Serpent Lake I'm sorry, I didn't mean any of it; I just got too lonely, lonely woah

I can manage, he insisted quietly, taking a tentative step forward. Kemal had given him a place in the pack, trusted him with a task when most would see only a burden. Panacea wouldn't let that go unacknowledged. Besides — You shouldn't be alone.

It was as simple as that, really. Pack meant that none of them had to be alone, but most of all the one who led them. That was the whole point. That was why thieves banded together in the dark — so they didn't have to be alone.