A MAZE OF GREED

With every passing moment, her tears kept flowing relentlessly to the point that she didn't feel them in her anymore. Her heart sank slowly with the rising weight on her chest.

Her hand reached to her chest while she breathed heavily trying to suck in as much oxygen as her lungs could.

She was all happy till yesterday. Her life was finally felt like running on the right tracks and suddenly it got hit by a hurricane that derailed her life from its tracks.

Ruth was too scared and shaken to her core listening to those venomous words from Florence's lips. She couldn't believe that the person she considered as her reliable ally had turned into a foe.

And what was her fault? She tried to fight back for that person's rights as a human.

Another disturbing part of Ruth's day was her conversation with Rees.

'Does he thinks so low of me? Is Thea aware of Rees's perception of me? Does... does she also feel the same as Rees?'

Those thoughts were infecting her peace of mind. Ruth didn't move out of her bed after she came running to her room and flung herself on it to cry her heart out.

Losing the sense of time she kept sulking in the pain and when she regained it, it was already time for her to leave for Thea's home for dinner.

Ruth was not in a mood to go there and wanted to cocoon herself in the warmth of her bed. And the fact that she would have to face Rees again made it more difficult for her.

But she had to because she had already promised Thea to be present there. Half-heartedly, Ruth dragged herself out of the bed and decided to get ready for dinner.

She tried to looking at the bright side of the situation as she would get to meet Thea. She wanted to narrate every single detail to her and ask her if she was right or wrong in the whole situation.

She needed Thea's comfort and support very badly at that moment.

After putting on her best dress, she combed her long toffee brown hair into an elegant braid that rested on her right shoulder. Ruth was never into makeup, neither did she had a chance to live that luxury.

So putting only some powder on her face and a single pair of earrings that she possessed, she was all ready to go.

The longer she stared at her reflection, the more panic started gripping her heart. Between her fights with Rees and Florence, she forgot about her main act of cretinous.

-"I can't believe that the young blood of O'Dells has such low morals to assault a woman like this! Just because of your family's position, you rich and spoiled men think that you can walk all over everyone. But that's not the case, Mr O'Dell!

Even if we are not filthy rich like you and don't have obeisance of servants at our beck and call, we still are more human than you could ever be!"-

Then her words seemed right to her brain. But reciting them over and over made her realise that it was not important only for the words to be right but the other person also needed to be understanding enough.

And Edwin O'Dell was far from that. He was known for his cold actions and sharp speech. But when Ruth exploded in front of him, not worrying about the conventions to be followed while talking with a member of the O'Dell family, he kept quiet.

Edwin didn't even utter a word and now that she thought, he didn't even bore any hard expression on his face.

He looked like a statue who had no heart and no life in it. But Ruth knew that he was not someone to sit back and forget about his insult out of a big heart. He would strike back and when he would, she was not sure how she was going to face it.

Keeping those thoughts aside, for the time being, Ruth left her home for Thea's.

But before going to her destination, she stopped by Mr and Mrs Payne's room. She knocked on the door and Mrs Payne opened it after some seconds.

"Ruth, dear!"

"Hello, Mrs Payne!"

The old lady took in her appearance from head to toe and a smile formed on her face. "Oh, honey you look very pretty today. Are you going somewhere?"

"Ruth, I didn't know that you have found someone to get all dressed up for!" Before Ruth could reply to Mrs Payne, Claire poked her nose in their conversation.

The corner of lips of Mrs Payne turned down in distaste when she saw Claire, recking up Ruth with jealous eyes.

"Mr Payne, I came to inform you that I am going to Thea's place for dinner now. She had invited me yesterday. I might return home late and I didn't want you to worry about me."

"Oh my child, that is very thoughtful of you, unlike some people of your generation." Casting a condescending glance in Claire's way Mrs Payne said.

"It is good that you informed me or my husband might have gone crazy in worry thinking about your disappearance."

Ruth smiled at her words then asked her to take care and turned to leave. Not having anything to say, Claire only looked at Ruth's retreating figure with narrowed eyes.

On her way to Thea's home, Ruth stopped by a flower seller to buy some flowers for Mrs Green. Ruth knew how much the lady liked gardening and had prepared a beautiful garden around her house.

"Please visit again!" Smiling at the seller, she nodded her head.

Paying the money for flowers, she grabbed them in her hands and resumed her walk.

Passing through the narrow and dirty lanes of the Eastern part of the Vincardine, she soon reached the cleaner and well-kept area of it. Ruth liked this part better than both Eastern and Western parts of Vincardine.

It was like an area of transition between the two opposite poles. In this part lived the people who were not exactly poor and not richer either. Here lived the ones who could be considered as middle class based on their economic and social status in the societal hierarchy.

Ruth wished that one day she would get a house in this place for herself. She had already everything planned in her head, from the colour of the walls to the decoration of the rooms.

Thinking about Mr and Mrs Green, Ruth had met them a couple of times but she had never been to their home. It was not that they didn't invite her but Ruth shied away every time. They were kind-hearted people just like their daughter.

Thea had her mother's bubbliness and her father's morals. The couple was proud of their daughter and so did Ruth.

Soon she reached Thea's house and crossing the small iron gate she gently knocked on the door. She scanned around and couldn't help but praise Mrs Green for maintaining a beautiful small garden around their house.

One look at the various plants and a smile shone on her previously gloomy face.

The door was opened by Mr Green and as soon as he noticed nervous Ruth, he smiled to welcome her.

"Ruth! You are finally here. Welcome, come inside."

"Thank you, Mr Green! It is nice to meet you after many days." Ruth went inside the medium-sized house. She was wafted by the aroma that clouded all over the place and she inhaled deeply.

"It's good, right?! The mother-daughter duo is busy since the evening and is still not finished with the cooking. Thea should have called you earlier for aid."

Pointing to the kitchen Mr Green chuckled that abruptly turned into fake coughing when Mrs Green came out of the kitchen.

"Ruth, dear! How are you, sweety?" Mrs Green always admired Ruth and thought that she was a good influence for her beloved daughter.

During the past months as Thea and Ruth's friendship bloomed, Ruth's relations with Thea's parents also grew stronger.

Ruth gladly accepted Mrs Green's warm invitation for a motherly hug.

"I am fine, Mrs Green. Thank you for asking! How are you? By the way, this is for you." She pulled away from the hug and presented flowers that she had bought on her way there.

Mrs Green's eyes twinkled in joy. "Oh, dear! Honey, look she brought flowers for me. Isn't she a sweetheart?" She cooed sweetly and rushed to place those flowers in a nearby vase.

"Yes. Ruth is a good kid!" Mr Green agreed.

"But not better than me!" Came a screeching voice from the other side f the living room and soon Ruth was engulfed in another tight hug.

"Thea! L-loose your h-hold. I c-can't b-breath." Ruth's eyes watered and Mr Green rushed to separate his daughter to prevent her from choking poor Ruth to death.

Thea pouted with a sad face looking at her father's reprimanding stare.

"Don't be dramatic, Ruth and stop whinning." She rolled her eyes and pulled Ruth towards the kitchen.

"Let the girl live, Thea! Or I am not going to save you from going behind the bars." Mr Green called after them to which Thea only scoffed with an annoyed look.

"I swear I live with drama lovers!" She muttered under her breath.

Ruth, on the other hand, thanked the lords above that she came back tasting the death and prayed to ship through the night safely.