As it turned out, Thomas hadn’t been planning on leaving Fir Lodge without them. Once Lewis and Emily had collected their belongings, they stepped out the front door to find a bag of supplies along with a blanket leaning against the wall of the cabin. When asked if he had intended to sleep on their floor until they had agreed to return to Tristan, Thomas simply nodded, preferring to set off in the direction of the city rather than waste any time with idle chatter.

Whether it was due to his success in persuading them to return to Tristan or not, Thomas had been in an upbeat mood, reminiscing about years gone by as they walked through the forest. Lewis couldn’t remember a time when he had seen Thomas so happy; in fact, he didn’t think he could remember a single occasion. Unfortunately, Thomas’ good mood didn’t last.

With the sun sinking low in the sky, they had arrived at the gates of Tristan, only pausing so that Thomas could shoo the guards away from Emily when they approached her. Inside the city, things were a far cry from the peaceful forest retreat where they had spent the last six weeks.

‘What happened?’ Lewis asked as he looked around at the messy streets and damaged buildings. Since they had left after Anthony’s unsuccessful coronation, it seemed like the city had fallen apart, literally.

‘Riots,’ Thomas said quietly as a group of men in blue overalls flocked out of a side street, cutting across them without looking.

‘Why have they been rioting?’ Emily asked as they passed the shell of a burned-out building.

‘Strange things have been happening since you left. People are claiming that the city is being attacked by dark creatures in the night,’ Thomas replied.

‘And are they?’ Lewis said as a small group of guards separated so that they could pass Lewis, Emily, and Thomas as they hurried in the opposite direction. This time they seemed more intent on trying to stop Emily.

‘According to the guards, no,’ Thomas said. ‘That’s part of what is causing the problem. The guards can’t find any trace of these creatures, and the people think that the guards are covering up the attacks. Tristan’s in turmoil.’

‘So it seems,’ Lewis muttered as he watched a boy with black hair who looked to be about his age hurl a brick through a window. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’ Lewis demanded as he grabbed hold of the boy, who was attempting to flee while looking over his shoulder.

‘Who are you to care?’ he sneered, looking Lewis up and down.

‘Lewis Vandemark,’ Lewis said, beckoning a pair of guards over. ‘This one threw the brick through that window.’

‘Thanks,’ one of the guards muttered as he took hold of the boy before leading him away.

‘I don’t understand; the guard never had any problem dealing with things like this in the past,’ Lewis said as he watched the guards walk away with the boy grasped tightly between them. ‘How do we stop it before it tears the city apart?’

‘That was where I was hoping you would be able to help,’ Thomas said, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. ‘We’ve tried everything we can think of, and nothing has worked so far.’

‘What about the creatures?’ Emily asked from his other side. ‘It seems like that’s the root of all of this trouble.’

‘That’s a good start,’ Lewis said with a smile before he turned to Thomas. ‘What do you know about these creatures?’

‘Nothing other than the fact that they come during the night and are nearly invisible in the darkness,’ Thomas said.

Sighing, Lewis looked up at the castle towering over them. He had hardly noticed it coming into view as they passed through the streets. ‘Perhaps some of the guards know something. They might have some experience with the creatures, even if they don’t want to admit it.’

‘What are you thinking?’ Emily asked suspiciously with a long glance at him.

‘Thomas, can you get the patrol captains together in The King’s Office an hour from now for me?’ Lewis asked as they entered the castle courtyard.

With a nod, Thomas turned in the direction of the guard offices on the far side of the courtyard, leaving Lewis and Emily to head for the castle entrance alone.

‘Welcome back, Your Majesty,’ the guard on the door said as they approached, tipping his hat slightly.

Exchanging a glance with Emily, Lewis stepped into the huge entrance hall. Despite the sun slowly beginning to slip towards the horizon, there were still dozens of people, from smartly turned-out servants to a pair of women in dark blue dresses, who Lewis guessed were Sisters of Tristan like Emily, hurrying around. Seemingly all at once, everyone in the hall froze, turning in their direction as they fell silent.

