Page 1 of Caller of Crows
ChapterOne
Achilling wind whipped through the street, biting into Sven's skin as he walked. Summer had passed in the blink of an eye. Only a few weeks ago, the buildings to the side of the road had been decorated in bright colors, flowers blooming in every window box as the city celebrated the passing of a rare comet in the sky. Life had seemed brighter then, but the warmth of the sun had faded, and with it, Sven's ability to lie to himself.
He looked up at the moon hanging heavy in the sky. It glowed almost orange tonight, but that was probably just a trick of the light, rather than some ominous sign that he was being an absolute idiot.
Not that Sven would have needed that truth spelled out to him. He was mortal, a completely ordinary person, in a world in which very few people were born without the blessing of magic. The houses he passed were inhabited by shifters and mages… and vampires.
That last part was the problem.
He lived in a city infested with vampires and he was out by himself past sundown, basically offering himself up on a platter to any vampire who might be passing by.
And there were a lot of vampires in this part of town.
Sven's heart pounded like mad as the Rubyville nightclub came into view. The thudding bass from within vibrated through the ground and flowed straight into Sven's bones.
The club was run by a vampire coven, and it was the leader of that coven Sven wanted to talk to. But if he just stepped into the club as he was… would the vampires even listen to a word he said before they sank their fangs into his throat?
He wanted to be turned, not eaten.
Just as he thought that, a sharp caw pierced through the music the nightclub emitted. Startled, Sven spun toward the sound, eyes landing on a dark and deserted park nearby. It didn't look inviting at this time of night, but more inviting than the club.
Sven's stomach flip-flopped as he heard the caw again. Purely out of instinct, his hand slid into his pocket, closing around the handle of the knife he'd brought just in case he found what he was looking for. Approaching the park, he spotted a crow sitting on a gnarled oak branch, beady eyes looking at him.
It wasn't alone either. A whole murder of crows gathered in the trees, watching him.
No, that was ridiculous.
The birds weren't watching him, even if it felt like it. What reason would they have?
It was just his nerves getting the better of him.
It wasn't him the crows were interested in. They were watching the only other person in the park. A tall figure with pale skin and black hair stood near a water fountain up ahead, a bird perched confidently on his shoulder.
The sight made Sven's throat constrict.
This was the vampire he'd been hoping to find. Altair. The Caller of Crows.
Now that he'd found him, though, Sven stood frozen in place, unable to tear his gaze away from the man before him, knowing that he might have just made the biggest mistake of his life.
The last mistake of his life.
Altair had only risen to the rank of coven leader a few years ago, but already, he was notorious for being one of the most dangerous vampires in the city. He was said to be ruthless, with no qualms about taking out anyone who dared to cross him.
But he was also known for sticking to his deals, which made him exactly the kind of man Sven needed. No one but a coven leader would turn him, and out of all the coven leaders Sven had looked into, the Caller of Crows was the only one who seemed like he would not break a promise made to one of his underlings.
Still, all of Sven's instincts screamed at him to run, but he kept himself rooted to the spot through sheer determination. Or stupidity. One of the two.
The vampire turned to him, his sharp features illuminated only by the pale light of the street lamps, black hair decorated with glossy black feathers.
Sven had never said a kind word about a vampire, but he had to admit that they were beautiful, and Altair was no exception. Even dressed in a simple black shirt, the vampire seemed to radiate an otherworldly charisma that mesmerized Sven, and when Altair's gaze pierced him and the crow on his shoulder cawed, a chill ran down Sven's spine.
"Look what we have here," Altair mused. "A mortal, in my part of town, at my time of night."
Sven swallowed hard, realizing that it was his time to talk, but barely getting the words out. "I have a proposal for you."
Altair raised a questioning eyebrow at Sven as if he wasn't sure whether to take this mortal seriously or not. "You know who I am?"
Sven couldn't blame the vampire for being confused. What sane mortal would approach the Caller of Crows with a proposal? "I know who you are," Sven confirmed. "And I'm not scared."
