He continued to go to work, telling himself he’d send the email announcing his departure each and every time, only to get distracted by everything piling up thanks to the CEO’s absence.
Silver didn’t come in, and no one could get ahold of him, which left Nuri picking up the slack, dealing with backed up departments and frazzled workers. Since he’d always been read in to everything pertaining to the company, he was able to fill in the blanks Silver left behind, but that also meant Nuri was left doing two high stress jobs instead of the one.
By the fifth day, he was close to giving up and storming the mansion to demand Falc get Silver to end this charade. He knew what this was. Silver was following his order to let him go in the most passive aggressive way possible, by refusing to show himself and forcing Nuri to realize how hard things could be on his own.
The joke was on him though, because all this was doing was proving all the reasons it was in Nuri’s best interests to sever this toxic bond between them.
But if he happened to also miss him, especially at night when he found himself lying awake, in his empty bed, the quiet of the room impossible to ignore, so what?
He’d get over it.
Ten years not being parted from the man for longer than a few days would of course cause him to develop a codependency.
Nuri was standing outside HQ, holding his multi-slate with Falc’s number already pulled up, deliberating, when the device started to ring.
“Royal Secretary,” Eli greeted when the call was connected, “we have a situation at the palace and request your aid.”
“What situation?” Nuri headed for his car. The Imperial Guard might follow Silver’s orders, but Eli was an honorable individual, if he said there was a problem, there really was one.
“We’ve been unable to reach the Emperor,” Eli said, “and today is the handoff of traitor Romeo Brixton. He’s all set fortransfer off planet, but law dictates that it must be overseen by the regent.”
Since Silver was M.I.A, that meant Nuri was the next best thing. He’d long since gotten leave to act as his stand-in for things like this.
But…
“When was the last time you spoke with him?” The Imperial Guard also acted as a protective detail for the emperor. Even when he went to work, a car followed discreetly behind, there to step in and defend him at the first sign of trouble. He didn’t allow them to tag along everywhere, but it couldn’t have been too long since—
“We’ve been out of touch for almost a week,” Eli sounded displeased. “It’s been a long time since he’s last pulled a stunt like this. Not since in college when the two of you snuck off to Mab.”
Eli was only five or so years older than them and had just joined the detail when that event had happened.
Silver had woken Nuri before the sun, ordering him to follow without question. It hadn’t been until they’d boarded a yacht that he’d finally revealed his plans to retreat to the hot springs for a break after the grueling week of exams they’d experienced.
He’d had a packed schedule with the press, wherein he was meant to express his interest in one day taking the throne from his father. It was supposed to help renew the people’s faith in him as the heir, but Silver had waved Nuri’s concerns away when he’d brought it up, calling it tedious and pointless since he’d get the crown no matter what the public thought of him.
Sij Rein had been furious, and Nuri’s pay had been docked for allowing the prince to indulge in something so childish.
Silver had dutifully attended everything his father scheduled for him from then on, and they hadn’t disappeared like that again.
Until apparently now.
“I urge you to convince him to return,” Eli was still talking, but Nuri wasn’t listening nearly as intently as he had been before.
He started his hovercar and sped out onto the main road, only staying on it for a minute or so before switching to side streets that would help cut down the time it would take to reach the palace.
“I’m on my way,” he told Eli. “ETA eleven minutes.”
Where the hell could Silver be?
The hot springs?
If he thought this was a way to trick Nuri into traveling all the way to Mab to retrieve him…Didn’t that seem like a lot, even for Silver?
Nuri ended the call with Eli and immediately dialed Falc. “Have you heard from him?”
“Not yet, Master Narek. I fear—”
“Be very honest with me, Falc, I mean it,” he cut him off. “Is this some ploy of his? If you’re helping him—”
