Page 84 of Caller of Crows

"Enlighten me then," Altair snapped at him, barely holding back the anger that rose in his chest.

Keegan was one of his most trusted vampires and one of his oldest friends, but sometimes Altair regretted allowing the other man to become his advisor. There were moments when he wished he could simply command Keegan to shut up and obey him without further protest.

There were moments when that was what he felt he needed to do.

"I've told you about the visions I've been having," Keegan said. His blue eyes looked almost pleading as he spoke, and Altair couldn't help but sigh.

"We've discussed this. Your visions are not reliable. Things do not necessarily happen the way you see them in your dreams."

"I have seen this scene many times in my dreams, Altair, and no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to change the outcome." Keegan held his gaze. "You cannot win against this coven. You may be strong, but you can't defeat your brother, and do you know why?"

Altair's gaze narrowed. "Why?"

"Because he would kill you without a second's hesitation, but you still see him as your brother."

Altair's hands clenched into fists. After everything Nephariel had done, Altair wasnotgoing to show mercy toward him. "I'm his sire," Altair said bitterly. "He can't simply kill me."

"You killed your sire," Keegan reminded him.

"It wasn't simple."

"No," Keegan agreed. "But you managed, and he will manage to kill you because you will hesitate where he won't."

"I don't care what you saw in your visions." Altair glared at his friend. "You know what Nephariel did to me, to yoursister. I will never forgive him." Rage rose inside him, and he did not bother to stop it. "I won't loseanyoneto him ever again," he said through gritted teeth.

Keegan fell silent, which gave Altair a chance to vent his anger on him. "You're supposed to support me, Keegan, yet you seem to prefer spending your time throwing rocks in my path. You showed Sven what happened between me and Isabella. Why? To drive him away?"

"He has a right to know," Keegan said, unflinching. "If he's going to follow you into the darkness, he needs to know what he's getting into. Someone here had to meet him halfway."

Altair scoffed. "Don't pretend like you care about him."

"He's just like my sister." Keegan looked him dead in the eyes. "And she would hate the way you're treating him."

Altair froze. "How dare you speak about my mate to me like that?"

"Isabella wasn't a weakling, you know that as well as I do. She wouldn't have allowed you to lock her up in this basement. And she sure as fuck wouldn't have accepted the way you're controlling Sven."

Altair inhaled deeply, fighting down the urge to launch himself across the table and grab his friend by the throat. "Get out of my office."

"Fine," Keegan said. He stood and walked to the door, but turned to regard Altair once more before leaving. "Don't take your anger at yourself out on Sven," he said. "You think locking him up here is somehow better than letting him live his life the way he wants, but you're only keeping him here to satisfy your own fears."

Altair didn't answer him.

When Keegan walked out, Altair slammed his fist down on the desk with enough strength to send cracks running through the wood.

His fears werenotirrational. If Nephariel got his hands on Sven… The vampire didn't have a conscience. He'd torture Sven, drain him, feed him to his lackeys, or worse, turn him.

Just like he'd done to Isabella.

Altair's throat closed. He remembered how different she'd been when he'd found her again. Broken. Changed. Nothing more than a husk of her former self. He'd been too late.

Too late to save her.

He wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. He was going to doeverythingin his power to keep Sven safe. Even if that meant that the mortal would hate him forever.

As long as helived.

To hell with the rest of it.