"They're mates",
Hector was getting his wounds nursed. Luckily he started to heal fast but I think it was mentally very hard on him. He was still fighting back tears.
"You mean Louis and your mother?", I questioned.
He nodded. Things finally made a lot of sense: why Louis was so possessive over her and why he even had children outside of his marriage.
"My mother came in his life after he got married to Harper. He was growing older and his parents insisted that he settled down. He couldn't keep waiting for his mate. So after Elizabeth was born, he met my mom in one of his packs. She was sixteen and he was twenty-seven",
That was a big age difference. Usually, an age difference was accepted in our society because mates were destined to be and there shouldn't be any restrictions on that. But I've never heard of such a big age difference. That's eleven years, a decade.
"The bastard didn't even try to keep it in his pants. He forcefully marked her and you know...", tears dripped down his face.
I felt like crying along with him. It affected him so much and I think he loved his mother and feels so bad for her. He wants to protect her from this man that is supposed to be his father.
"She got pregnant with me. He built her that little house that you saw earlier so that she could be his little mistress that he turned to when his wolf got horny",
"That's horrible",
He sighed and hung his head for a while. I didn't want to force him to tell me more. He chose the tempo and what he wanted to say.
"Two years later, Courtney was born. Louis likes her a lot because she's a replica of our mother",
Courtney did look a lot like her mother. The resemblance was striking.
"My mother is always stuck in that house. She not allowed to leave except when she gets his permission. She never got experience the things she wanted to",
I couldn't even try to imagine that. Being stuck day in day out in the same house since you were sixteen years old. That's normally the period that you start leaving the house more frequently and do typical teenage stuff. She never got to do that.
"I can give her permission. I can-",
"She's his mate, Celeste. His mark is on her so he decides over her", he sighed as if its an old idea that I brought up.
It must have been.
"I don't understand. Normally when a mate treats you badly despite wearing his mark, you're allowed to leave him. The Luna and Alpha protect you-",
"That's how it's done in America. Not here. If you ever wanted to try to make her a free woman, you'd have to battle Louis. If I was strong enough, I would've but there's only one person who could take him",
"Edward", I guessed.
Hector nodded. Earlier he said something about how Louis should be afraid of Edward.
"What happened when Edward became enforcer?", I asked.
He looked uncomfortable and uncertain if he should tell me. But I wanted to know. He sighed when he stared into my pleading eyes.
"This something Edward should tell you. It isn't my place to", he explained.
I understood that. I would wait for my mate to tell me even though I was curious. I respected him.
"Let's go see if your mom is alright", I encouraged him.
/:/:/:/:/:
Adeline sipped her tea as I explained my proposition. She looked doubtful which I understood. I bet she never got an over like this and I'm probably overwhelming her. Hector next to me was gaping at me in shock.
"I know this may be a lot but it might be a solution",
"Leaving the pack? I've never been outside of the pack ever since Hector was born. Louis will never allow me-",
"I'm the Luna. You shouldn't worry about Louis. You just said it before: you've never been outside of the pack. Don't you want to see the world?",
She nodded agreeing but she still seemed stuck on deciding. I had given her the option to leave the pack for a while just to focus on herself. I couldn't even imagine what she had been through.
"It may be healing for you, mom", Hector added.
Tears filled her eyes and she cupped his face. She loved him a lot and my heart clenched. I don't know why I always get so sad when I see people with their mother. Maybe it was because I never got to meet my mother. Of course, I had my aunt but it felt different. I always wondered what a mother-child bond could feel like.
"I already have it hard without my Court next to me. What will I do without you?",
He pulled her in for a tight hug. Susan looked at me with a somewhat worried look. I know that offering Adeline to leave the pack would cause problems. But she wasn't happy. She spent her late teen years raising children and I doubt Louis ever let her do something fun.
"You'll be fine, mom. I want you to be happy", Hector told her.
She pressed a kiss on his cheek and nodded. I smiled and watched how he brought her back to her home. They had a lot of talking to do. I just hoped Hector could encourage her to finally take control over her life. To make her realize she was the captain of the ship.
"Louis is going to lose it when he figures you-",
"I know", I cut Susan off.
She sighed worriedly and put the cups into the sink. Her shoulders looked tense and when she turned back to me, she was biting her lip. She was holding something back.
"Susan",
Her hands flew through her dark brown hair and she looked defeated. It looked like she was having an inner battle within herself.
"Can't you just wait until Edward's back?",
"Why? Edward trusted me to look after the pack and I'm doing so. Despite the situation, Adeline is part of this pack",
"I agree with that but this situation is so sensitive. Louis is different when he gets angry", she added that last part more softly.
I got to experience that first hand. He nearly shifted into his wolf. He had scared me and I understood Susan didn't want to see me get hurt. But I felt like I own this to Adeline. No one deserves to be stuck in one place, not being able to enjoy their lives to the fullest. I could relate to her. I wasn't allowed to leave the pack whilst growing up. I understood that that was for my safety but that didn't mean that I didn't hate it.
"I'm not scared of him. Adeline deserves to see the world. She shouldn't be stuck here only to be hit pet. That's so disgusting",
She tried to speak up but suddenly Jonathan walked in. He probably just returned from running errands. He pulled Susan in for a hug and I missed Edward. He would be back tomorrow. I smiled thinking about it.