The Alpha's Bride

Chapter 1009 Forgiving Cassandra

Talia noticed Cassandra, who was standing behind Valerian.

"Come here," Talia said.

Cassandra's heart was stuck in her throat. This was it, and she was terrified. But she couldn't run away. There was nowhere to hide.

She dragged her feet until she stood before Talia, and she lowered her head respectfully. "Alpha."

Cassandra pressed her lips into a line and waited for the verdict. Will they take away her wolf? She watched Sophia and Isaac, and it looked painful.

"Don't be afraid," Talia said. "I want to return your ability."

Cassandra lifted her head to stare at Talia. "What?"

"I can't blame you for the prophecy or events triggered by it. I took away your ability because of your actions against Damon. What you did was morally wrong, but the truth is that a pack prospers only while following its Alpha. Damon will decide how to handle your punishment."

Talia thought about this. While fighting against rogues and Guardians, Damon and Talia depended on their warriors and allies to follow orders.

Cassandra obeyed Sophia and Isaac when they told her to suppress Damon's ability. If Cassandra refused, how would that compare to Stephanie collaborating with the Guardians because she thought it was the best for the pack? Which one should be punished? Was Cassandra's crime of following orders graver than Stephanie's for going against her Alpha and Luna? Can they even call what Cassandra did a crime? Talia didn't have answers to these questions, but she knew that if people acted on their own sense of justice, packs would fall apart, and their society would descend into chaos.

"I do not need my ability," Cassandra said.

Talia was surprised by this development. "Are you sure?"

"I lived without my ability for a long time." In the witches' realm, it felt like forever. "At first, I struggled to find my way without it, but thanks to not having it, I realized there is so much more to life. Living without my ability will be a reminder that I am someone who has access to the Alpha, and it is my duty to warn Alphas when they are about to commit a mistake, instead of just blindly following orders. My role should be more than an Oracle. I want to focus on interpreting prophecies and advising my Alpha. If you allow me to."

Talia approved. "Good that you know. Is there something else you would want instead of your ability?"

"There is something," Cassandra said in a small voice. "I heard that the Guardians have an impressive library. Would it be possible for me to go there and study? I will be available to our pack members when they need me."

"Alright," Talia said. "As long as it doesn't interfere with your current duties, you will get access to their library."

Cassandra bowed deeply. "Thank you, Alpha."

Talia turned to Damon. "What do you say?"

Damon frowned at Cassandra. "She nearly cost me my life." He exhaled sharply. "However, she was following orders." He looked at Talia. "She will be your advisor. How can I punish her now?"

Cassandra relaxed at Damon's words, but Talia's next words made her tense again.

"I didn't accept her as my advisor," Talia said. "You are free to punish her as you see fit."

Damon tucked a lock of hair behind Talia's ear. "She is from your pack."

Talia smiled. "If you don't want to punish her, just say so."

"I want to punish her."

"But you won't do it because of me."

Cassandra was sweating bullets while waiting for Damon to respond.

Damon turned to Cassandra, and she stopped breathing.

"Consider yourself lucky," Damon said in a dangerously low voice. "Becasue of my mate, I will forgive you. However, if I suspect you are scheming something..."

Cassandra bowed deeply. "Thank you, Alpha Damon. I will obey my Alpha."

Damon hummed in approval, and Cassandra took that as a sign that it was safe to move away. That was stressful.

Sophia and Isaac watched as people looked at Talia with admiration, and some even started leaving to join the event from where the music was coming.

"Wait, wait!" Sophia called. "Are you leaving us like this?"

People turned to look at her, hesitating, unsure what to do. Can they dare to vent their grievances on two people who were at the top of their pack not so long ago?

"You are worse than rogues! Even they don't give pups away," a male voice came from the crowd. It was Grady.

"What you did was infanticide," Varya said. "You took away our Alpha's identity and condemned her to a life without roots. Everyone deserves to know from where they came."

"You left a baby outside the protection of the pack while hoping someone would harm her!" Meg shouted while holding onto her protruding belly. "What kind of a monster does that?"

