A MAZE OF GREED

The two guards gulped down nervously, unable to think what to do when Edwin started gaining consciousness. Only Rees had enough guts to face their Young Master and was able to control him.

But Rees was not there, and he had blocked his pack link. There was no way to reach him, and their master, who had lost his control to his dark side, was about to wake up. ​​

Unable to come up with an idea, they decided to cling to the last resort. The hand that held the amber coloured bottle shook violently, so did the owner of the hand. He was about to piss in his pants.

The other guard pulled himself together and decided to take charge of the situation. If Edwin woke up with his wolf in control, he might do something reckless and destructive that would blow the cover of their secret investigation in front of Lord Augustus and the Council.

There was no way they would put their Young Master in shame!

The other guard snatched the amber coloured bottle from the other one then opened its lid with shaky hands. His hands shook violently, which caused some of the content of the bottle to spill on his hand, but he didn't pay any heed to it.

"You try to hold his hands, and I will hold the bottle in front of his nose to make him inhale it."

The first guard gave the other an incredulous look as if he had grown two heads. "Now you are acting like a fool! Look at him! His wolf is clearly in control. Do you think we have strengths to control him?" He yelled.

The other guard's voice also rose in frustration. "Then what do you suggest to do? We can't let him wake up, or he will destroy everything around. Do you want to put Young Master in a troubled place with Lord Augustus?"

That caught the first guard with worry. "But-"

"No one knows about the Young MAster working of the case of five deaths secretly. If someone gets even a whiff of what we do here, then Master will be in danger."

He was right. If anyone got to know about this investigation, then his disguise of irresponsibility and non-care would be blown.

Wordlessly, he agreed.

With a determined look in their eyes, they were about to take a step towards Edwin when suddenly his eyes snapped open.

The two guards froze in their tracks, holding their breaths.

Instead of pretty cerulean blue, Edwin's eyes were sparkling in black with light blue streaks.

His wolf was in control, and he was furious!

Ever so slowly, he turned his head in the guards' way, his ferine eyes locked with the two pairs of frightened ones. The moment his eyes locked with theirs, a chill ran down their spines.

Seconds after seconds passed, and suddenly Edwin growled loudly, sending the ringing sensation through their ears. The bottle in the guard's hand slipped and crashed down on the ground to shatter loudly in tiny pieces.

Everything after that happened in a blur, and before they could comprehend anything, Edwin had disappeared from the window of the room.

The guard, who was holding the bottle, gathered his senses back hurriedly and ran to the window to only see that Edwin had already partially transformed into his wolf form and sprinted out of there after getting up from the ground, unharmed and untamed.

The guard cursed loudly and turned to look at the other man. Before he opened his mouth, he saw a wet patch in front of the man's pants, and then his eyes trailed down to see a puddle of liquid on the ground between his legs.

*

*

*

It was early in the dawn. The lamps had exhausted like Rees and Thea's minds and bodies. Thea had fast asleep on Rees's chest while his fingers kept playing with the tendrils of her hair.

The newly formed mate bond was still tingling in his cells. He felt like he had been reborn. His spirits were touching the roof of the sky. His heart was full and appeased.

His wolf purred inside his mind, begging to drag Thea again under him and claim her again and again till the whole world got to know. His fingers twitched to touch her sensitive downward petal-like lips and rub against the soft skin there.

But he had to restrain his wolf from doing so. Thea's steady heartbeats were notes of a satisfying composition by a great musician. He could lay there for eternity with her in his arms and her heart beating only for him.

He had finally claimed his mate!

Edwin was right when he advised Rees to talk to Thea and speak only the truth. If it was not for Edwin they might have been drifted far away from each other.

The thought of Edwin took him back to the beginning of the night. That was when he remembered that he had closed his pack link.

Now that Thea was asleep, he thought to contact the guards to ask them about Edwin.

He slowly removed his hand from around Thea's sleeping form then planted a tender kiss on her cheek. He got out of the bed quietly to not disturb her sleep to walk into the kitchen to get some water.

When he reached into the kitchen he decided to open his pack link. He stared in his nose's line, his eyes turned a shade darker, his body taut.

~"How is mas-"~

~"Rees... Rees... thanks to the Moon Goddess that you opened your mind link! Where are you? Why the hell you closed your mind link?"~

Rees was instantly alert after hearing one of his pack member's panicked voice.

~"What happened? Is Master alright?"~

The first thought that crossed his mind was about Edwin.

~"Master... Young Master... he..."~

~"What happened to him? Speak right now or I will slice your throat the first chance I get."~ He thundered.

~"Young Master... he woke up and... his wolf is uncontrollable. He escaped before we could do something to stop him."~

~"WHAT?"~ Rees growled loudly, his body shook with anger, heart beat in worry.

~"He ran towards woods. We are searching for him but he is nowhere. Please Rees come as soon as possible."~ The guard almost pleaded on the verge of having a panic attack.

Rees was shocked and puzzled. He was angry at his men but mostly at himself. He was not there to take care of his master. He left Edwin in that unstable state to be with his mate.

If he was there then things might not have turned this way. But this was not the time to waste in thinking.

Taking deep breaths, he asked through the mind link.

~"Does anyone know about this? Lord Augustus or Lady Theodora?"~ He prayed that the answer would come in negation.

"Not yet. But if we couldn't find Young Master before the Sun rises, then..."~

He didn't need to fill in the blanks.

~"Nothing will happen like that. I am coming to the woods. You keep searching and if needed call for more men but don't let this news crack through the walls."~

The man on the other side listened to Rees's instructions and sighed in relief that Rees would be with them soon.

Rees couldn't control himself anymore and to take the pent up anger out, he punched on the wall that caused cracks to appear on it.

When he realised the damage he had caused he cursed again. He didn't expect this night to end like this.

His body tensed again when he heard the loud beating of a heart. And it didn't take him even a moment to know who the owner of that heart was.

"Thea... was I too loud?"

He turned to look at the woman who had worn her nightgown again to cover her body, standing under the doorframe with her hands wrapped around her torso. Her brows scrunched in the middle of her forehead.

"Not until you damaged my mother's kitchen."

Guilt crossed Rees's face. "I apologise for this. I just... I was-"

"Angry and worried!" He completed his sentence.

Rees looked at her with raised brows.

"I can feel your emotions now, remember?"

Realisation dawned upon him and he sighed. "Thea... I... I have to go. It's an emergency."

"It is about Edwin O'Dell, isn't it?"

He couldn't decipher anything from her facial expressions so he was about to peek into her mind but Thea stopped him.

"You don't always need to read my mind to know what I think. You can always ask me and I will not lie."

"Thea..." Rees breathed.

"It was just a guess. There is nothing that can make you leave me on our special night if it is not your Master." She spoke with a straight face.

"He is not in the manor, Thea. We can not find him. I was supposed to be with him. I am his bodyguard and yet..."

Crossing the distance between them, Thea halted right in front of him. She raised both her hands to hold his face in between them.

Looking at him with softened eyes, she said, "you go, Rees. He is your master, and the person who united us again. He needs you, and I can't bring myself to hold you back."

Thea's sincerity and understanding awed Rees. He couldn't help but thinking how lucky he was to get destined with a woman like her.

They stared into each other's eyes, conveying their feelings through them. Rees dipped his head down to kiss Thea on her lips, that kiss was not hungry or speedy. It was slow and flowing with emotions. It was not meant to claim her but to devour her taste again.

"I love you, Thea!" He mumbled against her lips.

"I love you too, Rees!" She sealed her promise by again locking her lips with his.