair with an intense focus like it was the most important thing in the world.
Damon and Talia were taking their time, and not rushing the therapeutic experience.
Talia loved the small smile at the corner of Damon's lips that was there whenever he combed her hair. It was a ritual they did in silence.
She enjoyed the soft tugs on her scalp as the comb ran through her hair, and Damon was lost in the memories of when he was doing the same for his mother.
Talia lowered her gaze to look at the necklace in her hand, the only thing she had from her parents. She didn't let go of it since Axel had given it to her earlier that day.
"Kitten", Damon called. "What's wrong?"
Talia looked up to meet Damon's eyes in the mirror, feeling silly that she forgot he could sense her emotions unless she shuts them down willingly.
She didn't want to keep things from him, but there was no point in talking about the lost childhood that was never hers to have. And there was no point in telling Damon how jealous she was because he had memories of his parents, and the only thing she remembered before he entered her life was loneliness... but it was not his fault.
Talia decided to address another thing that was on her mind.
"I feel that we are missing something important."
"Tell me about it.", Damon demanded.
"I think that Sophia and Isaac are too docile.", Talia said. "They are prideful people who wouldn't hold back on doing one horrible thing to hide another. I remember them stubbornly fighting even after I took away their abilities, yet today they were cooperating."
"Maybe being locked up for a long time made them reconsider their life choices. It was just a few days for you, but for them, it was months.", Damon reminded her.
Talia didn't think that was the case. They were hiding the fact that they gave Talia away, and based on what Axel said, Sophia didn't talk about Valerian like he never existed. Was it really because such a long time passed (centuries for them), or because she was still actively trying to conceal her misdeeds? Besides, "The truth serum will loosen up their tongue, but it won't change their personality."
"Do you think they lied?"
"Not lied, but there is a possibility of them telling us one truth to hide another. If we didn't ask them the right questions, it would be easy for them to work around exposing what they wanted to hide." Talia's brows came together. "Isaac immediately figured out that we used the truth serum, and I was surprised how calmly they took it."
Damon agreed with this. "It's almost like they expected it to happen. Do you think that Axel gave them a heads-up?"
"I don't think so.", Talia said, but she didn't sound convincing even to herself. "I really want to believe Axel is on our side." But… Talia remembered how Axel immediately asked about them giving away Talia, even though she told him that she didn't want to talk about it. What if he warned them that this would happen, and they prepared their answers in advance? What if Axel didn't give Sophia and Isaac the truth serum at all, but it was all an elaborate play to deceive Talia and Damon?
Now Talia was questioning everything.
Was the necklace in her hand from her father? Sophia said that Valerian left a necklace, but even if that was true, Talia didn't know if she was holding the real one.
Damon released a long breath and squatted in front of Talia so they were on the same level. "Things are not always black or white, kitten. I can see that Axel respects you, and he is sorry for how his parents treated you. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have loyalty toward them. The fact that they are not in a dungeon proves that he didn't turn his back on them, no matter what their crimes are."
Talia realized that Damon was right. She didn't want to harm Sophia and Isaac in order not to alienate Axel, so she left them to Axel. Talia was not expecting him to chain his parents and serve flogging instead of meals, but their current lifestyle was definitely not something a person who committed crimes against the Alpha should have.
Talia was mentally rewinding their talk from that morning. How much did Sophia and Isaac hide during their talk?
Talia was heavily distracted by the necklace she was holding onto, and she didn't really pay attention to what Sophia and Isaac were saying when they were talking about portals and the Guardians. Actually, it was not about what they were saying; it was about what they were NOT saying. Maybe they were obviously lying, but Talia missed it completely.
What was the point in talking to Sophia and Isaac if she couldn't trust Axel? How many people were deceiving her? How can she verify loyalty? Were her choices to trust people blindly or not to trust anyone?
She looked helplessly at Damon, the only person she believed in. He chose not to trust anyone in order to preserve himself, and Talia was not sure if she could do the same. She craved company and acceptance too much.
"Now what?", Talia asked.
"I'm sure you don't want to rush things. Let's observe. Meg and Sandy are here, and you trust them, right?"
Talia nodded, and Damon continued, "We will add a few more of our people here, and they will have a task to see what's going on when we are not around. Considering your role, it won't be suspicious. It will confirm if Sophia and Isaac are up to something and to what extent Axel is involved with them."
"Do you have trustworthy people?", Talia asked.
"I have reliable ones.", Damon responded. "Other than you, I don't trust anyone completely. However, if we put several unrelated people to accomplish a task from different angles, and if their stories match, we can trust them to a certain degree."
Talia admired this strategy. Damon was the Alpha of the largest pack in North America for a reason.
Damon tapped Talia's nose with his index finger. "Better?"
She smiled. "Better."
"Good.", Damon said with relief obvious in his voice. "Don't stress about things that happened; instead, focus on learning from them. Even if we redo the morning, would you do anything differently? Unless you can crack her head open to see what's inside, it will be the same."
"Actually…", Talia drawled. "Liseli told me that I can force my way into Sophia's head and see her memories. As long as I know what I'm looking for, I can see it."
Damon's eyebrow rose in slow motion. "That sounds risky." And a handy skill to have.
"It's risky only for the other party.", Talia assured him. "If I poke around her mind too much, she might turn into an idiot."
Damon shook his head. "That's not what I meant. Who knows what Sophia did while clutching onto her Alpha position? She was the second-best, and so was Isaac. Those people tend to cross the line in order to prove they deserve to be at the top. I fear you will see things that will scar you."
"That only makes me want more to look into her mind."
Damon was genuinely worried. If it were him, he would go in there and wreak havoc, but Talia was a gentle soul, and if she really saw some despicable things, she wouldn't be able to shake it off. He knew her that much.
"Sophia and Isaac already did a lot of damage. Let's not allow them to do more. For now, we watch. OK?"
Talia nodded obediently.
Desperate to change the topic, Damon asked, "Do you want me to help you put it on?"
Talia needed a moment to realize he was talking about the necklace she was holding onto.
"Yes, please."
She gave him the necklace and collected her hair on the right side to expose her neck.
Talia's lips lifted into a smile when their eyes met in the mirror.
Damon was standing behind Talia, about to put a necklace on her, and he looked so handsome that she wished to take a photo so she can look at him forever, just like that, doing simple things.
The pearl cooled Talia's flesh between her collarbones, and she felt the chain touching her neck.
Talia was hyper-aware of Damon behind her and the clasp he was working on, and then she heard a soft click as the chain connected, and the bright light blinded her.
"TALIA!"
She heard Damon's panicked voice from a distance like he was many miles away.
