Prince's Master (Calluvia's Royalty 4)

Warrehn shrugged distractedly. “Some of them are more emotional than others. The mind adept that handled our family was more normal—” He cut himself off, grimacing, before stalking out of the room.

Sirri sighed. “Of course he storms off to sulk, and I have to be the one who has to break the news to Rohan,” she said, sounding beyond annoyed. “Warrehn!” She followed him out of the room, leaving Eridan still bound and gagged.

But this time he could barely feel the discomfort.

Tomorrow.

He was going to see him tomorrow.

Chapter Seventeen: Reunion

The Rohan person, Warrehn’s pseudo-brother Eridan had already grown to dislike, was nothing like he had imagined.

He was a tall, striking man, with brown skin and penetrating dark eyes.

“I was starting to forget your face,” Sirri said the moment she saw him.

Ignoring her, Rohan looked at Warrehn and then Eridan.

He did a double-take, frowning.

“How old even is he?” Rohan said.

Warrehn shrugged. “He refuses to say.”

“Old enough to be a pain in our asses,” Sirri said with a scowl.

Eridan glared at her.

Rohan’s eyebrows crept up. “Are we sure he’s the Grandmaster’s apprentice? I didn’t think they encouraged emotion.”

Eridan shot him a withering look.

Sirri snorted. “He’s touchy about it.” She glanced at her multi-device. “We should get moving.”

“Everything clear?” Rohan asked Warrehn.

Sirri replied for him. “We checked. Their people really left. Everyone but the Grandmaster.”

Warrehn kept glancing around warily. “Doesn’t mean we aren’t being tracked somehow. Let’s get moving.” He put a hand on Eridan’s back and pushed him forward.

Eridan complied.

He breathed in the humid forest air, already in a better mood. Being stuck inside a tiny room for a month had given him a new appreciation for being outdoors.

His mood improved with every step that took him closer toward his Master. Eridan could already feel him, faintly, but stronger with every moment, their bond pulsing with terrible tension.

“Can you feel him, Warrehn?” Rohan said after a while. They obviously could no longer trace Castien’s identification chip’s signal. They had already entered the Hangar Bay 4 area. Only powerful electronic devices like the TNIT could work within such areas.

Pulling out a blaster, Warrehn grunted in affirmative and changed the direction they were going a little.

Eridan wondered about it. It seemed Warrehn was the strongest telepath among the trio, though he could sense that Rohan and Sirri were at least Class 4, perhaps higher. It was hard to tell with trained telepaths because of their mental shields.

Eridan lost that train of thought the moment they stepped into the small clearing.

“Master!” he said with a wide, happy smile, before he could stop himself and remember that he was angry with Castien.

Castien’s expressionless face didn’t change, though his telepathic signature reached out toward Eridan and pressed around him, almost suffocating him with its force. His unreadable blue eyes swept over him from head to toe before moving to the man gripping Eridan’s arm. Something shifted in Castien’s eyes as his gaze locked on Warrehn.

Eridan wondered about it. Did Castien recognize him? Did he know Warrehn was his brother?

Had they met?

The thought was startling. He had previously assumed Warrehn must have abandoned him in the forest and Castien had simply found him, but what if it wasn’t true? But then, wouldn’t Warrehn recognize Castien, too?

Eridan looked at Warrehn curiously. He was frowning and glowering at Castien, but since Warrehn looked grumpy most of the time, it was hard to tell if there was a particular reason for this grumpy look.

Castien looked from Warrehn to Sirri before his gaze finally settled on Rohan. “Well?” he said. “What do you want?”

Eridan frowned, unsure why Castien was addressing Rohan when he had barely even been involved in Eridan’s kidnapping. He felt like he was missing something.

“You know who I am,” Rohan said. “I’m sure you can put two and two together.”

“Yes,” Castien conceded, his face still blank. “But I am not here to talk about my suspicions. I am here to get back what you stole. Eridan, come here.”

Warrehn let out a harsh laugh, tightening his grip on Eridan. “You seriously think I’m letting the kid go, just like that?”

Castien didn’t look away from Rohan. “Tell him to release the boy.”

“Look,” Rohan said, heaving a sigh. “We didn’t want to get the kid involved at all, but it was the only way to get you to talk to us on our terms.”

“And what made you think kidnapping a simple apprentice would make me more cooperative?” Castien said. “He’s just a boy, one of hundreds of initiates eager to learn from me. I could have him replaced at a moment’s notice.”

Eridan dropped his gaze and stared at his boots.

What his Master had said was a simple statement of fact, nothing more. It shouldn’t hurt. He knew what kind of a man Castien Idhron was. It shouldn’t hurt.

“Then what are you doing here?” Rohan said. “If he’s so worthless to you?”