Page 3 of Waste
“One day, brother, you’ll learn to filter your thoughts,” Drew said and left. He’d find Manfred later and place a bet on Mac. He’d no doubt that Manfred would open a book. Although Rumpelstiltskin was little, he could fight. This would be a good match, Drew decided and headed for his quarters.
???
Rumpelstiltskin came out on top, but barely. Rumpelstiltskin choked him after darting under Mac’s arm and climbing his back. Until then, Mac had been winning. But as Mac blacked out, he tipped backwards and crushed Rumpelstiltskin under his weight. Mac was still getting used to his lamia form, which had also given Rumpelstiltskin an advantage. But it had been a goodmatch, and Drew had won a huge pot. Only he and Maeve, aka Baba Yaga, bet on Rumpelstiltskin.
“Seems dinner’s on you,” Vladimir teased, and Drew shook his head.
“Not a chance, mate. I’ll enjoy spending your money,” Drew replied, and Vladimir laughed. Drew noted how Vladimir’s eyes searched for Emmaline, and when he found her, Vladimir relaxed.
“Is it always that way?” Drew asked.
“Like what?” Vladimir seemed confused.
“As if you can’t breathe unless you are aware of her location. That Emmaline’s your entire world, and if she left you, you’d break.”
“I would. Should anything happen to her or Amari, I’d burn the world down. They are my reason for living,” Vladimir replied.
“I don’t understand feeling that strongly about someone,” Drew said.
“One day, brother, you will. And I’ll remind you of this conversation,” Vladimir said and smiled as Emmaline approached.
“Did you expect that? Well, you did, Drew!” she exclaimed.
“Rumpelstiltskin may be a coward, but he’s always been a sneaky bugger,” Drew replied, and with a smile, he made his escape.
He headed for his rooms, having had enough of crowds today. Even though they were his siblings, Drew enjoyed being alone. It wasn’t rudeness, just a need for quiet and time to gather his thoughts. Archere was very much the same, although Archere was incredibly wise, and everyone sought him out for advice.
Drew opened his door and entered his suite of rooms. It amazed him how the castle had transformed over the decades to accommodate them all. It had been Vladimir’s main abode forhundreds of years, and he’d kindly opened it to his siblings to give them a home too. The four main walls that had contained a square building now boasted towers and turrets. Additional wings had been added, and different levels seemingly appeared from nowhere. Bridges high in the sky ran between towers, the higher floors, and the entire thing was a confusing maze.
It was a weird mix of Hogwarts, Bran Castle, and Castlevania. Vladimir hadn’t given them all bedrooms. Instead, he’d insisted on them having their own private suites, although they were more apartments than anything else. However, some suites were in an entire tower.
Each suite contained three bedrooms, a small kitchen, a bathroom, a half bath, and a lounge. Having three bedrooms never made sense until now, as children had begun appearing. Drew wondered whether Vladimir had merely been hopeful or if something had urged him to build this way. There was also an extra room for whatever they wanted to use it for.
The living room was central, and the other rooms came off of it. Each room was very spacious. Drew had turned his spare room into a display showcase. Drew loved making wooden models. The harder, the better. He got great satisfaction from watching them come together and knowing his hands had crafted them.
Drew remained too unsettled to work on a model now, which had been his plan. He was off, almost antsy, like someone was coming for him. Similar to when he’d fled the Hunters. But there wasn’t an impending feeling of death. No, this felt more like excitement. Agitated, Drew looked around his apartment. Some of his siblings would head for Marie’s tower, also known as Mary Worth’s tower, aka Bloody Mary. They’d need to hunt for their Sins.
However, Waste stayed silent. It had eaten a week ago and wouldn’t require feeding for another three weeks. So, whattroubled him? Drew poured himself a finger of whiskey from his globe bar and settled in an oversized armchair. His suite was full of classy yet comfortable furniture. Drew enjoyed luxury and made no bones about it. After living so many years roughly, he owed himself this.
He took a sip of his drink, closed his eyes, and leaned backwards. Whatever was bothering would raise its head soon enough. It always did. The question was, would it be a pleasant or unpleasant surprise?
Ghoul/Drew – Three weeks later.
Ghoul slunk towards his target. Waste rode him hard, and silently he slapped the Sin back. The damn thing would eat soon. Ghoul had watched this criminal through the window. His sins were unsurpassed, and Waste would feast on this wasteful soul.
This greedy fool had been running a restaurant chain but refused to let any meals be given to the needy or homeless. He’d rather throw it in the bin, causing unnecessary waste. Ghoul reckoned several thousand pounds’ worth of food was discarded each year.
The guy could have donated to a soup kitchen or reduced meals for the poor, anything but tossing it. Now, he would pay the price for such waste. Ghoul could smell the greed coming off him as well. That was another form of waste. The man had enough money. He could have helped charities out, but instead, kept every single penny.
The guy appeared in front of Ghoul, in his back garden, where he’d been waiting, and Ghoul pounced. His mind switched off as Waste fed, and after a few moments, the Sin smacked its lips. Ghoul noted how Waste almost seemed drunk and scowled. Wow, had the target been that bad?
Ghoul began slinking away, but paused when he heard a woman’s voice.
“Come on, please start,” she begged, and Ghoul frowned. Who or what was she talking to?
He crept closer, keeping a sharp eye out for any traps. Hunters would employ any method to catch a Legendary Shifter.
“Hey, lady, you okay?” someone asked, and Ghoul crouched down low and peered through a bush. A young lady stood beside a car with the bonnet propped up. Ghoul realised she’d broken down, and a man had pulled up close. Funny, Ghoul hadn’t heard a vehicle approach.
