"Is Axel treating you well?" Valerian asked Talia while hoping she would talk about Sophia and Isaac so he could stir the topic to how they treated her and the whole Red Moon pack business.
"Axel treated me well before confirming we were related. He is my proxy and acts as the Alpha in my absence."
Seeing that Talia didn't want to talk about the bad things, Valerian decided on a different strategy. "Tell me about the pack."
"Before I took over as the Alpha, Sophia and Isaac were leading the Midnight Guardians pack. They believed that safety was in secrecy, so the pack members stayed mostly inside. I decided to change that policy, and now we have many new mated couples and a large number of pups on the way. Damon is helping me make it happen while keeping our people safe…"
Valerian was disappointed that Talia didn't confide in him and tell him the bad things she went through, but he also knew he was absent from her life. Was he worthy of her trust?
Talia spoke about opening the portal to the witches' realm when Damon woke up. He rested his chin on Talia's shoulder and listened with Valerian.
No one interrupted them, and they chatted until early morning when Travis came to check on Valerian.
"When can he leave the pack hospital?" Talia asked.
"His condition is stable, and he is recovering at a fantastic rate. If he promises not to exert himself, I will clear him to be discharged. I can visit him once per day to assure things are on track…"
Talia heard that Evanora and Axel were bonding in the library of the Guardians, while Edgar used this time to be with Yasmin and the twins.
Talia asked Axel and others to keep the news of Valerian's existence a secret and left it at that.
The next few days, Talia spent quite some time with Valerian, talking about anything and everything if she was not dealing with pack-related matters.
Valerian's favorite place was the garden, in a spot where he could sit directly under the sunrays that he had missed for two decades. He could walk with a cane now, and that was big progress. He didn't want to use a wheelchair, and being carried around was embarrassing.
Talia found Valerian sitting on the bench in the garden, with his eyes closed and head lifted to the sky as he soaked in the sun.
"Lunch will be served soon," Talia said.
He patted the spot on the bench next to him.
"Since I arrived here, I have asked you many questions. It's only fair that I answer yours."
Talia sat next to him gingerly, and she touched her necklace. She told him before that Astraea left it behind with a secret message that told Talia about her heritage. But there were so many other things she didn't know. "Will you tell me about mom?"
Valerian smiled dreamily. "She was the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."
Talia's expression fell.
"What?" He asked.
"You speak about her in the past tense. I was hoping… Never mind."
"You were hoping she is alive," he said, and Talia nodded.
"In a way, that's not wrong, but it's not right either. We were in a grave situation. I was lucky to take you to safety." Or at least he thought it was safe. "When I returned, Astraea was surrounded. We fought, but they were too many and…" He released a long breath. "They were after her, and she hoped that by sacrificing herself, they would leave me alone. She asked me to take care of you and used the last bits of her energy to protect me."
"So… she is gone?" Talia asked.
"Yes and no," he responded, and he put his hand on his chest. "It sounds crazy, but… I held her unmoving body, and I know she is gone, yet I can still feel the bond."
'It's not crazy,' Liseli spoke in Talia's mind. 'That was how Sapa and I were. Once the bond is established, it connects souls regardless of the distance, and the passing of time won't diminish it. Only if a soul dissipates completely will the bond be broken.'
Talia thought how that was romantic. "Her spirit lives."
Valerian smiled a little. "I like to think so. She was a strong female, mentally and emotionally. They captured me and wanted to enter my mind, but every time they tried to harm me, I could feel the energy that reminded me of Astraea. In the end, they couldn't do anything other than imprisoning me. I think they forgot about me. Life was uneventful until you arrived."
"Am I interrupting?" A deep voice came from the side, and Talia turned to see Damon approaching them. His deep blue eyes, full of emotions, smiled at her and made it impossible to look away.
"Never," Talia responded.
"It's time for lunch," Damon said, and Talia stood up. She offered her hand to Valerian because his legs were still unsteady, but he just looked at her with an unreadable expression.
"Natalia," Valerian called. "If you ever find yourself in a situation where you can save your mate by sacrificing yourself… don't do it. I know it sounds like the right thing to do, but living without a mate is worse than death."
"You said mom is not gone."
"I did, but… It's killing me whenever I think that I will never be able to see her smile, or hold her hand, or feel the sparks. The connection is there, but it's pulling me nowhere, and I feel lost. A big part of me is missing, and I will never get it back."
Talia's heart cracked, and she was glad that Damon put his hands around her.
'Lis,' Talia called her wolf. 'What can I do to comfort him?'
'You can't,' Liseli responded.
'You returned,' Talia said. 'Can't we do the same to my mother?'
Liseli didn't have an answer to that question. 'I don't know how I ended up being your spirit. Even if we can do the same for your mother, will your father be willing to accept a spirit residing in another's body? The important point is that he just told you she suffered and used up her energy. We don't know what's left…'
"Shh…" Damon shushed Talia while pulling her onto him. "It's OK, kitten. I've got you…"
Talia didn't realize at what point she started crying.
"I'm sorry," Valerian said. "I didn't mean to upset you."
Talia's father or not, he made her cry, and Damon was NOT happy about this! "Talia is pregnant, and her emotions are unstable. Her impulse is to fix things and make others happy. You telling her about your grief which can't be fixed, is not helping." And if you are not helping, you should keep your mouth shut!
Damon scooped Talia into his arms and carried her inside. He passed the dining room and took her to their bedroom.
Damon laid on the bed with Talia and ran his fingers through her hair in silence while waiting for her to cry it out.
"I'm sorry for ruining your shirt," Talia said. It was wet from tears and snot.
Damon cocked an eyebrow at her. "It's a good thing I'm rich, so I won't ask you to buy me a new one, but I might ask for sex in exchange."
Talia slapped his shoulder, "How can you think about sex when I'm distressed?"
"I don't think about sex. I am thinking about you, and you are sexy, so my outside is pervy, but on the inside, I'm quite affectionate."
Talia rolled her eyes and pushed herself off the bed. She went to the closet to get him a fresh shirt so they could join the others for lunch.
"Don't act like you don't want it! Look at this sexy ass! I know you like it!" Damon shouted after Talia, and she bit her lower lip to prevent herself from laughing at the outrageous Alpha.
Damon could sense that her emotions stabilized, and he gave himself a thumbs up.
In the next moment, his eyebrows shot up. Why was Talia horny? Oh, he loved that she was pregnant!
He quickly pushed himself off the bed and went after her.
"Ah!" Talia cried when Damon hugged her from behind. She didn't feel his presence at all. "What are you doing?"
"You were thinking about my ass, didn't you?" His breath splashed on her ear.
"To be honest, I was thinking about all of you. Naked."
Damon released her, and it took him less than a second to remove all his clothes. "No need to think. Look, touch, kiss, bite, whatever you want, I'm available."
Talia could feel her cheeks heating as her arousal swelled.
They didn't come out of the closet for the next hour.