‘Emmy! You’re back! a little voice from amongst the crowd squealed with excitement. A moment later, the voice was accompanied by the pattering of small feet on the stone floor as a young red-haired girl burst out of the crowd, throwing her arms around Emily’s waist.

‘Hello Lillian,’ Emily said quietly as she crouched down in front of the girl. Looking away, Lewis realised that all of the eyes in the room were focused on Emily and Lillian. It made a change for him for once, he thought.

‘Where have you been?’ Lillian asked before she noticed Lewis for the first time. ‘Hello.’

‘I’ve been helping Lewis get better,’ Emily explained before he could say anything.

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‘But you’ve been gone for ages,’ Lillian whined.

‘He was very ill, but he’s all better now, she said, glancing up at Lewis pointedly.

‘Lillian, there you are!’ A woman called as she strode over to them. ‘I’m terribly sorry.’

‘It’s alright,’ Lewis assured her while Lillian tried to slip away behind Emily.

‘You’ve returned then. All better?’ she asked, extending her hand politely. ‘Georgina Vandemark, I'm sorry about my daughter.’

‘Lewis,’ he replied, shaking her hand quickly. ‘It’s alright; I’m all better now, thanks to Thomas and Emily.’

‘Good, hopefully we can get control of this city again now that you’re back,’ Georgina said as she ran a hand through her red hair tiredly.

‘Are you here to get rid of the creatures?’ Lillian asked from behind Emily suddenly.

‘I thought I told you to go to bed,’ Georgina said sternly before Lewis could say anything.

‘You did, but you didn’t say when,’ Lillian said happily as Georgina rolled her eyes. ‘I’ve seen the creatures.’

‘Don’t be silly; it’s time for bed,’ Georgina said firmly as she tried to drag Lillian away from them.

‘Hold on,’ Lewis said quickly, holding out a hand to stop Georgina. Crouching down in front of Lillian, he examined her for a moment. ‘You said you’ve seen the creatures?’

Slowly, Lillian nodded. ‘I see them in my nightmares. Whenever I see them, they attack the city.’

‘Can you tell me what they look like?’

Violently, she shook her head as she screwed her eyes shut. ‘They’re too scary; I don’t want to think about them.’

‘Is there anything you can tell me about them?’ Lewis asked gently. ‘It might help us to get rid of them.’

Opening her eyes again, Lillian reached into the pocket of her light red night robe, producing a small folded square of cloth. Silently, she held it out to Lewis.

‘What’s this?’ he asked as he took it, unfolding it carefully. On one side, it had a jumble of stitches; it wasn’t until Lewis turned it over that he saw what it was. Stitched into the fabric were a dozen or so squares, each of them filled with a different picture except for the last one, which was blank.

‘Nightmares,’ Lillian said, seemingly caught in two minds about whether to try and look at it or not. ‘Grandpa taught me; he said it would help me.’

‘It’s very good,’ Lewis said as he examined the neat golden stitching around a large, black, four-legged, wolf-like creature that was clawing at a rooftop.

‘That’s the creature,’ Lillian said, pointing at the square he had been examining as he saw smaller versions of the black creature in some of the other pictures.

‘Can I borrow this?’ Lewis asked. ‘Just for tonight. I’ll take good care of it, I promise,’ he added when she looked at Emily nervously. Slowly, she nodded. ‘Thank you, Lillian.’

‘Alright, time for bed,’ Georgina insisted as Lewis carefully folded up the cloth Lillian had given him and slipped it into his jacket pocket. Reluctantly, Lillian allowed her mother to lead her away from them.

‘Come on,’ Lewis said quietly, aware that a large number of people were still lingering in the hall, watching them. ‘I want to have a look at this before everyone shows up.’

In silence, the pair of them headed for the stairs that would take them to the upper levels of the castle. Could this really be the creature that had been attacking Tristan? Lewis wondered, the weight of the cloth pressing against his side as they climbed the steps.

Unlike the entrance hall, the corridors on the floor above were deserted, but he still waited until they were a couple of floors higher before he spoke again. Who knew who could be lurking in the shadows late at night?

