Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

Keegan woke up after what felt like a few hours of sleep to find Jaron still curled up against him, sound asleep and looking utterly content.

A smile stole on Keegan's face. He couldn't help it. His dragon was too adorable. His mate.

The enormity of the thought struck Keegan.

He should have refused Jaron, should have resisted him, but he hadn't managed. He'd wanted everything that Jaron promised him too desperately to refuse.

Gently, Keegan leaned in and pressed a tender kiss to the sleeping dragon's forehead. Jaron stirred slightly but didn't wake, his breathing remaining deep and even. The taste of Jaron's blood still lingered on Keegan's tongue, a reminder that it would be the only blood he'd drink from here on out. As he gazed at his mate, a sudden flash of vision struck Keegan, showing Jaron's mother calling him in a rage.

Keegan huffed. He wasn't going to let that woman disturb this moment.

Acting quickly, Keegan fished Jaron's phone out of the pocket of his discarded pants and turned it off. He'd apologize later.

Maybe.

Keegan looked at the phone in his hand a moment longer.

The vision just now had been so clear. He'd even been able to hear the words Jaron said in response to his mother. 'I don't care what you think. He's my mate.'

Jaron's parents weren't going to be happy with their son's relationship. Of course not. High society dragons like Jaron's family would never be seen mingling with the likes of vampires.

Keegan had no doubt, though, that Jaron was well aware of his parents' opinion and didn't give a shit. The very clothes he wore were an act of rebellion. "I love that about you," Keegan murmured. "You dare to be different."

Things had not been easy for Jaron growing up; Keegan was aware of that, but there was something commendable about the personal strength Jaron had found in his misery. He hadn't let his weakness get him down. Instead, he'd become a dragon who looked out for those even weaker than him.

Keegan wasn't like that. Keegan had more power than he knew what to do with at times.

And more often than not, he used it only for his own purposes.

Carefully he climbed out of bed and stretched. He looked around his room, at the star charts still spread out on his floor. He glanced at his own phone to know the time. The sun had already risen, so the stars were of no relevance now.

Truth be told, he wasn't sure they ever were.

He swept the charts aside and sat down on the carpeted floor, back against the wall.

He should take his new powers for a test run. They itched underneath his skin, flowing through his body like a current., wanting out, wanting to be used. Already they'd given him one unprompted vision.

There'd be more if he didn't burn off some energy.

Did he dare look at his own death again?

What if he still couldn't see a solution to that problem?

No, he couldn't let fear hold him back.

Neither his fear of his future, nor his fear of his new powers.

Keegan took a deep breath, feeling the surge of magic coursing through him. He closed his eyes, ready to reach for the energy when a rustle from the bed made him pause. Jaron turned over, his sleepy eyes squinting at Keegan from under tousled hair.

"What are you doing over there?" Jaron mumbled, reaching out a hand. "Come back to bed."

Keegan laughed softly. "I was going to test the gift you gave me."

Jaron blinked, comprehension dawning slowly. He yawned and sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Do you feel more powerful?"

Keegan nodded. "I had a short vision just now. Your mom's going to call you, and she's not happy."

That woke Jaron right up. His eyes widened as he fumbled for his phone. "Where's my phone?"

Keegan held it up with a slight smirk. "I turned it off to spare you the trouble. Are you going to call your parents?"

Jaron shook his head but looked troubled, glancing at the phone in Keegan's hand like it was about to bite him.

"What's wrong?" Keegan asked, sensing Jaron's unease through their bond.

"It's not about me," Jaron admitted, running a hand through his hair. "My parents have been more troublesome than usual lately because my younger brother has been developing a mind of his own."

Keegan raised an eyebrow. "It's good of you to care so much about your siblings."

Jaron sighed, leaning back against the headboard. "Casca's just starting to find his own path, and our parents hate it. They're trying to force him back into their mold."

Keegan felt the weight of Jaron's worry through their bond and moved closer, placing a comforting hand on Jaron's shoulder. "He's lucky to have you looking out for him."

Jaron smiled faintly, but the tension in him didn't ease. "I just wish there was more I could do, but my parents think I'm a bad influence."

"Because of your trouble breathing fire?" Keegan sat on the edge of the bed.

Jaron shook his head. "Lots of reasons." He glanced at the phone that Keegan was still holding. "If my mom was gonna call me to yell at me, I wonder if someone saw me coming in here."

"In my vision, you told her about me," Keegan supplied.

"She'll hate that. She also hates that I live with a witch. If it was up to her, I'd probably never talk to anyone who isn't a dragon."

Keegan lay an arm around Jaron's shoulders and drew him closer. "Now that would be boring."

