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?”
Eridan lifted his gaze.
Castien didn’t look at him, his eyes still on Rohan. “I didn’t say that he was worthless. It would be a pity to have wasted years of my time on him if I were to take on another apprentice. He is of some worth to me, but you are delusional if you think I will not sacrifice him if you try to use him against me.”
Of some worth.
He was of some worth to his Master.
Rationally, Eridan knew Castien had to downplay his importance in order to not allow himself to be blackmailed. But Eridan also knew better than to delude himself into thinking that it was anything but the truth.
Sirri chuckled.
“He’s lying,” she said. She was looking at Castien with a faint smirk. “Oh, you’re good. I would have totally believed you. Except I have a feeling that what you just said is a load of bullshit and if we believe you, we’ll make a huge mistake.”
“She has a gift for premonition,” Rohan clarified, looking coolly at Castien. “So shall we try again?”
Castien’s lips thinned. He was silent for a while, looking from Rohan to Sirri before saying, “What do you want?”
Eridan stared at him, stunned.
Castien still wouldn’t look at him.
“Stop twisting public opinion against us. That’s our first demand.”
“First? I presume there is a second?”
“You’ll clear our names of the murder of Prince-Consort Mehmer,” Rohan said. “As long as we’re blamed for the murder of a royal, the Council won’t even listen to us. We’ll be arrested on the spot.”
Castien just looked at Rohan for a long moment.
Eridan cocked his head to the side, sensing the shift in Castien’s telepathic presence. It was changing, becoming like… like Rohan’s.
He was morphing his telepathic presence to imitate Rohan’s, Eridan realized with morbid fascination. It should have been impossible. He’d had no idea his Master had such a telepathic gift—heck, he hadn’t realized such a gift existed. It was as creepy as it was fascinating.
The implications of it… were, frankly, terrifying, because a telepath’s mark was the ultimate security measure that protected the telepath’s mind. By imitating Rohan’s telepathic mark, Castien could theoretically bypass Rohan’s mental shields as if they didn’t exist: they wouldn’t fight him, because they wouldn’t recognize him as an intruder.
Rohan’s expression became a little puzzled, as if he sensed that something was off but couldn’t quite figure out what.
Finally, Castien’s presence returned back to normal. Eridan could sense something that felt a lot like amusement through their bond. Castien was amused by something.
Frankly, Eridan felt kind of sorry for Rohan. When his Master was amused, it was usually at someone else’s expense. Castien did have a sense of humor, but it was rather twisted.
“Very well,” Castien said with a smile that didn’t touch his eyes. “Now let my apprentice go.”
“Not so fast,” Warrehn grunted when Eridan tried to free himself. “You aren’t getting him back until you keep your end of the deal.”
Castien’s expression became stony. “I am not leaving without my apprentice.”
Eridan’s foolish heart jumped at those words, though rationally he knew Castien likely was just unwilling to keep his end of the deal.
“Sorry, dear, but you understand that we can’t trust you,” Sirri said.
“I can hardly trust you, either,” Castien said. “How do I know that you will let my apprentice go even if I do as you say?”