A MAZE OF GREED

"Thea, Thea. Come down to Earth please!" Ruth shook Thea's shoulders with a slight frown.

"Uh?"

Thea blinked a couple of times dumbfoundedly at Ruth.

"Thea Green! What is wrong with you? You keep losing your focus, and I have to shake you from your daydreaming for like hundred times in a day.

Today, you have to tell me what is going on with you! I know something is on your mind, but you are not telling me. Let me help you, Thea!"

If only Ruth could help her. Alas!

Thea shook her head. "Oh, it is nothing." She tried to avoid the conversation, but Ruth did not let her.

"No. It is something, and you have to tell me that." Ruth said stubbornly

Thea paused for a minute. "Ruth, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course, you can."

"What kind of man you desire for yourself?"

Now it was Ruth's turn to look at her friend dumbfoundedly.

"Where that came from?" Ruth's brows scrunched in confusion.

Thea shrugged. "I just want to know."

"But why?"

"I will be marying Rees soon, and then it will be your turn. I want to know what kind of man you like so that I can look for the exact one." Thea answered though she knew she had no say in that matter.

Ruth laughed. " Do not worry about that. I will find one if the destiny has chosen him for me."

"You believe in destiny?"

Ruth became serious at her question. "yes, I do. Though we are capable of building our destiny, there are some things that are already decided in heaven, and no one can change them."

Thea's interest piqued Ruth's words. "But what if you do not like the man destiny has chosen for you?"

"Why would I not like him? And why would destiny cross our paths if he is not the right one for me?" Ruth mused.

Turning to face her completely, Thea persisted, "I am not talking about a right man. Of course, if he is chosen by your destiny, then he must be the right one for you. But what I am asking is what if you do not like him?

What if he does not fulfil your expectations? What if he is someone like... erm... the spoiled elite men... like..." Thea tried to come up with an appropriate example.

But Ruth saved her efforts. "Like Edwin O'Dell?"

Thea's eyes widened hearing his name from Ruth's mouth. "Y-yes. Like Edwin O'Dell. Wha will you do then?"

Ruth thought for a minute about Thea's question. That thought had never crossed her mind before. Her mother, Bertha Moore, had told her that one day she would find her prince charming and Ruth believed her words.

"I will accept him."

"You will?" Thea had not expected that answer. She sounded surprised and hopeful.

Ruth nodded her head. "Yes. I will accept him because no man in the world can be as despicable as Edwin O'Dell. I would rather chose to stay alone for the whole life than thinking about that ill-mannered man. I can not even stand his sight." Ruth's face morphed into dismay.

All of Thea's lighted hopes died down with Ruth's answer.

"But-"

"Stop, Thea. my ears hurt, and my mood has turned sour hearing his name. I do not want to talk more about him. Please!" Ruth did not let Thea say another word as she resumed her work.

Sighing dejectedly, Thea also began working on the dress she had in her hands.

Now how Lester's plan was supposed to work?

*

*

*

Lester knocked on the door along with Elsie and Rees at his two sides. They waited for a minute but did not hear any response.

Shaking his head lightly, Lester took the liberty to open the door. All three of them stepped inside the room to find Edwin staring out of the window with the brown cloth wrapped around his wrist and a glass of wolfsbane potion on the bedside table.

The three of them shared a look.

"Brother Edwin." Elsie called his name, but his mind was absent from acknowledging it.

"Brother" She tried again but to no avail.

"Edwin!" It was Lester's strong voice that broke Edwin's train of thoughts.

He turned to face them, and the surprise in his eyes disappeared as quickly as it had come.

"Yes."

Less than a minute with this man and Lester was already annoyed at his reply.

"Have you eaten, brother?" Elsie read Lester's annoyance and stepped up to save the situation.

Edwin's dull eyes looked at her without any trace of emotions. Instead of using words, he only nodded his head.

Elsie gulped down the hurt and tried again. "How are you doing today?"

"Fine."

"Have you read the book I gave you last time?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I did not find time to read it."

Lester had enough of Edwin's monotonous answers. He knew how his indifferent behaviour affected Elsie, and he did not like seeing his mate sad.

