“You didn’t!” Even as he said those words, his stomach sank. “You sold me out. I only have one month left to finish my Master's project. I don’t have time to cater to a mob boss.” He’d worked damn hard for fifteen years, and now, just a month before his completion, Melcori was throwing him under the bus?
“You should know me better than that,” Melcori scolded. “I told him you would do nothing illegal. I refuse to ruin your reputation before you become independent. Besides, if he likes your work, you might already have a job lined up when you leave your apprenticeship. I only promised him three projects, which all must be finished within the next month.”
“You don’t think being tied to the Chimera will damage my reputation?” The thought of working for a criminal sent his stomach acid spiking. If this continued, he was in for a month of indigestion.
“Did you want me to sell the castle?” Melcori raised an eyebrow at him. “I’m certain no one will mind moving out, so you can hold onto your principles.”
Considering almost everyone resented him for being Melcori’s only apprentice, he doubted they would take it well, and from his Master’s expression, he knew it too.
Xavier groaned. He wouldn’t be able to change Melcori’s mind, not if he had already told the Chimera that he would have access to Xavier. “How did you pull this off? You would’ve needed help to capture all the dryads.”
Melcori smirked. “Several people are hoping to take your place when you leave. Let’s just say I’m taking advantage of their eagerness. Don’t worry about them. They’re not important. Focus on your task.”
“Hunting down a missing tree?” Xavier taunted.
A zap on his leg had him jumping in his chair. “All right, I deserved that.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Out of curiosity, why aren’t we immediately returning him to his mother? You’d still have them both captive?”
“I don’t trust Octavia. She hates the kid. When she talked about him, the look in her eyes made me look sane. Frankly, I’m surprised he’s made it to fifteen.”
“You think she’d kill him?”
“She did agree to burn down a forest to have a kid.”
“Good point.” Xavier shared the unease in Melcori’s expression. If Octavia was willing to destroy her old Grove to keep one kid out, what would she do if she had to deal with him again?
“Why did the current leader create a male if they’re so against them?”
Melcori shrugged. “She claims Mother Nature asked her to.”
“And the other dryads don’t believe her?” From the book, it sounded as if dryads were devoted to Mother Nature; why would one denounce them? Or maybe it was one of those things where they believed deities existed, but only crazy people talked to them.
“Octavia claims Talula made the whole thing up because she wanted a boy.”
“Hmm.” It wasn’t his business if two factions wanted to battle for power. It still sat poorly on him to support a back-stabbing traitor, but like every other time, Xavier pushed away his worries, no matter how valid. It would do no good for him to oppose Melcori. His mentor did what he wanted regardless of anyone else’s opinions. Not that he was a terrible person. Melcori had taken excellent care of Xavier. He had taught and trained him until he was soon to become the youngest Blood Mage in the country.
Still, this was morally wrong on so many levels, and there was nothing Xavier could do about it.
“I know you disapprove, but I can’t default on my debt, and we don’t have enough reserve to cover the cost.”
“I know.” Xavier sighed. Melcori had shared the accounting books with him two months back. They had lost a significant portion of their Mage funding through underhanded political backstabbing and bad investments, and that was before Melcori’s gambling debts were factored in. “Are all of them old enough to grow new trees?”
“Except the boy. Talk to him and see if he needs a tree. His mother had said something about making his portable.”
“I’d love to see how she did that. Do you think she used runes?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe I’ll ask her when she isn’t threatening to impale me.” Melcori’s grin held the joy of learning new magic, something the two of them shared.
“Once you discover the boy's fate, we can discuss the best location for the new Grove.”
Xavier stood and slid the vial of blood into his pocket. “I’ll let you know what I find.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I’ve got a meeting with the committee tonight about some bullshit regulation they want to enforce and how they want me to take on more than one apprentice this next time. They don’t remember how much work you were. Maybe if they are older and needed less care…”
“Good luck with that.” Xavier offered a cheery wave on the way out.