"Right?" Jaron looked at him. "My mom's just stuck in the old days and if she thinks I'm going to give you up, she's wrong." His features hardened. "Not like I could give you up after the night we had."

"Do you regret it?"

"No!" The question seemed to offend Jaron. "Never!"

It was almost cute, how upset he was at the mere suggestion. Keegan could only hope, though, that Jaron would never regret his choice.

Jaron was pure good. That was why it was so easy for Keegan to imagine that he himself would do something that went against Jaron's sense of justice one day.

"I know what you're thinking," Jaron said. "And I've already told you not to worry about it. The future you saw won't come to pass, so could you be in this moment with me and be happy?"

"I'm not going to stop being a seer."

"I'm not asking you to." Jaron sighed in an exaggerated fashion. "Just spend some time in the present, every now and then. It's nice here."

"So you don't want me to tell you about that vision I had of your little brother moving in with us in the future?"

Jaron's eyebrows rose. "When he's older? My mother will never allow it while he's still a minor."

"He did not look like an adult in my vision."

Jaron's brows furrowed. "How do I convince her?"

Keegan shrugged. "I don't know. All I can tell you is that it's possible."

Jaron mulled this over, then he turned to Keegan again, dark eyes serious. "Just like it's possible for us to change our fate. But not the way you think."

The way you think. What was that supposed to mean?

Jaron straightened and looked at him squarely. "We're not going to be sacrificing other people's fated mates. I meant to talk to you about that! That book you made me read, that was horrible! We can't do that!"

"No," Keegan agreed. "That's what the kidnapper is doing."

Jaron blinked. Obviously, he hadn't reached that conclusion yet, too caught up in thinking about his own supposed fate.

A smile stole across Keegan's face. "You thought I'd been making plans to kill people and you decided to mate me anyway?"

"I mean, I wasn't gonna let you do it." Jaron rubbed the back of his neck. "But yeah, I guess."

"You're cute." Something warm blossomed in Keegan's chest. How did he deserve a mate that earnest?

Jaron blushed, and then he shook himself out of his stupor, focusing on the matter at hand. "You think the kidnapper is going to kill these people? That he's going to kill Apollo? To change fate?"

"That's what it looks like," Keegan confirmed. "Did you find that drawing in the book?"

Jaron's face paled. "You saw that in your vision?"

"In the room Apollo was kept in."

Jaron cursed. "What else did you see?" he demanded to know. "We've got to get him out of there. We've got to get everyone out of there."

Yes, that was the goal, and yet, Keegan had selfishly wanted to use his newly gained powers to look at his own future first. That would have been worth the risk to him more than anything.

But of course he couldn't ignore the debt he owed to his friend.

"I didn't see much else," he admitted. "But I'll look again."

Jaron leaned against Keegan as if he could sense his hesitation. Through their bond, he probably could. "I'll be right here with you," he promised. "If you get lost in the future, I'll guide you back home."

Keegan shot Jaron a smile. "I'll always come back to you for as long as you'll have me."

Jaron punched his arm. "You had better."

Keegan nodded, then he took a deep breath, feeling the cool air fill his lungs. He closed his eyes and reached for his power. The moment he did, he felt it surge through him—immense and overwhelming. What had once been a manageable river now roared like a tidal wave, threatening to drown him if he couldn't find a way to ride it.

His heart beat out of rhythm as the power cascaded over him, pulling him in countless directions at once. Images flashed before his mind's eye: visions of futures, possible outcomes, fragments of moments yet to come. Each vision clashed with the next, a chaotic torrent that threatened to tear his consciousness apart.

He saw Apollo's face, twisted in pain, then Casca hiding from their parents. Jaron's mother screaming accusations, and somewhere in the mess, a vision of his own death resurfaced—a stake aimed at his chest.

Keegan gasped, struggling to maintain control. The visions layered over one another, each demanding his attention. He tried to focus on one thread, but another would yank him away before he could grasp it fully.

A vision of Apollo chained in a dark room dissolved into another of Jaron confronting his mother. Keegan's head throbbed with the strain of trying to keep up with the rapid shifts. He felt himself slipping, losing grip on reality as the visions threatened to consume him entirely.

Fighting against the tide was like trying to hold back the ocean with his bare hands. The more he struggled, the more fragmented and chaotic the visions became. He couldn't breathe under the weight of so many futures pressing down on him at once.

Then he felt it—a warm hand clasping his own.

"Keegan," Jaron's voice called out firmly. "Focus on me."

The sound of Jaron's voice anchored him, pulling him back from the brink. Keegan latched onto it, using it as a lifeline amidst the storm of visions. He squeezed Jaron's hand tightly, grounding himself in that simple touch.

