A MAZE OF GREED

The Sun slowly rose in the sky, leaving behind the tiredness of the previous day. Lester managed to get a few hours of sleep. When he woke up in the morning, the first thing he looked for was Edwin.

They were sharing the same room. When he did not find Edwin, Lester became concerned.

Edwin promised that he would be there before the function began. He should be there within the next hour. Lord Augustus would ask about him at the breakfast.

Lester came up with a brilliant idea to avoid Lord Augustus at the breakfast. He rushed into the bathroom and washed himself. Putting on the clothes as fast as a chameleon changed its colour, Lester left his room in search of food.

His plan was simple.

Get the food, eat fast and leave before Lord Augusts arrived. If he did not meet him, then he would not ask about Edwin.

According to his plan, Lester entered the breakfast room. He filled his plate and turned around to get the table, that he had already chosen as soon as he entered the room. But his plan went in vain when he found Lord Augustus walking his way.

Lester cursed mentally and turned to hide behind the breakfast table. But Lady luck was not in his favour today.

"Lester"

Lord Augustus's voice made him stop. And at that moment, Lester wished if he was a human. He would have said that he did not hear him. Alas!

"Good morning Lord Augsutus! How are you?" Lester put up a smiling face.

But he could not fool Lord Augustus. He narrowed his eyes, seeing through Lester's overacting.

"Are not you quite overjoyed today?"

Lester left an awkward and loud laugh. "Yes. This day is beautiful and the place is good. It just uplifted my mood."

Augustus ignored him and came straight to the point.

"Where is Edwin?"

He asked the question that Lester was avoiding.

"Edwin... you know how lazy he is. A sloth bear is better than him. I tried waking him up... I really did. But he is sleeping like a dead man." Lester rambled the first things that came to his mind.

He cringed at the lame lie. They stopped using that to avoid early morning training in the academy decades ago.

But to prove his innocence, Lester again put up a wide smile on his face.

"Edwin does not sleep this late unless..."Lord Augustus glanced around them to see if anyone was prying on their conversation. When he found no one, he continued in a low voice. "Unless he has spent a night with a woman. And I doubt he would do such thing on the same bed that you two share."

Sometimes Lester wondered if Lord Augustus was such a bitter person from very birth or had turned into one over time?

"Good morning Lord Augustus! It is a pleasure to meet you after a long ime!" A small group of men interrupted Lord Augusus's interrogation.

Lester released a breath of sigh, thanking those men mentally.

~"I want him present here before the function starts. Tell him to not embarrass me this time."~

Lester only nodded his head subtly after receiving Augustus's warning through the mind link.

But what could he do other than wait for Edwin?

Then his attention shifted to the plate in his hand. Oh Yes, he could definitely fill his stomach till then. It was better to be productive than sitting idly.

Lester had the slowest and the longest breakfast of his life. He was only buying some time for Edwin, but he was nowhere to be seen.

The announcement was made for everyone to gather in the main hall of the building, where Ripon was planning to take his oath and assume the charge of a Chairman of the council offices.

Lester avoided looking at Lord Augustus as he was surrounded by other guests. Lester could hear people asking Lord Augustus about Edwin and, he had made some excuses in reply.

But he kept asking Lester with his eyes- Where was Edwin?

Lester hide himself in the crowd, as they all walked into the main hall. He was busy searching for Edwin when someone caught his hand.

"Edwin... I-"

He stopped with wide eyes when he realised it was Lord Augustus and not Edwin.

"Enough of this Lester. Tell me where is Edwin. The function is about to start and people are asking me about him. He was with you the whole night right?"

"Y-yes yes of course. Where would he go in the night anyway? I am sure he must be emptying his bladder. He drank too much water in the morning. Do not worry Lord Augustus he must be here somewhere."

Now even Lester was doubting his own words.

Augustus narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Has he messed up again? If yes then inform me right now to save me from the future embarassement. They are about to close the doors Lester."

As if on cue, the guards pulled the doors of the main hall to close them. Once down, no one could come in or go out of the hall till the function ended.

