Page 80 of Caller of Crows
Questions about where he was and how he was doing and when he was going to be coming home.
Sven's chest tightened as he evaded the questions over and over again with growing frustration.
He didn't want to lie, but what else could he do? How could he possibly tell Carol that he was currently locked up in a vampire's basement but only for his own safety?
Carol wouldn't understand.
Hell, Sven didn't think anyone would.
And it didn't matter anyway, as long as Altair let him attend the funeral, which surely he would… wouldn't he?
He would have to because if he didn't, Sven would have to take matters into his own hands.
Sighing, he looked at his phone again, at the background picture he'd set. A photograph of a beautiful sunrise. He wanted to see another sunrise before he made his decision never to see one again.
He deserved at least that much, didn't he?
He glanced at Altair's crow, which had hopped down onto the bed beside him, looking at him curiously. "He's going to come around," he said, and he really hoped that he was right because he didn't know what he was going to do otherwise.
His phone buzzed in his hand. An incoming call.
He thought it was going to be Carol, but was pleasantly surprised to hear his friend Cale's voice on the other end of the line instead. "I heard what happened to your mom. I'm so sorry."
Sven's throat tightened. "Thank you." He hadn't even had the opportunity to inform any of his friends that his mom had died yet. Carol must've taken care of that for him, which meant that she'd probably called the others too.
Sven felt awful for not calling them himself.
Cale was silent for a second. "So… how are you doing? Are you holding up okay?" There was genuine concern in his voice. Sven hadn't known Cale for long, but he knew the other man was one of the good ones. A good neighbor. A little odd, always talking to his flowers, but kind-hearted. He used to bring around homemade tea for Sven's mom.
Sven took a deep shuddering breath and closed his eyes for a moment as tears welled up behind his eyelids. "I'm fine," he said and realized it was true. "I mean… I'm gonna miss her like hell, you know? But I'll be okay eventually, I just have a lot of stuff to deal with right now. I don't really have a lot of time to think about myself."
"Do you want me to come over and check in on you? I could bring food…" Cale trailed off. "I don't know, I just want to help you somehow."
Sven swallowed, feeling his throat constrict with emotion. "I'm not home."
"Yeah, I know. I knocked on your door earlier, but I figured you'd eventually come home. I mean, you left to get medicine for your mom and you obviously don't need that anymore. Oh, I shouldn't have said that. Sorry."
Sven sighed. "It's okay, I'm just not home right now. And I don't really know when I'll be coming back. I can't right now. It's just… I have to take care of things."
The silence on the other side of the line was so heavy Sven thought he could hear the gears turning in Cale's head. "Where are you?"
Sven hesitated. "Do you really want to know?"
More silence, but this time, he could hear the determination in his friend's words when Cale spoke again. "I do. I mean, we're friends, right? You can tell me things. Isn't that how that works?"
"Yes, that is how that works." Sven smiled weakly, and then he decided he might actually need help sorting his thoughts. And what better person to confide in than his Cale?
Cale was odd, but he was honest. True to himself in all the ways that mattered, with his own unique perspective on the world—and a fresh perspective might be just the thing Sven needed.
So he told Cale everything.
About how he'd approached Altair, how he'd tried to become a vampire, only for Altair to reject him and make him a prisoner. He also told Cale how he'd fallen for Altair in spite of all of that. He told him about the night at the hospital, how he'd failed to save his mother, and how Altair didn't think it was safe for Sven to go to the funeral.
Cale listened attentively. When Sven finally fell silent and waited, the only response on the other side of the line for long minutes was Cale humming thoughtfully. Then, Cale spoke: "Well, he is right. You're in danger."
"I know that! But I need to attend this funeral. I owe it to my mother."
"That's not the kind of danger I meant. You're in danger from Altair."
