Damon looked at Talia, and he wondered how much he was failing her. He brought her to the Dark Howlers pack with a promise of a home, food, and access to medical care. He got her all that, but it came with a baggage of endless troubles. Just when he thought they resolved one thing, two more would pop up. Damn it!
How could he call himself an Alpha when he couldn't give his Luna a comfortable life? And this was not about a comfortable life. It was about preserving Talia's life.
Just last night, Talia was in the forest, fighting rogues, and he had no idea she was in danger!
What if something happened to her? How could he step in front of his people and expect them to believe he will protect them when he couldn't protect his mate? How could he look into the mirror knowing that Talia was harmed on his watch?
The anguish ripped his heart into pieces at the thought that Talia was nearly kidnapped. What would they do to her? What if he couldn't find her? What if… Damon balled his hands into fists until his knuckles turned white.
Talia didn't know what was on Damon's mind, but she could sense that his mood was off. Actually, he looked a bit murderous.
"Damon? Damon?" She called. "It will be alright. We will figure this out."
Damon stared at Talia blankly. Was she comforting him?
He reached for her and hugged her tightly until there was no space between them.
"Promise you won't leave my side," he said.
Talia nodded right away and asked, "Do you need rest, or can we address some important things?"
Damon released a sharp breath. "I am OK. Let's do this."
He was squeezing her, which told her he was not OK, but James and Cornelia were watching, so she wanted to make this quick.
"Three things. First, we need to find out how much Stephanie knows about the current situation and to confirm if she was the one tipping off Lisa. Second, Grady and Varya will enter our pack in a low-key manner, and we will try to isolate them as much as possible. And third, when we reach home, I want us to meet with Lulu's father personally. Do you think we can do that?"
Damon confirmed. Visiting Lulu's father will be emotionally challenging, but there were no obstacles to make it happen. As for the other two… "Maya will ask Rosa to prepare one side-house for Grady and Varya. I am hoping that Gideon can do the ceremony right away, and with them being a newly-mated couple, they won't come out of the house for days. By then, we will figure out what to do with them. The fastest method to find out who is working with rogues would be to get our hands on Lisa, but she is with Tristan now, and that won't be easy."
Damon rubbed his forehead while thinking about other options. "I can use my aura to force Stephanie and others in the packhouse to confess, but that will tip them off, and the innocents will be offended. We can go with the roundabout tactic by telling a different lie to each person and keeping an eye on Tristan's movements…" Damon's voice trailed, and he turned to look at James.
"Do you have any spies that can keep an eye on rogues?" Damon asked.
James' eyes widened. "You want to spy on rogues?"
Damon confirmed. "I wish to find out about Lisa's situation."
James thought for a moment before responding, "I don't have anyone, but my father might. Give me a second…" It took him a second to think of something. "I will take care of it."
Damon was surprised by James' confidence. "You will?"
"My father expects secretive information since I'm spending time with Alpha Natalia's special advisor. I will tell him I overheard you talking how one of your close friends got mated to Tristan. If I say that she grew up in the packhouse as your sister, I'm confident that my father will not spare resources to investigate that."
"You can also say that Lisa was Tony's girlfriend," Talia said.
Damon's face fell. "That's right. Lisa had information on the Lightclaw pack also. We should warn Tony and Kalina."
"This will make my father more interested in her," James said. "With any luck, my father might try to get his hands on the female so that he can get information from her personally." There was also an option of Alpha Edward and Tristan collaborating, but James didn't want to mention that. Whether they were associated or not, Tristan won't give up on Lisa willingly.
Damon liked James' plan. The boy was a genius. Will it be too early to ask him to join the Dark Howlers pack as a Gamma?
"If you ever consider leaving the Red Moon pack, I might have a position for you," Damon said.
James was surprised by this switch of topics. "What kind of a position?"
"A high-ranking one. You just need to say you are willing."
James shook his head. "I am flattered, but I must ask, are you willing to risk my father starting an open war?"
Damon pursed his lips. He knew that James had a point, but... "You could be my Gamma. That position will grant you liberties and power you don't have now. In the Dark Howlers pack, you and your mate can be together openly. As for the war... my future Gamma is the smartest guy I ever met. I'm sure he will figure out how to make it work."
James was aware that Damon was sweet-talking him into trouble, but hearing Damon praising him felt damn good. His father never did anything like that.
Any good words that left Alpha Edward's lips about James were when he was talking to others, how James was his son, the best future Alpha, and how their pack will prosper. It was just an empty talk Alpha Edward used to make himself look better. It had nothing to do with James.
That was why this was different. There were no witnesses and no benefits, and James knew that Damon meant it. Alpha Damon of the Dark Howlers pack called James the smartest guy he ever met, and that meant a lot.
"Your offer is appealing, Alpha Damon. I will consider it seriously," James said with a little bow.
Talia and Cornelia exchanged smiles, both hoping that this will work.
Talia liked Cornelia from the beginning, and having another high-ranking witch in the Dark Howlers pack would be a bonus.
Cornelia liked that she could move about in the Dark Howlers pack freely, Amelia was there, and it would all be a hundred folds better if James could be with her also. No more hiding.
James cleared his throat and said, "As for the issue with your mole, give me a few days, and I will let you know if my father takes the bait. I recommend that before you take Grady with you, you stage his death. Make it look like guards beat him to death during interrogation. They can drag his body out of the dungeon for others to see. Regardless of what you do later, Tristan will believe that Grady is dead, so he won't come searching for him."
