In the calculated mind of the Old Patriarch, only a fool—a man truly blindfolded by tradition and burdened with a narrow perspective—would dare to decline the pairing of William and Berry.
To him, the union was a confluence of raw, untapped potential and established heritage.
He had already resolved that if he had to step in and act as a matchmaker to secure the boy's loyalty to the clan, he would do so without hesitation.
Even if his own son, Berry's father, threw a volcanic fit of objection, the Patriarch was prepared to overrule him for the sake of the Long Clan's future.
However, as the Fourth Elder had just revealed, things were unfolding in a way that required no meddling from the high office.
The two youngsters were gravitating toward one another naturally, drawn together by the gravity of the crisis.
