“You can’t just kidnapped people Pawnse.”

“I didn’t kidnapped no one, no how, good sir.”

“Then why is there a lady bound and gagged to our good chair?”

“What?!”

Bishop reaches his hand to remove the gag, a pair of Pawnse’s under-breeches, from the lady’s mouth.

“Wait!” Bishop’s hand stops shy of the rag. “You need to threaten em first so as not to scream and alert the neighbors?”

Bishop’s colour fades, “What neighbors we are in the middle of Darkwood? Some werewolf going to come and turn us into the town guard. The three day ride from here guard?”

The bound lady mumbles something and the rag gets wet with her spit. Her words were not screams under the rag.

“Don’t speak unless you are spoken to. Understood?” Bishop wagged a finger. She nodded

“Wait shouldn’t we be wearing our hoods? So she can’t pick us out of a line-up.”

“Pawnse just let me get this dam rag out her mouth and we can find out who tied her up with your scaling rope and stuffed her mouth with your breeches?”

“Alright suit yourself, she’s out to get us though, clearly it’s a trap. She was probably drugged and left her so that we’d get pinched for kidnapping. Rook probably set the whole thing up so that he ain’t got to pay for the last job.”

“MUMBLES!”

“See Bishop she is getting impatient, bet she is in on it, probably was told to get the location of the easel out of us?”

“Well if she is trying to get information out of us. I’d say she is doing a dam fine job so far. Hap’s you ought to be the one gagged.”

“Don’t you dare threaten to stuff mine or your breeches in my mouth. That ain’t right.”

“Then why did you do such to her?”

“I didn’t, I swears.”

“Unless you let me untied her and remove this gag, we only have half the story. And all the evidence saying you kidnapped this bit and brought her straight to our kitchen.”

“Look, I know how it looks but I didn’t kidnap no one.”

“MUMBLES”

“Just admit you did and why?”

“I had the thought of kidnapping a seer to help us with the Bezeus problem. But that was just a thought. And maybe some sketches.”

“You can’t just kidnap a seer.”

“Okay I had a really good plan though.”

“MUMBLES – screaming and nodding”

“Wait are you a seer?”

she nods her head.

“Pawnse, you kidnapped a seer?”

“I did not. It was just a thought. Ain’t no thought crime.”

“Did my friend Pawnse napp you miss?”

she meets eyes with Pawnse then shakes her head no slowly

“She is framing me Bishop. This is a set-up, I didn’t even get the chance to kidnap her yet, so I’m an innocent.”

“Alright, miss Seer, I’ll be removing your mouth piece now. I know you know I’d knock a tooth loose if you give an ear splitter.”

“Thank you, Mr. Bishop.” She cleared her throat and spoke nervously at Pawnse “Did I do good?”

Pawnse rolled his eyes, with a harumph, turning his body away to watch the front door. He felt off about this whole thing.

“What is your name?”

“I am Typhany, or just Tiff for short. I am of the third order of Archmedious.”

“How did you end up here in out kitchen?”

“I was going to be kidnapped, by your friend, he was going to be successful but there were going to a few casualties, I’d rather not have on my soul.”

“See I told you it was a good plan.”

“That’s why I decided to give myself up, in exchange for their futures. I kidnapped myself.”

“You can’t kidnap a seer, Ha bet you feel the fool there Bishop.”