In a discreet, wood-paneled establishment in the heart of the city, a place where old men made quiet deals that could change the fate of fortunes, Baron Edgar was sitting across from Lord Burton, the head of the Ellington family's advisory council.
"So, how is the transfer of the shares coming along?" Edgar asked, his smile brightened by a confident, hopeful energy. He adjusted the lapel of his fine wool coat, a garment he had carefully chosen for this meeting. He needed to look the part of the powerful patriarch, to avoid Lord Burton finding out that he was now living in a simple, humble house in the commoner's part of the kingdom.
Lord Burton, a man with a heavy face and small, calculating eyes, did not say anything. He simply took a long, slow sip of his drink.
