The Designated Mate novel Chapter 44

"Where did you get all this?" I asked with a shaky voice, wondering if this was actually someone's house and we were possibly trespassing.

"I mind-linked Grace and informed her that you were sick and I needed some things for you. She brought them over as soon as I asked," he explained before bringing another spoonful to my lips. I nodded and continued eating, feeling a smidgen of my energy coming back as my stomach began to fill. Once I'd eaten the entire bowl of soup, half the crackers, and all the toast I couldn't take another bite.

"Knox?" I asked, figuring I would get the most honest answers out of him in my vulnerable state.

"Yes, Flower?" he responded while moving the tray away so he could fully envelope me in his arms.

"How come you're in this pack? Why aren't you ruling your own?" I asked, knowing that from the pack history I had to study that there's never been a Lycan who wasn't a leader. People were naturally drawn to them, looking for guidance and rule simply due to the power they emit. His body stiffened as he took a deep breath and held it.

"I don't want power at all," he hissed out harshly. "I've experienced first hand what it does to people and how it can hurt people," he finished cryptically.

"Why would your uncle do that? All to get back at your father for a decision he didn't even make!" I blubbered.

"Do you not get it, Flower? With my sister and I gone, and my parents' inability to have another child, it meant that they couldn't produce another heir to the pack, thus forcing them to hand the position of power down to my uncle and his mate who could," He explained slowly as my muddled brain finally caught up and realized how disgustingly devious and horribly smart his uncle was. My hand flew up to cover my mouth as I sobbed into it, crying for the little boy who was taken from his parents and had his childhood robbed from him. Crying for my mate and the injustice he'd been put through.

"I snuck into my old pack once I'd found my way back a few years into my search, knowing if my uncle caught me I would be killed instantly. I discovered that he'd banished them under the pretense that they'd become crazy with my sister and I's loss. He said they would bring destruction to the pack and needed to be dealt with," he sneered. I knew what that meant. It meant he'd made sure every other pack had labeled them as rogues - putting a target right on their backs. Not that anyone would ever dare try to take them on. His parents were pure blooded Lycan's for crying out loud!