Free Abendau's Heir (The Inheritance Trilogy Book 1) by Jo Zebedee Page A

escaped Lichio– surely the major’s black panther insignia was enough?
    “At ease, Lichio.” Eevan nodded to a seat opposite his own. “Sit down.”
    Lichio sat, fighting the urge to wriggle on the hard seat. Eevan leaned back, crossed his legs, and relaxed into his familiar leather chair.
    “You asked to see me, sir?” said Lichio, fighting the urge to call him Eevan. Half-brother or not, Eevan had been adamant that when Lichio joined the army, he’d show proper respect. It was proving more difficult than he’d anticipated, to date.
    “We have a pair of new arrivals.” Eevan gave a smile, one Lichio knew well, and not in a good way. “I’m placing them in your dorm.”
    So why not send a memo? “Yes, sir.” He waited; let Eevan spell out exactly what he wanted. Lichio wasn’t going to make it easy.
    “Does the name Kare Varnon mean anything to you?”
    “Of course.” Lichio fought to keep his voice steady; anything about the Varnons was big news, probably the biggest possible in the Banned. “One of Ealyn’s twins. Died a decade ago.”
    “Apparently not.”
    He resisted the urge to ask which bit he’d got wrong. “No?”
    “He arrived about two hours ago. Nearly wiped out the port.” Eevan smirked, and it made him look mean as well as bad-tempered. “Apparently he didn’t inherit his dad’s piloting skills.” He sobered. “How well did you know him?”
    “Not very.” Lichio picked his words with care. “I was about six when the ship vanished. Sonly knew him better. Do we know how he survived?”
    “He wasn’t on the ship when it went down. He’s been hiding on Dignad until a couple of weeks ago when he tried to leave and attracted the wrong attention. He and his cousin made it off-planet; his aunt died in the escape.” Eevan closed his data pad. “A couple of things worth noting. Three weeks ago, an army squad on Dignad were blown up inside a transporter. There were no survivors. Varnon claims he was behind it, that he had no option but to do it.” Eevan touched his head. “He claims he did it with his powers, that he’s a psycher.” His face darkened. “Given what I know of him from the past, I believe it to be true; when he was a child he showed signs of being an Empath. Do you know what that means?”
    Lichio nodded. “He senses peoples’ emotions.”
    “He can read minds,” said Eevan. “He can crawl around and take your thoughts. Like his mother.”
    Lichio frowned. That wasn’t what an ordinary Empath could do. “Surely not. Besides, aren’t there rules for psychers? Their code of conduct?”
    Eevan leaned forward. “His father was a maverick. Kare has grown up untrained. He hasn’t even attended school.” His face reddened, angry. “When we were children he tried to use his powers on me.” Lichio managed not to wince; his brother had a long memory and could be downright vicious. “He had no discipline, his father had no rules, he has had no teacher.” He rapped his hand on the desk. “Which bit of that sounds good?”
    “None.” Although most of it was interesting.
    “Indeed.” Eevan sat back in his seat. “I don’t want him using his psyche. Not in my army. In fact, if the decision had been mine, he’d have been kicked off base the minute he arrived.”
    Oh dear. Eevan over-ruled was never a good thing. “So he stays?” asked Lichio.
    “He stays.” Eevan’s smile widened, making Lichio’s skin crawl. “Until we can see if he can live up to the potential of his name. Do you understand?”
    “Yes.” Since when did he come across as stupid? The heir to the empire, on side and half-way smart, would be an asset; but if he was an idiot or a maverick, he could do more harm than good. “And you want me to do what about it?”
    “Work him hard. We want to know what he’s made of.” Eevan pointed at Lichio. “And make sure he doesn’t misuse his powers. I want to know he can be trusted with whatever’s in that head of his. That’s why he’s