A MAZE OF GREED

Rees was searching Ruth everywhere. Zoe's message had set his heart in the turmoil of panic. Elsie paced in worry. She only hoped that Rees gets Ruth before Edwin got to know about it.

Edwin, Lester and Augustus were still locked up in the meeting room, surrounded by scattered bunches of papers.

Edwin was tired of repeating the same course of incidences and going through the same facts over and over. He tried reaching Rees, but he had closed his mind link, which made Edwin have a bad feeling about it.

He tried to reach Elsie, and she assured him that everything was fine. And, Rees went to see Ruth and try to convince her again to accept his suggestion of working in 'the great manor'.

But Edwin was not stupid to fall for that lie. He had seen and experienced how strong-headed Ruth was when she decided to act that way. She was as firm as a rock when she puts her mind to something.

It was of no use in convincing her to accept the suggestion. Then why did Rees go to see her and, had block his mind link?

"Is there any problem Edwin?" Augustus asked.

The two men, oozing with authority, stared at each other. Lester felt the sudden tension rose in the room and tried to mediate between the two.

"He must be tired, Lord Augustus. Why do not we continue this meeting in the morning? I am sure you must be tired too afterall you are-"

Lester held back his tongue when Augustus grey eyes cast him a sharp glance.

"No, Lester. Even though I am more than a century old, I am NOT tired. And we are about to finish the things here. If anyone feels that they are tired than this old wolf then they can ask for my permission to leave." Augustus's eyes moved to Edwin challengingly.

Edwin always got amused at how easily his uncle put him in place, not caring that he was the leader of the breed and his alpha. His uncle had taken his responsibility of being a nominal head too seriously.

But could Edwin blame him when his uncle had to do it irrespective of his will because their alpha was too ignorant towards his duties?

Edwin was in fact grateful to his uncle as if it was not for him, then their breed and Vincardine could not have done exceptionally well till now. Perhaps that was the reason Edwin gave him the liberty of exercising his authority over him.

Edwin quit the staring competition for rest and busied himself in reading another report that was made by Augustus. His wolf hoped that Rees would contact him soon and tell that Ruth was peacefully asleep in the safety of her home.

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Rees went to the place that Zoe had mentioned in her message- the main square of Vincardine.

He wanted to break through Harold's office building and ask him where the hell Ruth was and what he did to her, but he could not do that. Any slip of action from him could cause his Master to pay a great penalty.

"Ruth? Ruth?" He called, searching around the building but got no reply in return.

The deserted roads could not give him an answer to his question. Rees thought of sneaking into the building, but then he remembered about Zoe.

If Ruth was still inside, then Zoe must be somewhere near. He searched around but could not find her.

Ruth had left the main square some time ago. She did not know what to do anymore. This was not the first time that a vulture had tried to gnaw her chastity.

She had learned how to foresee the danger over the years of experience. Her intuitions always helped her trade safely all these years, but today she fell into that trap again.

She was warned before, but the desperation of earning money for the living clouded her sense of rationality.

Ruth felt her insides churn. She did not feel well, her tears had not stopped yet. For the first time since Zoe met Ruth, she felt something for the human walking beside her.

Sympathy, pity, anger? She did not know.

Ruth's mind was too occupied that she missed the turn she was supposed to take to reach her home. When Zoe pointed that to her by tugging at her dress, Ruth sighed in frustration. Now they needed to take a long way home.

Ruth shrugged as she needed as much time as possible before facing Mrs Payne. She could not face the lady in her current state.

The street dogs howled in the distance emphasising the night that had cascaded over the world. Now more composed than before, Ruth was aware of her shady surroundings. She had mistakenly entered the forbidden part of the Eastern Vincardine, where many people avoided going even under the bright daylight.

And as a woman, she had and should never have to step her foot on this dirty land. Ruth picked up her pace and whispered to her cat audibly.

"Walk fast, sweety. We are already too late."

Zoe's eyes were on alert. She kept scanning the surroundings, which were unknown to her. Ruth remembered that one time she had come in this part of the town with a girl who promised her a job.

That trip did not go good and to top that Ruth was badly scolded by Mr Payne. That was probably the only moment she had ever seen the man angry.

Zoe's whiskers straightened as she sensed the sudden change in the air. Perhaps Ruth had also felt it as her steps became cautious. Zoe prayed that Rees or Edwin must have received her message and were on their way to save them.

She could not take her human form if the situation called for it. That was the condition she had put in front of Edwin when he asked her to keep watch on Ruth.

Zoe's family did not know that she was in Vincardine, helping the man who was more controversial than any other leader of any breed.

Ruth jumped in fright when someone stepped out of the shadows, blocking her way. Zoe growled at the man, sniffing his scent. She relaxed a bit as he was a human.

The man stared at Ruth, whose legs shook in fear. Mustering all her courage, she took a step ahead to walk past him, but the man again blocked her way. A sick smile itched on his face that turned her insides upside down.

She turned around to run back, but another man appeared out of nowhere. He was a human too!

Slowly she saw two more faces blocking her way from the two sides. She was surrounded by men who clearly had no good intentions.

"P-please, let me go." Ruth stuttered, trying her best to act brave but failing miserably.

"You want to go? Then why did you came here, beautiful? Do not you know which part of town is this?" One of the men smiled wickedly.

"I... I lost my way. Please do not come near me." Ruth was trembling badly with fear of what would happen next.

Zoe placed herself before Ruth, growling and hissing deadly when the man stepped towards them.

"How can we miss on this golden opportunity? We are starving, darling. Why do not we have some fun?" The other man said.

His filthy words were followed by their filthy laughter. Ruth's heart raced faster than the time that it could have burst due to immense blood pressure.

This was the third-worst day of Ruth's life after her mother's and Mr Payne's deaths. Her teary eyes searched around frantically for an escape. But her hopes were crushed brutally when one man held her hand.

She screamed loudly, wiggling to release her hand. But she did not hold a chance of survival in front of those four powerful men.

She cried, begging to let go. Zoe bit the man's leg, and he wailed in pain. In a fit of rage, he kicked Zoe to the side of the road. His hold loosened on Ruth, and taking advantage of that, she pushed him hard and sprinted out of there.

"Sweety, run!" Ruth yelled.

Zoe instantly got on her four and followed Ruth. The four men, now outrageous, started chasing her. They had the best prey in their sight, and they were not ready to lose it.

"Stop, you bitch! Stop before we get our hands on you." The men yelled from behind.

But Ruth did not stop. She kept pushing her body forward as fast as she could. She had never been in such a situation. Then she recalled the night of the celebrations that happened months ago yet was still afresh in her mind.

It was also nighttime and, she was running from another man-monster or misunderstood fallen angel? She did not know. But the adrenaline rush accompanied by the desperation of saving her life was the same.

Only this time she could not see another gap in the broken wall as her way to escape these demons.

Her legs burned, pain gripped them in a vice grip. She screamed yet kept going. Zoe was hot on her tail. She kept mewing, telling Ruth to not stop. She felt helpless and ashamed.

Zoe was a warrior. She had taken training in the Academy alongside Lester and Edwin for years. She was supposed to be the next leader of the Shades. And yet, here she was running alongside a powerless human to save her life without putting up the fight.

Ruth's steps faltered when she heard an agonising scream from behind.. Before she could come to rest, her legs stopped abruptly when a body went flying overhead only to land inches away from her, at her feet.