"No," Alistair agreed, his voice cold. "But it might prevent him from ever doing something like this again. It might finally teach him that his actions have real, lasting consequences."
Evelyn shook her head, a tear slipping down her cheek. "And what if the consequence is that we lose him forever? What if he never recovers from this, Alistair? Could you live with that on your conscience?"
For a moment, something flickered in Alistair's eyes – a hint of doubt, perhaps, or a glimmer of the love he still held for his son. But it was quickly shuttered away, replaced by the stern mask of the family patriarch.
"We've already lost him, Evelyn," he said, his voice heavy with finality. "The son we thought we had... he died the moment he committed that atrocity. What's left is just a shell, and we need to accept that."
