Running a hand through his messy blonde hair, Lewis stretched. With a yawn, he got out of bed, wandering over to the window. Resting his arms on the smooth wooden windowsill, he looked out into the sunny forest clearing. Not too far from the window, he saw Emily, her red hair shimmering in the sunlight as she stood on a wooden stall, attempting to reach an apple that was hanging from the tree, blissfully unaware that he was watching her.

Sighing contentedly, he looked around the clearing. Despite his objections when Emily first suggested that they come back to Fir Lodge, he was glad they had come. In the end, it hadn’t been her who had persuaded him to come to Fir Lodge; it had been the strange, white-cloaked people at the castle in Tristan who had persuaded him to leave.

Having managed to foil Anthony’s coronation the day before, Lewis was awoken early the next morning and dragged away for, as they had described it, tests. Tests might have been what the strange people in white cloaks had called them, but Lewis found them to be more of an organised torture designed to produce results.

For what felt like hours, they prodded and poked at him, scribbling down page after page of comments. Then, when he thought it was over, they returned with a series of small vials, drawing a sample of his blood to fill them. According to Edmund, they wanted to check to make sure that he really did have Vandemark blood in him. Apparently, all these tests were standard procedure.

Leaving Lewis alone in the test room, they had disappeared with his blood. Just as he was considering getting up and leaving, they returned with Edmund and Thomas. According to something called a blood box, whatever that was, he had been accepted. He had Vandemark blood in him, as they had declared.

Starving and exhausted from all the tests, Edmund and Thomas had escorted him to the dining hall, where, gathered around a huge selection of food, he had seen his friends for the first time since the coronation.

During the meal, Emily told everyone that she thought it was best for him to go to Fir Lodge while he recovered. After a few grumblings from Edmund about having to do extra work, Lewis agreed to Emily’s suggestion. He didn’t want to have strange people poke at him anymore.

The morning after they had made their decision, Lewis and Emily had left Tristan for Fir Lodge, using the city gates rather than the pump house service tunnels for once. That was six weeks ago now.

Outside the window, Emily’s unashamed shout of success as she finally managed to pull the apple from the tree pulled him out of his thoughts. Stepping off the stall, she turned away from the tree, noticing him for the first time. With colour rising in her cheeks, she dropped the apple into a basket, disappearing amongst the other plants in the vegetable garden.

Laughing, Lewis turned away from the window, pulling on a pair of black trousers he had recovered from the supply bag he had taken to The Misty Islands quickly. Not bothering to pick up a t-shirt, he headed straight for the backdoor. Even in the shade of the forest, Sky Fire had been unnaturally hot this year.

‘Emily,’ he called as he slipped his shoes on over his bare feet, stepping out the door.

A moment later, her head appeared from behind a row of blackberry bushes. ‘Over here,’ she replied before disappearing again.

Heading in her direction, Lewis rounded the group of currant bushes to find her picking at the fruit with her back to him. ‘Morning,’ he muttered as he slipped his arms around her waist.

‘I think you mean afternoon,’ she said, continuing to pluck the blackcurrants from the bush and dropping them into a small wicker basket.

‘Really?’ he asked. ‘Why didn’t you wake me?’

She shrugged, wriggling out of his grasp as she moved along the line of bushes.

Throughout his recovery at Fir Lodge, Arthur and Amanda made a point of visiting him as often as Thomas would let them. On the days they came, the four of them would head out into the forest. Often, with enough food packed to feed a small army, they would spend the day exploring.

At first, they hadn’t gone far, all of them unsure of how much he would be able to manage as he recovered from the second stage of the poison. Yesterday, however, Lewis insisted on taking them to the small waterfall in the forest where he had spent hours when he was growing up.

‘You shouldn’t have tried to do so much yesterday,’ Emily scolded him.

‘I know,’ he sighed. ‘I just wanted you to get the chance to see it. Who knows how long we’ll be out here before Thomas and Edmund drag us back to Tristan?

‘We aren’t going anywhere until you’re completely better,’ she insisted, turning to face him.

‘Thomas and Edmund aren’t going to run the kingdom between them forever,’ he pointed out as he snapped a small twig loaded with berries from the bush, stripping the berries off over the basket.