Both Augustus and Lester had their eyes trained on the slowly closing doors. With the decreasing distance between them, the hope of Edwin coming also decreased.

Augustus was about to snap at Lester when the doors stopped moving when they were only inches apart. The chattering inside the hall slowly died down, and silence prevailed.

Every pair of eyes turned in the direction of the doors in curiosity. The guards then slowly opened the doors again. And when the light made it possible to see the face, Lester felt alive again.

Edwin slowly looked up. His hair stayed implacably. He wore a crisp black suit. He looked no less than a Greek god with his domineering aura demanding others' submission.

Edwins' steps fell on the marble floor firmly and confidently. As he walked through the crowd, people parted away to make a road for him.

Some were intimidated by his aura, while some were giving him a hard glare. The only common feeling they all shared except Lester and Augustus, that they all felt threatened by him.

The group of vampires was watching him keenly, especially Darius. But Edwin ignored all of them and stopped near Lester.

"See... I told you he was emptying his bladder!" Lester did not realise how loud he was until he heard some women giggling with flushed cheeks.

Augustus pursed his lips with a frown. But, Edwin was unfazed by their reaction. He always was!

"Good morning uncle Augustus!"

"Where the hell were you?" Augustus hissed now that people had begun talking themselves, shifting their attention from these three.

"Has not Lester just told you? I was emptying my bladder." He said with a straight face that left Augustus speechless.

"Behave!" With that single word warning, Augustus excused himself to join the group of men with whom he was busy before.

"Thank you Moon Goddess! I thought your uncle would whip my ass for covering up for you." Lester grumbled.

But, soon his face softened after noticing the serious look on Edwin's face.

~"Is she alright?"~

Lester knew no matter how much they spoke in a hushed tone, there were ears ready to catch on to their words, so he used mind link- the safest way of communication.

~"No she is not. But I am hopeful!"~

The announcement was made about the arrival of the King and the queen. Then Ripon and other Council members came.

Everyone took their seats after greeting the Royals. The function began. People reminisced Barret Addington's tragic death and his exceptional work as a Chairman of the Council.

Some even flooded their eyes with crocodile tears. But Lord Augustus knew Barret better than that. Ambrose's dark eyes were observing both Augustus and Edwin.

But these werewolves were always great with masking their thoughts and not showing anything by their body language.

As if sensing his eyes on him, Edwin shifted his gaze to the left, where the Vampires sat. His gaze collided with Ambrose's.

The will of domination was clear in both of their eyes. Darius, who was watching their silent exchange, narrowed his eyes when a corner of Edwin's lips lifted up in a smirk.

He was laughing at them, taunting them for the loss of their espionage network. Darius clenched his fist tightly, but Aurora was quick to cover his fist with her cold fingers. A warning about the wrong timing.

After the speech of the King and the Queen, it was time for Ripon to say a few words before he take the oath.

He looked better than the last time Edwin saw him. But when he looked in his eyes, he saw something strange swirling behind his orbs.

Standing behind the mike, Ripon began, "Respected Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you all for attending this function as an encouragement and acceptance of me to this highly valued position."

His eyes found the two men in the crowd- Ambrose Garfield and Augustus O'Dell.

"Mr Barret Addington's unfortunate death has left a deep impact on me. He was not only my senior, but was also my guide, my philosopher, my mentor. He was like a family to me."

Ripon's words were filled with emotions and sincerity when he said that.

"As his successor, I am committed to following the path he has laid. I will try to complete his incomplete visions and bring peace and security for the people of this land." Ripon's eyes locked with Lord Augustus.

"May God let Mr Addington's soul rest in peace! Thank you!"

A round of applause reverberated in the hall.

Ambrose was not a fool to miss the silent conversation, that passed between Lord Augustus and Ripon. But what was it about?

To get that answer, he had to wait till he meet Ripon alone.. Edwin's mind kept running back to his unconscious mate while Ripon took his official oath and the Royals conferred him with the charge of a Chairman of the Council.