“So, what is it that you want?” Ben asked with a sneer. Randall had known that it wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation, but he had not expected such hostility from theget-go. Had Ethan padded his brother’s ears already about him? In fact, it was what he would do. Was he not there to do the very same thing?
“I heard something today, brother, which has upset me, and I need to know if it is true or not.”
That had Ben's attention and he wanted to know what it was that he had heard. Of course, he had no idea where it was going, but his face made it clear how he felt. He had no desire whatsoever to talk about it. When Randall laid out his grievances, the fact that Ethan was supposedly getting married before him, even though he was younger, and that it was Page from the Gilead clan that he had wanted to mate with. While they were an ambitious clan, everything that they had come from, clawing their way to the top, it wasn't the sort of prestige and value that Ben was looking for at that time. He wasn't even Alpha back then, but he always knew that they were going to one day be a great family, and that was why he made every decision with how it would affect his family.
“You really cannot be here to talk about something that happened a decade ago,” his brother said finally. That was exactly what was happening and when he said as much, his brother just made this elongated sigh, like Randall was being ridiculous. Randall didn't feel like it was ridiculous. He wanted to know why in hell his own brother would do such a thing to him. “Why is she good enough for Ethan and not me?”
Ben looked at him suddenly and scoffed, “You know why. Ethan is not full blooded. He is my half-brother, not my full brother. You have to be matched better. Do you really want to be married so soon? You have your whole life ahead of you.”
“Ben, you’re not one to talk. Love seems to be working pretty well for you,” Randall noted out loud.
Ben agreed but said that it came with sacrifice that he didn't think Randall was ready for. It was not the first time that such things had been said to him. It pissed him off just as much then. “I want Page. I told you that I wanted Page when we visited a long time ago. She probably would have wanted to marry me. You wouldn't have had to force it. Why couldn't you just let me have her?”
While Randall liked to say that it was the betrayal of his brother, it wasn't all truth. He was mad just as much about the fact that he had lost the one woman that he had felt something genuine for. It haunted him, and to know that she and her perfection would be married to Ethan was more than he could bear. Page belonged with him. He would make her happier than Ethan ever could.
“You are not ready, Randall, and one day you will thank me for that decision. You are going to do better than her clan. After what your sister did, she brought down the value of all of us and now we have to make amends. That is why we have to have this marriage. It will bring up our value, so don't go getting it in your head that this is what you want. I will choose someone much better for you, even more beautiful and with much higher standing. You need a real match.”
It was true, even if Randall didn't want to agree with all of it. Their sister had married horribly, and then gotten pregnant with a soldier and that was, of course, while she was mated to someone else. That marriage turned out to be a sham and everything that followed, the bad blood between the two clans, the attacks, all of that had lowered the family’s name and value in the community, as well as the clan’s value in the community. His brother Ben was obsessed with the hierarchy of it all, and he wanted to be on top. So, while it all sounded like it was for him and it possibly could benefit him as well, Randall knew thatit was mainly because his brother couldn't stand to be lowered. He had fought his way to the Alpha position, and he wasn't going to let something like feelings get in the way of getting what he wanted. That's probably when Randall realized that he desperately needed to get out of there. If he was going to lose Page and not be able to do anything about it, the last thing he wanted to do was stick around. Randall didn't think he could handle Ethan mating with Page. He didn't think he could handle seeing the two of them together. Even after all those years she was still the only woman that he had ever felt anything for, and the idea that someone else would get her was too much to be borne.
Randall just had to get away. He could no longer follow underneath his brother, and he would not be used as a pawn for Ben to reach his goals. After everything that his sister had gone through just for love, Randall doubted that he would be able to handle it any better. So, the best thing that he could do was walk away. Why did that always seem to be the answer? It was always the answer because there never seemed to be another way. That situation was no different.
Chapter 4
Page
Page tried to come up with a situation that would help her escape her fate. She didn't want to get married, didn't want to get forced into it and from what she heard about Ethan, he was a stranger to all of it, didn't even know he was a shifter until a few months ago. He was basically human in all other ways that mattered, except actually being one. He thought like a human, he would likely want to do human things. He still couldn't even shift on his own without help. It wasn't that Page didn't want to help him explore his new life and what he truly was, it seemed like almost an honor to do so, but the idea that she had to marry him, someone so unqualified, was a bit hard to handle.
The sad thing was that Page didn't want to get married. She certainly didn't want to marry a complete stranger that thought he was human. That had never been something that she had ever desired. Page wanted to have the freedom of a human, but she didn't want to live like one either. She wanted a mate that would shift with her and run and be free. There were so many things that Page saw wrong with marrying a human wannabe. The more she thought about it, the less desirable it all sounded. Her problem was though, what was she supposed to do about it? No one cared how she felt about it all. She was just a woman, and her feelings didn’t matter.