‘I just want you to recover before you go diving back into everything,’ she said.

‘I know you’re worried. I’m really grateful for you dragging me away from everything, he replied. ‘But I think I’m ready now. We’ve been out here for six weeks; Sky Fire is almost over!’

‘Alright,’ Emily said as she considered him carefully. ‘Just a few more days, though. Stay here until the end of Sky Fire, and then I won’t stop you leaving.’

Reluctantly, Lewis nodded. Having spent half a year around her, he knew it was the best deal he was going to get unless Thomas showed up. Once, Edmund might have had the same power over her, but after holding him at knifepoint in Whitecliff, he had made himself scarce whenever she was about.

‘That’s the best offer I’m going to get, isn’t it?’ he asked.

‘You had better believe it,’ she said with a smile as she picked up the basket of blackcurrants. ‘Don’t wander off too far,’ she added before kissing him quickly and disappearing back towards the cabin.

‘Alright,’ he sighed, more to himself than anyone else. Emily had hardly let him out of her sight since they had arrived at Fir Lodge. In the first few days, it had proved to be a good thing, but he had still been a bit shaky from the poison. That has all disappeared now, though. Still, he decided it was best not to stray too far, especially after Emily had shouted at him for wandering off a couple of days before.

In the end, he decided against telling Emily about the young woman he had met walking in the forest; it would only make her worry more. Treading the same path he had taken that day, Lewis wandered towards the edge of the forest.

Stopping just short of the first trees, he scanned what he could see of the forest between the trunks, the carpet of golden needles disappearing into the shade. He could feel it again—the little feeling deep down that he wasn’t alone.

‘Hello?’ he called out, taking a couple of steps into the forest. This time, however, there was no one to be seen when he looked around. Pausing, he listened to the silence a moment longer before turning back towards the clearing.

‘Lewis?’ Emily called from somewhere out of sight. ‘I’m sorry, he was here a minute ago,’ she added to someone else a moment later.

‘I’m here,’ he called, stepping through the trees quickly. As he emerged into the clearing again, he saw Emily nearby. Standing beside her in a loose-fitting white shirt was Thomas, a smile crossing his lips when he spotted Lewis.

‘Lewis, how are you?’ he asked as he strode forward. Meeting him halfway, Lewis offered him his hand, which Thomas accepted with a firm shake.

‘I’m good, thank you. A lot better than I was the last time I saw you,’ Lewis said. It was true; the last time he had seen Thomas had been several days after they had arrived at Fir Lodge. ‘How are things in Tristan?’

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

‘To be honest with you, it's a nightmare,’ Thomas replied.

‘Come on, let’s go inside,’ Emily interrupted, her eyes focused on the forest behind Lewis. Glancing behind him, Lewis scanned the trees. Maybe he wasn’t the only one who felt they were being watched after all. Perhaps he should tell them about the woman he had seen a couple of days before, he wondered as he followed them through the vegetable patch and into the cabin.

‘So, what’s been going on? I saw Arthur and Amanda yesterday, but they wouldn’t talk about the city.’

‘It seems Anthony managed to cause an alarming amount of damage during his short time in charge,’ Thomas said as he took one of the seats beside the unlit fire. ‘There has been a lot of disorder as well. The people don’t know what to do or who to listen to. We’re just about getting by at the moment, but we need to stabilise the city.’

‘You want me to come back to Tristan,’ Lewis said. He had thought that might be why Thomas had come to see them the second he had seen him.

Silently, he nodded. ‘If you’re ready, then yes. The people have been through a lot: Sebastian’s assassination, Anthony’s chaotic rule, and now Edmund and myself improvising. Not to mention what happened at the coronation.’

‘What about us, though? I’ve lost count of the number of times one of us nearly died since this all started,’ Emily demanded as she placed a hand on Lewis’ shoulder.

Rather than argue with her, Thomas turned to Lewis, raising an eyebrow questioningly. ‘I’m ready.’

‘But I thought we were staying until the end of Sky Fire?’ Emily asked forcefully.

‘Sky Fire is over in a few days; what difference would waiting until then really make?’ he said.

‘Excellent,’ Thomas said, clapping his hands together while Emily looked on sceptically. ‘There’s one other thing we need to deal with when we get back; I almost forgot.’

