Page 42 of Wild Bond

I rose to my feet and slipped the lockpicks discreetly into my cloak.

“I saw that,” he accused from directly behind me, and I shuddered a little as his warm breath danced down my neck.

Before I could respond, he moved around me and opened the door.

I’m not sure what I expected to see on the other side, but the simple, rundown office that was revealed when Rake finally moved aside was not it. The man sitting in the chair behind the chipped wooden desk with his hands tied behind his back however, was even more unexpected.

Borden sat there sedately, looking bored and slightly confused at our sudden appearance. He didn’t seem bothered at all by the fact that he was tied to a chair, or that he had crushed a man to death with his bare hands not ten minutes ago.

“Who are y-you?” he demanded, his question coming out slightly slurred.

If it was possible, he looked even worse than he had during the fight; still pale, with that slightly dazed and feverish look, but now beads of sweat dripped down his face, and his eyes were extremely bloodshot. I wondered if he had taken something.

“We’re here to ask you a few questions, Borden,” Rake said, purposely not answering him as we both stepped inside. I gently closed the door behind us.

One lone candelabra sat on the edge of the desk, and it was the only light in the room. The sounds coming from the current fight were now only a muffled rumble in the background.

The man shook his head. “No, you can’t be here. It’s not safe . . .I’mnot safe. You should leave.”

Not safe? I opened my mouth to ask him what he meant, but Rake spoke up first.

“A month ago, you were commissioned to create a large order of thick, heavy chains,” Rake stated. “Do you remember?”

Borden looked confused at the change of subject, but then his expression shifted. “My brother was commissioned,” he corrected. “It’s his business. He gave me a job when no one else would. Had a weakness for drink since before I can remember, see . . . my brother took me in . . . gave me a chance . . . and I messed it all up.”

“What do you mean, you messed it all up?” Rake asked. “Do you remember the order or not?”

“Of course, I remember. The man said they needed to be strong . . . unbreakable.”

“This man, did he say what he needed them for?”

Borden shook his head. “I didn’t ask. Not my business, and the man didn’t seem the type to like a lot of questions.”

“Who was he?” Rake demanded, his gaze intent. “Who ordered you to make those chains?”

“Don’t know,” Borden wheezed out, bending forward slightly in the chair as if suddenly in pain. A slight tremor wracked his large frame. Rake and I shared a glance.

Something was wrong with him. And why was he tied up?

Borden seemed to get ahold of himself after a few seconds and sat back up. “I—I think he came from the castle.”

“Why do you think that?” Rake prodded, his voice surprisingly calm now.

Borden scrunched up his nose as if he had to think hard. “The man wore expensive clothing . . . and he had a large oval ring on a chain around his neck. Saw it when his cloak parted. Some kind of crest. Almost looked like the tree of Andor.”

Everything in me went still.

Rake took a step forward. “This man, he carried the royal seal?”

Borden shook his head, sweat dripping down the side of his face. His breath was coming even more heavily now, and his skin looked almost opaque in the candlelight, his veins more pronounced. “Not sure about that, but it—it looked official. I figured he must be someone important up at the castle. A lord or something . . .” He trailed off, appearing to lose his train of thought.

“What did this man look like?” Rake persisted.

Borden coughed, then shook his head as if trying to clear it. “I—I don’t remember. I want to say he was older, but I can’t recall. My head is pounding.”

Rake looked frustrated with this response. Then a strange look crossed his face, as if something had just occurred to him. He pulled an ornate silver ring off his finger and held it up for the man to see.

“Did the ring look like this?”

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