Rogue Enchanted

Chapter 11: The source of his joy, the center of her world...letting loose!

"Calm down, Stan," Jeremy sighed. "Taking into consideration the fact that he marked her before you guys left for the conference, she..."

"What!" both Stan and Paige gasped in unison. "Oh shit!" Stan groaned. "So that was it."

"I thought you told him about the mark," Jeremy addressed Philip.

"I didn't get to that part because he was about to start his address when I called."

"She smelt different and also looked sick," Stan muttered. "She looked like a shell."

"And it didn't occur to you?" Paige snapped.

"How was I to assume that? I rather thought the worst...that whatever it was had to do with her health because as far as I knew, she wasn't mated."

"The pain she must have gone through," Paige groaned. "But why didn't she tell anyone?"

"He was a condemned prisoner, Slip," Philip sighed. "But for Ryan, he would be dead already. I mean we all recall the grief we gave Ryan when he asked us not to touch him. The entire pack hates him."

"She didn't want us to feel like she wanted us to pardon him because of her," Jeremy added quietly. "She feared she would be shunned if anyone knew that he was her mate."

"Oh my god, Kate," Paige groaned, her hand going to her chest. "She actually preferred to go through all that pain than trust us, her family, with the problem?" she whispered, unable to mask the gloominess in her eyes. "Why would anyone shun her for wanting to be with your mate? She should have told us who he was to her and demanded he be pardoned no matter what. It is her right. And it breaks my heart that she doesn't feel confident enough to speak out for fear of rejection. She is pack for goodness sake. If this is truly how she feels, then we've failed her as a pack," Paige said shakily, voicing out what was on the minds of the three men she was on the call with.

Even though Kate had been a member of the pack from birth, she clearly lacked the confidence to demand her due and that was concerning. For instance, even though Paige knew that her mate was automatically condemned for her role in the assassination attempt of Jeremy, she had pleaded for Amber's life and had even been ready to spirit her away if her brother hadn't agreed. If push had come to shove, she would have fought her pack for her mate. One should be confident in their family's love for them. Kate should have trusted her pack enough to share her problem and expect the family to put her happiness first in such a situation. That was the beautiful thing about being part of a family.

"It kills me to think she felt she had to carry that burden alone." Paige angrily wiped at the tear that slipped down her cheek. "Why would she even think we won't have her back?"

"What Jaxon did was terrible, Paige," Philip said. "I think she feels there's no way the pack can forgive such atrocity. We can't blame her for..."

"I don't blame her, Lip," Paige growled. "I blame us. She should have felt entitled enough to look out for her own happiness. I did the exact same thing by pleading for my mate who should have been executed." Her voice rose. "How about that time I had that stupid deal with the Jackal? I was forgiven even though it nearly cost the lives of both Jer and Ryan. How about what Jer did to Ryan? Even Luna pardoned him and allowed Ryan to bring him back earlier than expected. How is this any different?"

"Calm down, Slip," Stan breathed.

"Think about it, Stan. Our parents were and are respected elders of this pack, dead or alive." Paige sniffled.

"Facts!" Stan nodded.

"I'm just wondering... do we get these privileges because of who our parents are? Is it that we feel entitled, get away with shit, feel confident to make demands because of who we are? If yes, how's that fair? If people like Kate don't even have the confidence to ask and rather think the worst could happen to them if they do, then I think this pack has a lot of work to do."