Page 202 of The Chosen One Universe: Volume One

“That’s enough, Eduard! I don’t know what has happened to you since you’ve been gone, but clearly, this boy has put you under some sort of spell. This is nonsense and you know it. The chosen one is not a human and you will not mate with him, nor any of the other riff raff you’ve chosen to bring to my home. I will not stand for this.”

“You don’t have a choice, Father.” Eduard rose and leaned over the desk to meet his father’s angry gaze. “Sawyer is human and the chosen one. He is also my mate. You don’t get to decide if that is acceptable. It is done. We will all be at the welcome home celebration in two days. I expect you to show my mates the courtesy that their status brings them.”

Eduard left the room, refusing to lower himself to slamming the door behind him. He’d known his father would react this way and needed to let him stew in his anger and disbelief for a while. He would come around. He had to. Eduard walked back to the cottage the long way, through the gardens and used the time to center himself.

He was on his third circle around the garden, unable to erase the feelings of fear and unease from his mind, when he felt more than saw movement beside him.

“That bad?” Andvari asked quietly as he stepped from behind a tree and joined Eduard on the path.

“No worse than I expected. We both knew it would be a challenge.”

Andvari wrapped his arm over Eduard’s shoulder as they continued walking. “We did know. This may be part of the process, though. It can’t be easy.”

“No, it can’t. I wish I could see the big picture. I am used to gathering the pieces, doing my research, and basing my conclusions on facts. There’s so much we don’t know. I never realized how much of this we all accepted on blind faith.”

“None of us actually thought it would happen in our lifetime. It was a fairytale.”

“And we don’t know exactly what we’re supposed to do,” Eduard said. “How can we plan if we don’t know what we’re planning for or who we’re fighting against?”

Andvari tugged him in close and Eduard wrapped his arm around Andvari’s waist as they walked. “I don’t think you’re going to like this.”

Eduard sighed. “I don’t like any of it.”

“What if we’re not supposed to know what to do? What if we have to wait for Sawyer to figure it out?”

Eduard stumbled to a halt and turned to face his vampire. “Explain.”

Andvari leaned their foreheads together. “We are both planners, love. We try to see around the corner and find out what happens next. You predict changes in the market based on the most subtle of changes and the most delicate information. Sawyer doesn’t think the way we do. He is feeling his way, looking at our world with fresh eyes. What if we’re supposed to allow him to do that, to figure this out by his side?”

Eduard closed his eyes and breathed for a long moment. Andvari had taught him well. “Our job is to keep him safe while he does.”

“Yes,” Andvari said. “Not to figure it out for him.”

“Was it a mistake to bring him here, Andvari?”

“I don’t think so. He would have said if it was. He knew immediately that we couldn’t spend the week in New York as we’d planned. I didn’t have to mention security to him. He knew.”

“This is about trust.”

“I believe so,” Andvari said. “His instincts are strong. We have to get him to believe in himself, and we have to believe in him, too. That is our duty. That is our purpose.”

Eduard opened his eyes and stared into Andvari’s searching for answers, for something to ease the niggle of anxiety he still felt. How could he leave it all to Sawyer who was so new to their world? How could he not fight to make it easier?

“Do you believe in him, Eduard?”

And that one simple question made it easier. “I do.”

Andvari smiled and kissed him gently. “As do I.”