"Edwin! Stop with this." Lester raised his voice.

"What?" came Edwin's blunt reply.

"This!" Lester pointed at Edwin. "Stop with this self-pity and drowning and sulking in hurt. You are not rejected yet. Oh, Moon Goddess, knock some sense into his thick skull." Lester pleaded in the end.

"If you are here again to argue with me, then let me tell you that I do not have strength and will for that." Edwin was not angry as he should be.

He was calm, gloomy. And it was contradictory to who he was.

Lester glared at Elsie. "I told you to not come here. See how much he cares about his family and friends. He does not care what they are going through or how worried they are for him. All he care is only one person!" Lester spat, unable to contain his anger anymore.

"Master..."

"Let him be Rees. He does not want to know anything. He does not want to cooperate. He just want to spend rest of his life deteriorating in this room."

A brief silence settled in the room. Elsie's face contorted in sadness. Rees stood silently observing his Master. And Lester- he was too frustrated to look at his friend who had lost his peace and charm for a woman.

"Brother, we talked with Thea." Elsie decided to inform.

Edwin's eyes shot up to her. "You did?"

"yes."

"I told you not to."

Lester had already discussed his plan with Edwin, and as per his expectations, his friend discarded it saying, it was useless. Edwin argued that Ruth was safe away from him. He did not want to involve her in his life and put her on the steak.

"Do we have another choice, Edwin? We can not let you waste your time and spoil your life like this. Your pack members, your people need you.

Werewolves are confused without their leader's guidance. Other breeds and their families are waiting to create more troubles for you, while some are having second thoughts about their alliance with the O'Dells.

You have responsibilities on your shoulder that none of us can share. Why do not you understand this simple thing?" Lester glared at him.

"But your plan is useless, Lester. You want to do the very thing for which I am suffering this torture. Ruth is not safe with me. Why do not YOU understand this simple thing?" Edwin was upset.

Lester chuckled dryly. He stepped ahead and matched Edwin's glare with his.

"And for how long you are going to hide the secret that our leader has found his mate?"

"As long as I can. For eternity if it takes me to that." Edwin answered confidently.

Lester scoffed, his eyes hardened. "Then let me wake you from your delusion, Edwin because Lord Augustus has already started suspecting you."

"What?" Elsie was shocked to hear that, and so was Rees.

"Yes! Although he is acting nonchalant, I have my sources keeping eye on his every move. Edwin, Lord Augustus is suspecting that your wolf's state is not only because you are stressed and can not control your temper.

He thinks that there is another reason for it. When you sneaked out of 'the great manor' in disguise, two of his men, humans followed you. They reported you wandering on the streets and markets while hiding from the eyes of commoners.

It will not take much time for Lord Augustus to realise the reason for your actions. He especially got suspicious because you chose to go alone. If you had Rees with you, then it might not have turned this way."

Every person in the room was stunned. Rees's heartbeat accelerated, thinking about Ruth's safety.

'What if Lord Augustus or worst anyone else finds her out?'

He did not want to think of that possibility, but he could not deny it either.

After a minute of silence, Edwin said. "But I still do not think that your plan would work. I can never accept it."

"It does not matter anymore what you think, brother. What matters is what needs to be done to save our whole race. And I know that they are coming. And before they reach the doors of Vincadine, we all need our leader ready to fight." Edwin was stunned to hear Elsie's confident words.

He had never heard her speaking her mind or seen her that determined.

'What changed her?', he wondered.

"Rees-" Edwin helplessly turned to his loyal guard, but he shook his head.

"I apologise Master. But as much as my loyalty rests with you, it also rests with my breed, my kind. I can not watch it getting ruined." Rees said with a passive face.

"And what about your promise?" Edwin gritted his teeth.

"I am still not taking my words back. I will protect Ruth from everyone and everything till my last breath, even if the danger for her is you.

But right now, we do not need only our alpha but also our Luna to fight the war that will possibly happen soon."

At that moment, Edwin realised that he was alone in this.. Yet, he was determined to not give in to Lester's plan.