A MAZE OF GREED

"What?"

"You..."

"What?"

"Wait!" Rees showed his hand to both the women as he couldn't understand their weird behaviour.

He slid the two glasses of water towards both of them and he narrowed his eyes at their faces.

"Drink." He ordered.

Thea was about to object but one look from Rees made her shut up and drink the water. Ruth also followed the suit as she found Rees's serious face intimidating. The man who was laughing and joking around had turned serious in a moment.

While drinking the water Rees noticed how uncomfortable the two women were as they stole some secretive glances with each other.

"You both look like I have mentioned a ghost." He said calmly gauging their expressions.

"n-no. We are just surprised that's it." Ruth smiled uneasily.

Thea nodded her head, "Yes. You never mentioned that you are working at such a high post. Bodyguard for the O'Dell family and that too of the Young Master is a dream job one could ask for." Thea came up with an excuse that was not a lie completely.

The bodyguards of the O'Dell family were not considered anything less than royal bodyguards. Though Vincardine was a small town by the area it still held the prestige of the home town of the originators, the O'Dells. People were aware of how much influence the family held in the administration and their close connection with the royals and the Council.

"Is that so?" Rees asked, not convinced by their answers.

"Y-Yes." Thea stuttered.

Rees leaned down towards her, bringing his face close to her. Thea's eyes widened at his sudden bold gesture in a public place. Ruth mirrored her friend's expressions while her eyes looked around frantically to see if anyone was watching them.

"Then why are you stuttering, my love?" Rees asked in a low voice making his fiancee gulped in nervousness.

"I-I..."

"The O'Dells are powerful. Everyone gets nervous talking about them." Ruth quickly came to aid her friend.

Thea shot a thankful glance at her. Rees shifted his attention from her to Ruth.

"Do anyone of you know the Young Master? I mean personally?" He asked.

"No!" Both of them said in unison.

Rees watched them for a moment longer then said, "Good! You shouldn't."

Ruth and Thea looked at him in confusion. "What? Why?" Thea asked.

"Because Darling, I don't want any man to look at you or think about you, even if it is the Young Master himself." He said intently making Thea blushed like a ripened tomato.

"And though we have just met, I know you are a good person, Ruth. I don't want you to get yourself in any trouble." He then said to Ruth with finality.

"What kind of trouble?" Words escaped Ruth's mouth before she could stop them.

Rees's words warmed her heart as she was not used to being cared for by anyone. But that was the first thought that crossed her mind.

Rees realised what he just said to Ruth. His face showed uncertainty but he masked it instantly.

"They are the O'Dells, Ruth. They are not only powerful but also dangerous. Crossing your paths with them will lead you into trouble. People like us, the commoners, can't match their strengths. I am just saying as your well-wisher. I apologise if I have crossed the line." He bowed his head saying the last part.

"No, please Rees. Don't apologise. I asked because I was curious and nothing else. To be honest, I am touched that you thought that much about me." Ruth said genuinely in a hope that she just didn't offend a person who started to warm towards her. She didn't want to hurt his feelings.

Rees's face turned soft after watching her worried face. He smiled and said, "Don't worry. Just keep what I said in mind... both of you."

"Yes. yes!" Thea and Ruth said.

Thea and Rees then got engaged in a conversation in which Ruth's mind refused to join. The words fell on her ears but she didn't pay any heed to them.

-'They are the O'Dells, Ruth. They are not only powerful but also dangerous. Crossing your paths with them will lead you into trouble. People like us, the commoners, can't match their strengths.'-

Rees's words kept swirling in her mind for the rest of the time.

Cerulean blue!

She had never seen anything like that before. As a seamstress, she had come in contact with many people, women and men, who were beautiful. But she had never seen someone with such enchanting eyes. The sight haunted her since she first saw them.

Was Rees right? How could someone with such alluring eyes be dangerous? But then Rees was working for him so he might know about the things which were unsaid and unheard.

And her first encounter with Edwin O'Dell was not a pleasant one to contrast Rees's words. Every day she prayed that she would not have to face him again and the encounter she had with him on the night of the celebration would be the last one.

"I had a great time! What about you, Ruth?" Thea asked after the three of them finished their breakfast and stepped outside on the street.

Ruth gave a genuine smile that glowed her face. "Yes! It was one of the best mornings in my life. Thank you to both of you again to let me join you!" The mornings that Ruth spent with her late mother were always the best ones for her. But it was after many years that she experienced such a delightful time with the people who genuinely cared for her.

Rees was about to say something when his smile died suddenly and he looked up, his eyes lost into nothing. Thea was busy checking her bag to find her handkerchief so she didn't notice the change in Rees's state.

But it didn't go missing from Ruth's alert eyes. She looked attentively at his face and thought that the colour of his brown eyes changed a bit. It darkened into brownish-black. Her gaze followed the direction he was staring to find there was nothing to look at other than a wall of the nearby building.

Then what was he staring at?

"Rees?" Ruth called him slowly with scrunched brows but he didn't respond.

"Finally I found it!" Thea exclaimed when she found her handkerchief that was lost in the numerous random things that she had stuffed into her bag.

Her voice snapped Rees from whatever trance he was in. He blinked a couple of times and when his gaze steadied he saw a woman staring at him with a big question mark on her face.

Before she asked him anything he looked at Thea. "I am sorry but I have to leave."

Ruth noticed the urgency in his voice. "But you were supposed to go in the afternoon."

"Yeas, but I remembered something and it's urgent."

"Rees, are you alright? Is there something wrong? Don't you feel well?" Thea was now worried at this strange change in his behaviour.

Her concerned eyes affected him differently and he composed himself. He cleared his throat then looked at both women.

"I apologise but I have to go. There's nothing to worry about, I promise! It just slipped out of my mind. It was nice meeting you, Ruth. Now I know why Thea is so fond of you." Ruth knew that he was not lying.

She gave him a smile. "I am happy that you liked my company. Don't worry, I am sure that you have something urgent to take care of."

Though Ruth was saying everything with honesty, her eyes still held some suspicion. She was not over with his earlier strange behaviour. She was confused that his eyes turned to their normal brown colour from the previous darker shade. How was this possible?

He looked like his body was present there but his mind was absent.

"You must be thinking that I am a strange man, don't you?"

His question caught Ruth off guard and her eyes perked up in surprise at his face. That was the exact thought she had in her mind. How did he know? Did he just read Ruth's mind?

Ruth gulped at the intensity of his look. He had a smirk on his face but his eyes were humourless, they were serious.

"I-I... "

A laugh was heard as Rees shook his head a little. "I am not the only strange man, Ruth. We all are strange in a way. Don't you agree?"

Not knowing what to say, Ruth just gave a small nod.

Rees took a step towards her that made her want to step back but she knew that Thea was watching their exchange in a confusion.

"can I ask you one thing?"

"Y-yes" Uncertainty was clear in her voice but she maintained a plain face.

"Will you be my friend too?"