“I would do no less,” Victor said. “Helena and I…we had no idea, cousin. Magdalen has always been a bit off, but to go to this extent? I considered her eccentric, not dangerous.”
“Sawyer doesn’t believe that Helena likes him. He’s very concerned that she’s involved.” Eduard had learned of her slights during a quiet talk with Sawyer over what had happened.
“Helena is envious of you, cousin. But she’s never hidden that emotion from you. She would love to have the honor of being a guardian, and she longs for her mate as well. She doesn’t begrudge you either of those things, however, or wish you or your mates any ill will.”
His words rang true. From the moment Eduard’s guardian mark appeared, Helena had been jealous of it. She chafed under the limitations of her role and hadn’t yet stretched her wings. He should encourage her to do so.
“I will speak to her,” Eduard said. “I cannot allow disrespect toward my mate.”
“I know,” Victor replied. “Your father asked me to let you know that the dock area is secure. We have everyone on high alert, and we’ll be ready to transport Sawyer to the cottage the moment you arrive.”
“Excellent. Thank you. I need to go update the others. Will you stay with us until our arrival?”
Victor nodded. “My eyes on the sky.”
Eduard gripped his shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze. They’d said it to each other for years, their way of saying they had each other’s back. Andvari stayed on deck while Henry and Eduard made their way below to help the others get ready for their arrival.
He found the others curled up together on the sofa in the living area. Sawyer had his head resting on Saeward’s lap while the hippocamp gently stroked his hair as he stared in confusion at the television playing an action movie across the room. Sawyer’s feet were resting on Draco’s lap, and he had ice packs pressed to them. The rest of Sawyer’s body was wrapped up in a blanket.
Draco paused the movie when Eduard knelt in front of Sawyer and cupped his cheek. He ran his thumb over Sawyer’s face, tracing one of the bruises that had changed into a rainbow of painful looking color over the past few days. “Hey. We’re almost there,” Eduard said quietly.
“Good,” Sawyer whispered in return.
“You think you’ve been doted on the past few days? Wait until Cecil, Viv, and Ms. Robinson get their hands on you. And Pearl’s gonna be your personal body pillow.”
“Sounds perfect.”
Eduard leaned in and kissed him quickly. “Father will meet us on the dock. He’s anxious to see you for himself.”
“’K.”
“Cecil sent clothes for us with Victor. He’s on deck now. You want to go ahead and get dressed?”
“Yeah. Maybe a shower?”
“We can do that.”
Draco unwrapped the ice packs from Sawyer’s feet, and then Eduard helped him up. It didn’t take long for them to all get cleaned up and dressed. Sawyer stood in front of the small mirror and looked into it for a moment before turning to look up and meet Eduard’s gaze with a small smile.
“Let’s do this.”
The view from the windows showed that they were nearing the dock and the engines had slowed as the captain maneuvered the yacht into the boat’s slip. The crew moved into position, the fluid movements showing how long they’d worked together. When they were finally docked, the guardians led the way off the yacht with Sawyer in the center of the line. Eduard went first, walking straight up the wooden planks to his father. He was pulled into a quick hug then released as his father reached for Sawyer.
“Young man, you gave me quite the scare,” Augustus protested.
Eduard could see the anger boiling in his father’s eyes once he took note of the bruising on Sawyer’s face and the slight limp to his walk. Sawyer was trying to be strong, but even the small amount of attention seemed to be overwhelming. Luckily, his father didn’t need to be told. He gave Sawyer a quick hug then wrapped an arm over his shoulder and guided him the rest of the way up the dock. A row of three golf carts stood waiting. They all piled on and the carts carried them quickly up the path to the cottage.
Cecil stood waiting on the steps, holding Pearl’s collar in his hand to keep her from bounding forward. The cart had barely stopped moving before Sawyer was off of it and kneeling on the ground beside her. He had his arms around her neck and she frantically licked at his face and ear.
“Let’s take this inside,” Eduard said quietly. He rested his hand gently on Sawyer’s back and encouraged him to stand. Once they were through the cottage door, Eduard gently lifted Sawyer into his arms. “Okay, tough guy, off your feet time.”
“Thanks,” Sawyer replied. “It’ll be nice when it doesn’t hurt to walk again.”
Eduard carried him up the stairs and to his suite of rooms. “Dr. Jerrick said it’ll take a couple weeks. You have some really deep bruising.”
“I know. Doesn’t make it any easier.”
He sat Sawyer down on the sofa and Pearl immediately jumped up beside him. She had her nose in his eye within seconds, and Sawyer laughed as he scratched behind her ears and rubbed his face into her fur. Once she’d received what she determined was an acceptable amount of affection, Pearl laid down with her head in Sawyer’s lap and sighed.