Naturally, the first thing on her mind was to get the hell away and that was still on her mind, but when she tried to come up with a plan that had more detail and would actually get her freedom, it always fell apart one way or another. Her father had stationed two soldiers outside of her room and they basically followed her wherever she went, except to the bathroom. If anything ever made them feel differently about her in the bathroom, Page had a good feeling that she would no longer have privacy in there either. She literally was a prisoner of her own house and her need to leave with so very strong. She was never going to be able to forgive him. Page had already decided that when she was successfully gone and on to her real life, she was never going to speak to her father again. He would be dead to her like her mother was.
Page was disappointed in herself and her inability to have a plan in action. She worried that everyday her new suitor was going to come, and they would be mated. The full moon was coming soon, and Page saw preparations being made in the dining halls. She could only imagine that it was for her and her wedding, her happiness. It all made her stomach crazy, and Page had to go lay down when she thought about it too long. Her weaknesses annoyed her. She had to figure something out because soon she was going to have to live with the fate that somebody else was deciding for her.
In the end though, Page didn’t need to have a grand plan. It would have maybe helped her, but she was far more interested in getting out. When she had the opportunity to get away, she did. The two new soldiers didn’t like being so bored, so when she suggested that they grab her something, it was just a fight to see who could go. They both ended up leaving, and Page finally had some time to herself. It was clear that she needed to pursue what was going to happen next. She was sure that she was goingto get away, had broken free if nothing else, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, she was on the run immediately, but she didn’t get very far before she was dragged back to her father, kicking and screaming, literally.
“Page, you disappoint me,” he told her with very little emotion.
“You have me followed and are trying to ruin my life, Father. I think that we are both heavily disappointed.”
He scowled at his daughter and told her that she was too much like her mother. Page didn’t want to hear that. “Oh? Well, she was with you, and you dominated every moment of her life. Maybe the problem is that I don’t want to end up like her. I want to be happy, be in love. Why do I have to marry the one who is the best option for you? You want me to die young like mom?”
While Page wished that her father cared, she knew better. When he locked her in her room and wouldn’t let her leave at all, Page knew that she hadn’t run fast enough. She blamed herself and the slight hesitation. She should have run and never looked back. Now, she was stuck. Page hated to think that she would have to marry a stranger. She would likely not have anything in common with Ethan. He was from a faraway clan and would soon be there. If Page was still there, it meant that she would have to get married. That didn’t even sound like a good idea.
Page just had to think it through, that’s all it was. She didn’t know how it would all work out, but she was convinced that all she had to do was make a plan up and get out of it. She still wasn’t able to convince herself that her life was really going to involve a stranger husband. Page wouldn’t let it happen. She couldn’t.
The problem with her getting caught was twofold, because not only was her father never going to let her roam free again,but both of his guards were killed. She had four now. There was also the fact that he had sent a message to her betrothed that she wanted to get married right away, so Page had even less time to get out of there. She still believed that she would, but when the time never presented itself, she started to worry that maybe she wouldn’t get away from there.
When Page thought that time was drawing near, she tried one more ditch effort in the middle of the night, but she didn’t get away for long, not even a full day, before she was hunted down and then there was nothing else that she could do. She was dragged back, and her father wanted to see her before she was thrown back into her wing.
“Your mate will be here in two days. He is very eager to marry you and then you will be his wife, and his problem to deal with. Lord knows that I have had enough trouble with you for years. It will be good to finally get something out of it. I hope you are easier on him than you were on me. I doubt that he will be as gentle with you. Maybe I should have punished you more, so that you would know your place. You were just too much like your mother. I didn’t have the heart. That is why you are spoiled, but I have a feeling your new mate will fix that up.”
Page didn’t know what to say, she just started to cry. She was feeling sorry for herself again, but to hear how he thought she was ruined was probably the last straw. It was bad enough that Page was so alone, but to think that she was alone because she was not a good person was hard to hear. He was happy to see her going and that hurt as well. Page tried to suck it all up and not let it get to her. It was hard though. She was so hurt, it felt like her father had never really loved her.
“Please let me go. For mom’s sake, let me go.”
She hoped that evoking her mother’s memory might get her the help she was looking for, but she was wrong. Instead, her dad just scoffed, “You are still alive because of her. Isn’t that enough?”
Page had the answer that she was looking for, even if it hurt. Everything seemed to do that lately and she tuned out the rest of her father’s words. She was convinced that whatever he had to say, Page didn’t want to hear it. She’d heard enough and thought that maybe leaving would be better than staying. She’d been miserable there a long time.