"And to think that the child was YOUR family!" Sandy exclaimed, and the crowd started swelling with murmurs that erupted with shouts.

"You would abandon us without a second thought!"

"If you didn't deprive us of our Alpha, we wouldn't need to live in isolation!"

"You were so greedy to be an Alpha that you would sacrifice an innocent child!"

"I have my mate thanks to Alpha Natalia!"

"If Alpha Natalia didn't come, I wouldn't have a pup on the way!"

"Axel! Axel!" Sophia called desperately when she realized that people were approaching her and Isaac.

Axel stood frozen while staring at his parents like they were strangers.

He grew up believing that his parents were righteous, and he looked up to them. They were the perfect example of two Alphas balancing their duties while taking care of the pack. Axel believed they were above other Alphas who treated their Lunas as accessories.

Axel was plagued by memories of his birthdays and holidays, where he was surrounded by presents, laughter, and good food, while Talia was scraping for leftovers in a hostile environment. All those joyous events were supposed to be hers, and his parents knew that Talia was suffering, yet they acted like everything was fine.

Axel wondered if there were some signs that he had missed.

He didn't understand why they were against his desire to confirm if Talia was a member of the Midnight Guardians pack. At what point did they confirm who she was?

Axel remembered when his father accompanied him to check on Damon after Talia marked him, and they confirmed that Talia had healing ability and convinced her that she needed to come to the Midnight Guardians pack. Was all that planned?

The lack of remorse was numbing.

Axel was still in shock from recent events, and he needed time to process things. Even with his future-predicting ability, he didn't see this coming.

The angry mob was now ganging up on Sophia and Isaac.

"Ahh!" Sophia shrieked when someone tugged her hair.

People gathering around Sophia and Isaac blocked Axel's view completely, and he could see the light flashing as someone used his (or her) abilities.

Axel turned to look at Yasmin.

She cupped his cheeks with her palms. "It will be alright, Axel. We have our babies and each other."

Axel didn't respond. Will he be alright after this? Time will tell.

He put his arm around Yasmin's shoulders, and they walked away with Evanora and Edgar, who were carrying the sleeping twins.

"Dad?" Talia called to get Valerian's attention.

He looked at her with a complex expression. "I am alright. Why don't you go and enjoy your party? I'm sorry for…"

"There is nothing to be sorry about," Talia interrupted him.

"Thank you, Natalia," Valerian said seriously.

Valerian moved toward the party, and Cassandra was two steps behind him.

Talia was not sure if she should go after Valerian. Did he want company, or would he prefer to be alone? Her attention fell on the man who stood on the side and observed everything with amusement.

"Enjoying the show?" Talia asked Declyn.

Declyn cocked an eyebrow. "Watching you is never boring."

Damon growled in warning, and Declyn quickly raised his hands in surrender. "I meant as a spectator. I haven't seen a transfer of energy as the two of you are doing. Would you show me how it works? You never accepted my offer to activate the sphere of power again. I want to get a comprehensive reading of your power."

"Maybe next time," Talia responded. Since they defeated Gregory, Declyn was of big help in terms of sharing information, but Talia couldn't figure out his motive. Surely, he had a reason for turning against his people. "Will you keep an eye on Cassandra while she is in your library?"

"What do I get in return?" Declyn responded with a question.

"You get to see our energy transfer."

Declyn looked at Talia suspiciously. "What about the sphere of power?"

"You can pick one," Talia said.

"How long do I need to babysit that female before I get my payment?"

"How about… one month?"

Declyn nodded in agreement and left.

Talia looked up to meet Damon's frown. "You disapprove?"

Damon shook his head. He didn't like the idea of Talia interacting with Guardians. They gave him heebie-jeebies.

Damon pulled Talia on him. "How about we leave this party? I have a feeling that dress is uncomfortable."

He wiggled his eyebrows mischievously, and Talia burst into giggles.

"It is getting itchy, almost," she said.

Damon had a feeling he won't like the rest. "But?"

Talia looked toward the noisy crowd. "After this, we should assure people that things are OK. We should assure them that we are OK before we disappear."

"What do you suggest?" Damon asked dryly.