Slowly but surely, the tidal wave began to recede. The visions still swirled around him, but they were no longer an uncontrollable maelstrom threatening to sweep him away.

"You're not alone," Jaron said softly. "We've got this together."

Keegan took another deep breath and centered himself in Jaron's steady presence. The chaos ebbed enough for him to start sifting through the visions with purpose instead of being dragged by them blindly.

One clear image emerged.

To Keegan's surprise, it wasn't one of Apollo, though that was who he'd been trying to see.

Instead, a shadowy figure came into view. The features were indistinct, blurred as if deliberately concealed. Keegan strained to make out more details but couldn't pierce the veil that hid the person's identity.

"Who are you?" he whispered into the void.

Was this another seer? Someone who knew they would be spied upon?

Keegan focused harder, trying to see past the magical shield that obscured the person's features, but it was like trying to see through dense fog.

The figure didn't respond to his whispered question. Instead, it moved within what looked like a laboratory. Tables covered with vials and jars lined the walls. Shelves filled with arcane ingredients reached up to the ceiling.

The shadowy figure stood at a central table, carefully mixing a potion in a glass beaker that emitted a soft glow. The air seemed thick with the scent of herbs and something acrid Keegan couldn't identify.

The figure picked up a vial from the table and added its contents to the beaker. The mixture hissed and bubbled violently before settling into a calm swirl of iridescent colors.

What were they making?

Keegan's eyes fell on a book resting beside the figure. Its title was clear: The Subtle Art of Mind Control.

Keegan's breath caught.

Opening his eyes, he returned to the present moment with Jaron beside him. "I saw someone," he said slowly. "Someone who's shielding themselves from magical observation."

Jaron looked at him intently. "Did you see anything else?"

Keegan swallowed hard. "A laboratory… and a book about mind control."

"Mind control!" Jaron's eyes widened. "Who do they want to control? Wait, do you think it's me? Cause that's the only way I would ever…" He trailed off, but Keegan understood what he was talking about, and it made perfect, chilling sense.

The only way Jaron would hurt Keegan was if he was being controlled by someone else.

They sat in silence for a moment, the weight of their discovery heavy on their shoulders. The pieces were falling into place—the shadowy figure, the book on mind control, Keegan's visions of his own death…

Jaron broke the silence first. "We need a plan. We can't let this happen."

Keegan nodded, his mind already racing ahead. "First, we need to find out who they are and where they're hiding. And we need to find a way to protect you from them."

Jaron's brow furrowed. "Protect me? How?"

"I don't know yet," Keegan admitted. "But there has to be a way. A spell, an amulet, something. We'll figure it out. I won't let them control you."

Jaron's jaw set with determination. "We'll stop them. Together."

A flicker of warmth spread through Keegan at that word. Together. It was still a foreign concept, having someone by his side in this fight. He'd always had his coven, of course, but that was different. Jaron was here only for him.

He always would be.

That was a powerful feeling and not one Keegan wanted to lose.

"We should talk to Altair," he suggested. "He needs to know about this. And he might have some ideas about protection from mind control."

"You think so?"

"He's been reading up on the topic for reasons."

Jaron looked at him curiously. "What reasons?"

"His own mate has recently developed the talent to control others through their blood."

Jaron's eyebrows rose. "I didn't know vampires could do that."

"It's a rare gift. In any case, we need to get dressed."

Jaron agreed, ready to spring into action. Quickly, they put their clothes back on and left the room. The building was quiet. Most of the vampires had gone to sleep.

Keegan and Jaron found Altair still in his office. Sven lounged in an armchair in the corner, yawning widely. Altair's eyes were closed, his fingers twitching slightly—likely monitoring the city through the eyes of his crows.

Sven looked up when they entered. "Oh, hey," he greeted softly, rising from his seat. "What brings you here?"

Keegan glanced at Jaron before speaking. "We need to talk to Altair."

Sven nodded and crossed the room to Altair's side. He placed a gentle hand on Altair's shoulder. "We've got visitors."

Altair's eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, he looked uncharacteristically disoriented. The lines of fatigue etched into his face made it clear he'd been trying to find some hints regarding Apollo's whereabouts all day.

"Keegan," Altair said, shaking off the remnants of his trance. "Is there news?" His gaze flicked between Keegan and the dragon he hadn't been introduced to, weary but sharp. "Did you mate?"

"Yes," Keegan admitted. "But that's not why we're here."

Altair's expression sobered. "You saw something?"

"I had a vision," Keegan said, taking a deep breath. "I think I saw the kidnapper. They have a lab filled with arcane ingredients and a book called The Subtle Art of Mind Control."

