IANAL, but if the "mentor" is acting in as bad of faith as it appears, there may be grounds for a counter-claim of "tortious interference."
So, don't you interfere....=D
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[1] Wikipedia: http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torte Not to be confused with tart or tort. [FYI tortious interference, less ceremoniously, alludes to 'tort', a decidely less delicious variation of the word.]