Talia was touched by the care Maddox, Tony, and Cristian showed, but she had to make something clear.
"I'm not Tanya, Maddox," Talia said. She was not comfortable discussing her heritage as a Guardian, so she stuck to other facts. "The Guardians want me. I can make this stop."
"You are right," Cristian said. "If you contact them and agree to negotiate, they will call off the attacks. However, they won't accept a trivial tribute. They don't need money or land. They want you. Assuming you accept their conditions, we will live in peace until the next powerful female catches their eye."
Tony added, "If you go, it will only tell them that this strategy works. Damon taught me that if the other party won't give anything in return, that's not negotiation; it's blackmail. This time, they get you. Next time, they will come for Kalina, Tanya, Michelle, and many others."