‘Have you ever seen that piece of cloth before?’ Lewis asked as they climbed the final staircase to the fifth floor, where The King’s Office was located.

‘No,’ Emily said slowly. ‘I didn’t know Sebastian could sew either.’

‘What about her nightmares? Has she ever mentioned those?’ he said, stepping through the open door to The King’s Office. He noted that it was far tidier than it had been the last time he had seen it as he headed for the desk.

‘Not really, why?’ Emily said as he pulled the piece of cloth from his pocket. Unfolding it again, he spread it out on the desk carefully.

‘Maybe there’s a connection,’ Lewis muttered as he looked at each picture carefully. At least half of them featured the creature somewhere, although they seemed to congregate more towards the later additions.

‘You think they’re not nightmares?’ Emily asked as she leaned over the cloth beside him.

‘Lillian said that every time she dreams about the creatures, they attack the city,’ Lewis said.

‘You think she’s controlling them?’ Emily asked, taken aback.

‘She’s George’s sister, right?’ Lewis asked, turning to the tapestry of the family tree that hung on the wall, hiding the secret escape tunnel. Since he and Emily had used the tunnel to escape the castle, it had been repaired, and the long slashes had been removed from some of the family members.

‘What does that have to do with anything?’

‘George has precursor powers; he used them on me in the tomb,’ Lewis explained. ‘Thomas also said that Anthony has them as well.’

‘She’s not controlling the creatures; she’s just a kid,’ Emily cut across him.

‘How do we know, though? If George and Anthony had the powers, then surely there’s a chance that she does as well,’ Lewis said as he turned away from the family tree.

‘She’s just a kid!’ Emily shouted, looking up from the cloth on the desk.

‘Is this a bad time?’ a voice called. Turning, Lewis found David and Louise standing in the doorway. Behind them stood a handful of people in guard uniforms. Thomas must have sent the patrol captains up already.

‘No,’ Lewis said quickly. Striding over to the desk, he snatched up the piece of cloth he had been arguing over with Emily and shoved it back in his pocket. ‘Come in.’

In pairs, the guards filed into the room, lining up in front of the desk. Still glowering at him, Emily moved aside, her eyes following him closely as he walked around behind the desk.

‘What are we doing here?’ One of the guards asked as he scratched at his scruffy beard. ‘We have patrols to organise.’

‘I’ve been told that there are strange creatures attacking the city during the night,’ Lewis said as he considered the group in front of him. Apart from David and Louise, he only recognised two of the other ten gathered before him. The first was the hulking figure of Commander Redmond, Lewis’ former boss when he was part of the guard.

Half hiding behind Commander Redmond, not that it was difficult, was Arron Somerville, Lewis’ old partner. It seemed as though he was still sporting the traces of the broken nose Louise had given him after he had given up the information that had gotten Lewis caught in The Green Valley. This must have been his reward, Lewis thought as his eyes lingered on Arron a second longer.

‘They’re just making up excuses to get away with rioting,’ the guard with the scruffy beard insisted.

‘Thomas told me the opinion of the guards as well,’ Lewis said as he turned his attention to the man. ‘I was part of the guard once; I know how it all works. You get one opinion, and that has to go for every single guard. What I want is the opinion of each guard. If anyone has seen anything, then I want to know, not for it to be swept under the rug because it doesn’t conform to popular opinion. Understood?’

With a murmur of agreement, all the guards nodded. ‘Can we go now?’ the guard with the scruffy beard asked.

‘You’re free to go. David, Louise, can you stay behind for a minute?’ Lewis asked, pausing while he waited for the line of guards to file out of the office. ‘How are you both?’

‘Fine,’ they muttered together, exchanging a glance between themselves. ‘It’s good to have you back.’

‘It’s good to be back,’ Lewis admitted as he walked around the desk, sitting on the edge. Perhaps they would have a better idea of what was going on in the city; he highly doubted Thomas had spent much time outside the castle since he had arrived. ‘What have I missed?’