“It will be clear of dryad protective magic, leaving you free to mine the site after the new Grove is established.”
“Excellent. And what should we find?”
“How old is the Grove?” The book had a chart denoting when magical energy was transformed into precious stones. Gems created from magic were always valuable to Rune Masters and other Mages who used them in their work. The older the grove, the more powerful the stones.
Melcori’s smirk widened. “Five hundred years.”
“Wow.” Xavier cleared his throat and tried not to give Melcori too much satisfaction over his shock. “Probably emeralds. Dryad emeralds.”
Melcori’s maniacal laughter echoed around the office. “Exactly. Dryad emeralds. That can only be formed by stones absorbing centuries of built-up magic between a dryad’s tree roots. It has been almost a thousand years since any have hit the market. If I can mine those, I’ll be rich, and I can pay off the Chimera, and you, my apprentice, will get your fair share if you help me.”
Xavier raked a hand through his hair. If he were to be honest, this entire situation sounded terrible. Melcori had burned down dryad homesand, if he had understood the situation, part of their bodies to get money. “Why do you want to find the child if the Grove doesn’t like men?”
“I can’t keep Dryads prisoner forever. They will need to be free to start a new Grove. If I don’t find their kid, Talula will kill me as soon as they are free. I can’t enjoy my gems if I’m dead. Besides, if we have the kid alive and well, Talula will be more willing to step down from leadership if we hold him until she agrees.”
The holes in this plan were larger than the castle, but Melcori wasn’t in the mindset to listen. Still, he had to try. “You think she will listen after you burned down their Grove?” If he were a dryad, he’d never forgive someone who torched his home.
“Semantics.” Melcori airily waved his hand to dismiss that little detail. “She’ll get over it if we return her child. Octavia will be the new leader, and we will have our gems. Talula will agree to the new leadership if she wants her son back. It will be a win-win all around.”
He had no proper response to this level of unhinged optimism. “The son we don’t have.”
“We will.” His glare told Xavier that failure wasn’t an option.
“I’m still surprised that male dryads weren’t mentioned in that big book.”
“Like I said, there’s a stigma about growing them due to the dryads’ history of being the playthings of men. Octavia confirmed the rumor that males are expelled from the Grove when they reach sixteen. I suspect this one is getting to be about that age, and she wants to be the new leader before he ages out. They can only grow one child with each Grove. Even if he leaves the Grove, the nutrients won’t be enough for a new child, at least according to what I’ve read.”
Xavier picked up on what his mentor was saying. ”Then, with a new Grove, she has a second chance, but only if she’s the leader.”
“Exactly. Find him and secure him. Talula will make trouble if we don’t have something to hold over her head.”
“Where will he go when he reaches sixteen?”
Melcori shrugged. “Dryads aren’t like other people. He’s part tree. He doesn’t need his mother to coddle him into adulthood. He’ll be fine.”
Xavier rubbed his hands along his arms. He recalled being sixteen, a vulnerable age this kid hadn’t yet reached. Kicking him out alone into the vast, frightening forest was a terrible idea. “Do you think his mother will want to start a new Grove with him?”
Melcori shook his head. ”That’s why we need the kid, to persuade her not to. If they split the Grove, there might not be enough magic to form two, which could backlash and warp the forest.”
Xavier shuddered. A warped forest was an eldritch horror that would drain the magic around it and continue draining until nothing lived. “What do you want me to do when I find him?”
“Call me. After you hunt him down, we can decide the best place to stash him.”
Xavier scowled. “Shouldn’t he be easy to find? How fast do you think a tree moves?”
“I spotted him outside his tree before the flames separated us. After he vanished, I didn’t see any signs of his tree. I’m certain he’s alive.” He handed over a vial of blood. “I’ve taken this from his mother for tracking purposes. She agreed.”
“Good.” It was best to have donated blood. Blood taken unwillingly could make even a positive spell backfire. “If you give me the directions, I’ll go this afternoon.”
“Here.” He slid a paper with the coordinates to Xavier. “There is one other thing.”
Melcori’s pause only added to Xavier’s worries.
“The Chimera gave me a month to pay my debt.”
“That’s a long time for a mob boss to wait.” Xavier frowned. Something wasn’t adding up. Mob bosses weren’t known for their patience.
“I might have promised him free access to a young Blood Mage until I pay him back.”