Altair's eyes narrowed as he processed the information. "Mind control…" He glanced at Sven before returning his focus to Keegan and Jaron. "Do you have any idea who this person might be?"

Keegan shook his head. "Their features were obscured by some kind of magical shield. But I saw them preparing a potion."

Jaron stepped closer to Keegan, adding his own thoughts. "We think they're targeting fated mates to change fate by sacrificing them."

A heavy silence settled over the room as Altair and Sven absorbed this bit of information.

"Is that possible?" Sven asked.

"I didn't think it was," Keegan said, "but all my research seems to indicate this is what they're trying to achieve." He didn't mention the fact that he'd only done this research because he'd been trying to do something similar himself.

That was beside the point, wasn't it?

Altair's brow furrowed. "Why would this kidnapper want to change fate?"

Keegan took a deep breath, organizing his thoughts. "I think they might be a seer too. It would explain how they've been able to outmaneuver me. Maybe they saw something in their future they didn't like and are trying to alter it."

Everyone in the room looked surprised by this idea. Sven exchanged a glance with Altair, who seemed to mull over the new information.

"A seer," Altair repeated slowly. "That would indeed explain a lot. But why the mind control?"

Keegan hesitated before speaking again. "In one of my visions, I saw Jaron being controlled. The shadowy figure was manipulating him to stop me." That wasn't the whole truth, but it was close enough.

Next to him, Jaron stiffened, but he didn't contradict Keegan.

Altair walked over to his bookshelf, scanning the titles. "I've been educating myself on the topic of mind control recently," he said as if this was a normal thing to do. He pulled out a thick, leather-bound book and flipped it open.

"There are several ways to protect oneself from mind control," Altair explained. "One method involves wearing enchanted items—amulets or charms specifically designed to block mental intrusion. Another approach is mental fortification through meditation and specific exercises to strengthen one's mental barriers."

"I don't think we have that much time," Keegan said. What he wanted was a foolproof way to make sure that nothing was going to touch Jaron's mind.

"I understand." Altair paged through the book, deep in thought. "An enchanted amulet might be best in that case."

Sven leaned in, peering at the book over Altair's shoulder. "Do we have anything like that?"

"No," Altair said. "And items like these don't come cheap."

Jaron's expression darkened, his brows knitting together. "If money's all that's required, don't worry about that. I'll get the funds."

Altair eyed him curiously but didn't press further. Keegan had a suspicion about where Jaron would get the money—probably from his family. The thought of Jaron having to go back to them, even for something as important as this, made Keegan's stomach twist.

He wished he didn't have to make Jaron do that, but this was too important.

"Very well," Altair said, turning back to his book. "I'll try to locate an object for purchase. In the meantime, Keegan, focus on finding out more about the kidnapper. Anything you can uncover will help."

Keegan nodded. The kidnapper might be trying to hide, but Keegan would figure out their identity sooner or later. He only needed to learn to control all this new power he'd been given a little better.

He turned to leave but stopped himself to look at Altair once more. "Have you heard from Mordyn?" he asked quietly.

Altair shook his head tiredly. "No, not yet."

Keegan worried his lip and nodded again before exiting the room with Jaron by his side.

As they walked down the corridor, Keegan glanced at Jaron, who was deep in thought. "Are you sure about this?" he asked softly.

Jaron's eyes met his, a determined look in them. "Absolutely. There's gotta be some advantage to being born a rich kid, right? Don't worry. I know what to tell my parents to get money."

Keegan squeezed Jaron's hand. "I'd offer to come with you, but I know that wouldn't help."

"How much have you seen of my parents?"

"Enough to know I don't like them."

Jaron gave Keegan a weak smile, the kind that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Don't worry," he said, trying to sound reassuring. "I know how to play my parents."

Keegan's concern deepened. He hated the idea of Jaron facing that kind of stress alone. "Are you sure? I could look at the future for you, give you some advice on how to handle the confrontation."

Jaron waved him off with a dismissive hand. "Nah, don't waste your energy on small matters like that. Save your strength for the big stuff, like finding Apollo."

Keegan frowned, but he understood Jaron's point. They had more important things to worry about.

Hah.

As if there was anything more important than Jaron's wellbeing to Keegan.

Jaron leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Keegan's lips, lingering just long enough to make Keegan's heart flutter. "I'll be back later," Jaron promised.

Keegan watched as Jaron turned and walked up the corridor toward the stairs, wishing there was more he could do to make things easier for him.

As Jaron disappeared from view, Keegan walked back toward his own room.

If he was going to stop this kidnapper, he had to figure out who they were.