‘What’s that?’ Lewis asked as Thomas produced a piece of paper that had been folded in four from his trouser pocket. Opening it out, Thomas passed it across to him.

Taking it from Thomas, he turned it around so that he could read it. In large black letters across the top of the page was one word: wanted. Beneath sat two black-and-white pictures, his own face staring back at him from one. Beside his picture was one of Emily in a dress that looked as if it had been taken from a group picture, judging from the bodies of people that had been cut in half.

‘They still want to charge me with high treason?’ Lewis asked.

‘No,’ Thomas said quickly. ‘The court has accepted that you are Vandemark blood and has dropped the charge, all be it reluctantly.’

‘Then what’s the problem?’

‘Emily.’

‘What?’ they both asked at the same time.

‘She didn’t do it, though,’ Lewis assured Thomas.

‘I know; I believe you,’ Thomas insisted quickly. ‘However, the court isn’t as trusting as the rest of us. They don’t have any other suspects for my brother’s assassination. According to Edmund, they were about to deliver Emily’s sentence when she miraculously vanished.’

‘So, they still want to sentence me to death after everything?’ she asked faintly.

‘They want to hold the trial again.’

‘But isn’t it going to end up with the same result, though? You said it yourself; they don’t have any other suspects,’ Lewis asked, slipping his arm around Emily protectively.

‘Yes, if they don’t have any other suspects,’ Thomas admitted. ‘But that is also the key.’

‘What do you mean?’ Lewis said.

‘We need another suspect,’ Thomas said. ‘If the court has a new suspect, then they will have to investigate that avenue before they can charge you with Sebastian’s murder.’

‘What do you need?’ Emily asked.

‘I need to know what happened that night. Everything,’ Thomas insisted.

‘Alright,’ Emily said, swallowing audibly. Slowly, she took a seat opposite Thomas, who had produced another piece of paper and a battered quill.

‘You wouldn’t have any ink, would you?’ he asked, looking up at Lewis hopefully.

Scouring the room, Lewis searched for any sign of ink. ‘There used to be some around here somewhere,’ he said as he opened one of the cupboards.

For several minutes, he searched the room, with Thomas and Emily waiting in silence for him to find some ink. After searching several cupboards and drawers, one of which contained the missing Guard board and pieces, he found an old bottle of ink shoved into the back corner of one of the drawers. Dusting it off on his trousers, he handed it to Thomas.

‘Alright,’ Thomas muttered as he dipped his quill in the ink. ‘Where were you on the night Sebastian died, Emily?’

‘In the outer office, sorting out paperwork that needed to be passed on to Sebastian the next day,’ she replied quickly.

‘Was there anyone else there with you?’

‘No, the other Sisters of Tristan went to bed about half past eleven,’ Emily said. ‘I had a couple of things to finish, though.’

‘Okay,’ Thomas muttered as he noted down what she said, glancing up at her worriedly. ‘Where was Sebastian at this point?’

‘In his office, doing paperwork.’

‘Did anyone go in or out while you were there?’ Thomas asked as he scribbled something else down.

‘George turned up just before midnight while I was finishing up,’ Emily said. ‘He wanted to see Sebastian.’

‘Continue,’ Thomas muttered without looking up.

‘I told him that Sebastian was working, but he refused to leave,’ Emily replied. ‘When he wouldn’t leave, I went into Sebastian’s office to see if he would see George; he was fine then. We spoke briefly; I was about to let George in when he barged in.’

‘Sebastian was well when you left?’ Thomas checked quickly.

‘Yes.’

‘Where did you go after you let George in?’ he asked.

‘Sebastian asked me to fetch him a bottle of wine before I left,’ Emily said. ‘I went to get that.’

‘How was Sebastian when you returned with the wine?’

‘Fine,’ Emily said quickly. ‘I gave him the wine, and he asked me to deliver a letter to Mrs. Whitby before I left. After that, I took the letter to Mrs. Whitby.’

‘She can confirm this?’ Thomas asked.

Silently, Emily nodded.

‘What did you do after you delivered the letter?’

‘I went back to the outer office; I had forgotten to pick up my bag before I left,’ Emily said.

‘Carry on,’ Thomas encouraged her gently.

