"Will you tell me what's going on?" Talia asked Cassandra and Keith, who were both looking at their feet.
"Nothing." Keith and Cassandra responded in unison.
"That didn't look like nothing," Yasmin chimed in. "Lover's quarrel?"
Keith and Cassandra grimaced like they had eaten something sour.
Talia was not in the mood to play. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Which one of you will explain why are Oracle of my pack and the head of my guards fighting in the hallway like two ruffians?"
Cassandra responded, "I gave him a necklace, and he threw it away."
"You didn't say I need to return it." Keith barked back.
Talia's eyebrows rose in slow motion. "I didn't realize that your relationship progressed to the point where you are exchanging jewelry."
"Bwahahaha!" Yasmin burst into laughter.
"It's not like that!" Keith said with urgency. Did Talia think he was wearing such things? "Cassandra gave me a necklace, saying that it would help me. That necklace could resist magic, but it broke, so I threw it away."
"A necklace that can resist magic?" Talia asked, and she thought of a possibility, "Is that why you were able to fight with the Guardian?"
Keith nodded.
Talia turned to Cassandra. "How did you know that the Guardian would attack me?"
"That's what I do. I am the Oracle of the Midnight Guardians pack. I had a vision of you being in danger and your guard rescuing you."
"Tell me the details!" Talia demanded.
"The vision was about a man with black hair using some ability to paralyze people. His intention was to get his hands on you, Alpha Talia. I saw him," Cassandra pointed at Keith, "Coming to your rescue. And he could break through the restriction because of the necklace I gave him."
A million questions popped into Talia's mind. "What else did you see? Is that the only vision you had? Did you see something about our pack? How often do you have those?"
"I have many visions, Alpha. Some are clearer than the others." Cassandra responded. "Most of the time, it's just bits and pieces that don't make sense until it actually happens."
Talia was visibly disappointed to hear this. But maybe it was bits and pieces for Cassandra, while someone else could figure it out easily.
Keith felt a need to say something. "When we were in the Silver Flame Coven, Cassandra told me she had a divine message from the Moon Goddess. She said that my fortune is tied to yours and that by protecting you, I am protecting myself. Since then, I was carrying that necklace with me."
Cassandra also exposed Keith's attraction to Talia and told him his wolf knew that if anything happened to Talia, Keith would never be happy. Were those words also true? Keith was not sure, but he knew that thanks to the necklace, he saved Talia.
Keith remembered one more thing, "The Oracle also said that her fate is tied to yours."
Talia was still looking at Cassandra. Was that why Cassandra gave the necklace to Keith? Was she hoping to score points and Talia will return her ability?
'What did you expect?' Liseli sneered in Talia's mind. 'The Oracle was always selfish.'
Talia wished for that to be untrue. As an Oracle, Cassandra should think about benefits for the whole pack and not only for her own interests.
The biggest issue Talia had was that she couldn't trust Cassandra, not after the Oracle tried harming Damon. Even if Cassandra came with a warning that the sky was falling, Talia wouldn't believe it until the world was flattened. It was ironic that the person giving prophecies had zero credibility.
Talia could see Cassandra looking at her expectantly, probably wanting to make amends, but Talia doubted that it could ever happen.
"The necklace you gave Keith, where did it come from?" Talia asked.
"It's one of the relics we have in this pack. No one uses them, so… when we headed to the realm of witches, I thought it will be handy to have an anti-magic item, and I brought it with me." Unfortunately, it didn't work against potions.
Talia thought that she had heard something interesting. "There are more of those relics?"
Cassandra confirmed. "Would you like to see them?"
"Yes." Talia was excited. Whatever that necklace was, it managed to repel Guardian's restrictions. Caleb told them that he couldn't move a muscle, yet Keith didn't only break free, but he jumped on Gregory and beat him up. Talia definitely wanted to check other relics.
Talia reached to touch her chest, pressing on the necklace she was wearing under the blouse. Would Cassandra be able to recognize it as a magical item and make it work? What if she ruins it or…? Can Talia risk anything happening to that necklace? Talia was back to wondering how much she could trust Cassandra.
'Kitten?' Damon's voice sounded in Talia's head. 'Are you alright?'
'Yes, yes,' Talia responded with haste, realizing that Damon could pick up her excitement. He probably thought she was in some kind of trouble.
Talia remembered that she left Damon a while ago in the cafeteria, saying she would be back in a minute. How much time passed? Talia was not sure, but she knew it was much longer than she thought it would be.
"How about you show me the relics tomorrow, after breakfast?" Talia asked Cassandra.
Cassandra responded right away. "Anytime is fine."
"Please forgive Keith for the necklace he lost. I will make it up to you."
Cassandra's eyes lit up. "Of course, Alpha." Cassandra bowed at a ninety degrees angle. "I am available to show you relics anytime. As our Alpha, you don't need to ask for permission. I am at your service. If you excuse me…" And then she left.
Talia eyed Keith suspiciously, and she waited for Cassandra to move out of the earshot before asking, "Did you really throw it away?"
Keith avoided Talia's gaze.
"Keith?"
"I threw it away, but…" He hesitated. "Then I picked it up."
Talia watched as Keith reached into the back pocket of his pants and pulled a necklace out of there.
Talia couldn't' believe this. "Why did you hide it from Cassandra?"
Keith puffed his cheeks. "Because it's not working anymore, and it's the thing that saved my life."
"Saved your life? You mean… saved MY life." Talia corrected him. If Gregory got his hands on her while she was in heat… Talia didn't want to think about that, but she knew her life would be horrible.
Keith raised his gaze and looked at Talia sadly. "My life. If I couldn't protect you, Alpha Damon would kill me." And even if Damon spared him, Keith would never forgive himself.
"He is right, you know…" Yasmin said from the side. "Damon would kill him if anything happened to you. How I see it, Keith deserves to keep that necklace, regardless of if it's working. He put his life on the line for you, thanks to that necklace."
"Thank you, Keith, for everything. I am lucky to have you watch my back," Talia said. And she really meant it. Other than Damon, no one else did so much for her without asking for anything in return. But she couldn't give him more than a thank you, no matter how unfair it was.
Keith balled his hand into a fist to hold onto the necklace firmly, and he lowered his head. "It's my honor to be your guard, Alpha Talia."