‘When I got there, the door to Sebastian’s office was open, and George was gone. I just assumed that they had argued about something and he had stormed out again,’ Emily whispered.

‘What happened then?’

I saw Sebastian... Emily trailed off.

From where he stood behind her, Lewis saw her shudder as she raised a hand to her face.

‘Emily, I need to know what happened,’ Thomas said without looking up from his notes.

‘He was... she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

‘Do we have to do this now?’ Lewis asked as he stepped forward, placing a hand gently on her shoulder.

‘Yes,’ they replied in unison.

‘He beckoned me into the office and asked for water; he was desperate. It was like he could hardly breathe,’ she said with a deep breath.

‘Starshine,’ Thomas muttered, adding the word to the side of the page.

‘I got him the water,’ she said slowly. ‘He smashed the bottle of wine; he said it was poisoned.’

‘The bottle of wine—was it open when you got it from the store?’ Thomas asked.

I don’t know. I wasn’t really paying attention when I picked it up,’ she whispered, her voice cracking slightly. ‘I should have checked.’

‘That’s enough,’ Lewis said forcefully when she raised a hand to her face again, trying to wipe away her tears.

‘I just need to know if there is anything else,’ Thomas said, looking up at Lewis.

‘No. Not now,’ he insisted. Helping Emily up from the chair, he pulled her into his arms, allowing her to bury her head in his shoulder. Looking over the top of her head, his eyes found Thomas’. ‘Do you have enough?’

‘I think so,’ he said slowly as he reread his notes. ‘If the bottle was sealed when she picked it up, then it was George.’

‘What if it wasn’t?’

‘Then we’re no closer to knowing who did this,’ he sighed.

‘Can you get her out of this?’ Lewis asked quietly.

‘I’ll do my best, Thomas said as he tucked his notes away. ‘You have my word.’

‘What about George? Anything since he took off with the crown?’ Lewis asked.

‘He was heading north the last I knew." They’re still looking for him though; why?’ Thomas asked.

‘Can we pin all of this on him?’ Lewis asked.

‘You can’t just accuse someone of high treason with no evidence, Lewis,’ Thomas sighed.

‘That’s what they did to Emily,’ he said angrily.

‘Emily was the last person to see Sebastian alive,’ Thomas reminded him. ‘You need to look at this from the court's perspective; you can’t let your personal feelings for Emily get in the way of your judgement.’

‘To hell with that!’ Lewis shouted, easing Emily away from him so that he could stand face-to-face with Thomas. ‘I’m not letting them execute an innocent person.’

‘You haven’t got anything to pin this on George; we don’t even know if the bottle of wine had been opened when Emily took it,’ Thomas said calmly.

‘Well,’ Lewis muttered as he scanned around for anything that would give his case a chance. ‘What about the crown? George took off with it as soon as he saw us; surely that could be the motive?’ Lewis asked.

‘Lewis,’ Thomas said warningly. Ignoring him, Lewis began to pace in front of Thomas.

‘My father,’ Lewis said, turning to Thomas suddenly. ‘When we were in the prison in the castle, Charles told me that the hunting accident that killed him was actually a cover story for his murder. In Whitecliff, Edmund said that George used to go on hunting trips with him, Sebastian, Anthony, Charles, and my father. What if George murdered my father as well to try and get the crown?’

For a moment, Thomas stood in silence, his eyes not leaving Lewis. ‘That’s all circumstantial, though; without George, they can’t prosecute him,’ Thomas said carefully.

‘That doesn’t matter,’ Lewis said, waving away Thomas’ comment. ‘You said the court only needs another suspect to prevent them from holding another trial for Emily. They would have to track down George and catch him before they could do anything. It would take them a while to go through everything, during which time we could find the evidence we needed to clear Emily.’

‘You might be on to something,’ Thomas conceded slowly. ‘I think it would be best if we got back to Tristan as soon as possible if we’re going to go through with this. I’ll help you pack.’ Without another word, Thomas strode off in search of their bags to begin packing, leaving Lewis and Emily alone.

‘Do you think it’ll work?’ Emily asked quietly from behind him.

Turning to face her, Lewis pulled her into his arms again. ‘They won’t be able to touch you as long as I’m with you,’ he said as he rested his chin on top of her head. ‘I won’t let them.’