Watching Lewis walk away, Emily paused for a moment, lingering only a few seconds after he had disappeared into a dark alleyway. She was worried, and not just about his health right now. It might not have been obvious to anyone else, but she had a niggling feeling deep down that something still wasn’t right. Then there was whatever he was up to now.
‘You should use the amulet now,’ Arthur said, ushering her into a dark corner so that no one would notice when she vanished into thin air.
‘Where do you think he’s going?’ she asked as she pulled the amulet out from down the front of her dress.
‘No idea,’ Arthur muttered. ‘I’m sure he knows what he’s doing, though.’
‘I’m worried about him. I still don’t think he’s right after what happened at the tomb,’ Emily said as she gently pressed the black stone at the centre of the amulet. Shuddering, she felt the icy cold spreading through her body.
‘He’ll be fine,’ Arthur tried to assure her, but even he looked unconvinced by his own words. ‘I can’t see you, so you’ll have to make sure you stay close. We’ll find a corner somewhere before we get to the castle to check that you’re still with us.’
‘Okay,’ she said quietly, laughing as Arthur turned towards her voice when it wasn’t where he expected her to be.
‘This is insane,’ he muttered with a shake of his head before he turned to Amanda, Leo, and the man named Michael who had joined their group from the crew of the shipwrecked trade ship. ‘Let’s go.’
As a group, they set off, Emily slipping into the narrow gap between Arthur and Amanda at the centre of the group. While they had been walking through the service tunnel, the four of them had discussed how they were going to get through the crowds with Emily invisible. In the end, they settled on Leo leading the way in a sort of diamond shape so that Emily could fit into the gap in the centre, shielding her from anyone who might bump into her.
With the heavy crowds all heading in the same direction, their progress was slow. It was a good thing they had left Fir Lodge when they had, or they wouldn’t have stood a chance of making it to the castle in time for the start of the coronation, let alone trying to steal the crown beforehand.
For the most part, everyone walked in silence. The little conversation that took place, she couldn’t join in with anyway. Instead, she had to be content with looking around at the city while they shepherded her along.
Just as they reached the high wall that surrounded the castle courtyard, Leo turned away, leading them into a narrow alleyway. When he was satisfied that they were alone, he nodded. ‘Still with us?’
Pressing the black stone on the amulet, Emily felt warmth spreading through her body as the invisibility wore off. ‘Here,’ she muttered, appearing to the left of where Leo had been expecting her.
‘The security doesn’t look too bad out here,’ he said. ‘If we can get in the middle of the crowd, then they will think we’re just more people turning up for the coronation. Have you two decided how you’re going to distract the guards?’
‘I’m going to bump into Amanda on my crutches, and then we’ll start a row,’ Arthur said. ‘If that doesn’t draw the attention of the guards, then she has permission to hit me. When they come to break up the fight, Emily can sneak into the castle.’
‘Alright,’ Leo said. ‘You three go for the castle entrance; we’ll try and take up a decent position near the rest of the group.’
With a murmur of agreement between them, Emily nodded, pressing the black stone again. The cold feeling of invisibility was becoming more and more familiar to her. This was it. As a group, they had done everything they could to prepare for this. When she got inside the castle, she would be on her own, she thought as they stepped out of the alleyway, joining the crowd that was flooding into the courtyard.
From what Thomas had told her about the last coronation, she had established that they would be holding the crown in Sebastian’s old office. Just before the coronation started, the second in line to the throne would be sent to collect the crown, presenting it to the heir to the throne in front of the crowd.
That meant there was a good chance that she could come face-to-face with George again, she thought as they moved under the huge stone archway that led into the courtyard. Hopefully, she could avoid that.
‘Good luck! Leo muttered as he and Michael moved away from the rest of them. Not daring to linger too long, Emily hurried after Arthur and Amanda as she saw Leo and Michael moving around the edge of the crowd towards where she spotted Louise and her group waiting near the stage.
The coronation ceremony looked as if it had drawn everyone in Tristan from their homes as well as people from towns far and wide. It all looked so different from the last time she had been here. Dark green banners bearing the Tristan coat of arms hung from every available spot around the courtyard. At the front of the crowd was a large seated section that had been split down the centre, the aisle covered with a royal blue carpet that led up to the stage.
For all the elaborate decoration, the stage was remarkably plain. To one side there were half a dozen golden chairs, some of which were occupied by other members of the Vandemark family as well as a couple of people Emily didn’t recognise. The centre of the stage was what drew her attention, though. Pacing anxiously in front of the throne was Anthony, the ceremonial golden cloak draped around his shoulders. George was nowhere to be seen.
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‘We need to hurry,’ Emily hissed as the castle door came into sight. Although it stood wide open, it was blocked off by a line of guards standing shoulder to shoulder.
‘Let’s do this,’ Arthur whispered to Amanda before they separated, leaving Emily to linger near the doorway.
Trying not to laugh, she watched as Arthur and Amanda approached from different directions, with Amanda crashing into Arthur’s shoulder. Whether it had been intentional or not, Arthur went tumbling to the floor, his crutches shooting out of his reach.
With a disgusted look on her face, Amanda turned to Arthur. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’ she demanded. ‘Watch where you’re going, cripple.’
‘You’re calling me a cripple?’ Arthur shouted. ‘I think you might be the handicapped one here, seeing as you’re blind.’ Instantly, it had the desired result, as several of the guards looked up. None of them moved, however.
When she saw that none of them had moved, Amanda took a step towards Arthur. ‘How dare you!’ she cried as she slapped him across the face.
‘Hey! Break it up,’ one of the guards called. He still didn’t move from his place in the line, though. When Amanda ignored him and continued to hit Arthur, who was cowering on the floor as he tried to reach his crutch, the guard exchanged a look with one of the others.
‘You shouldn’t even be allowed in this city! Amanda shouted harshly as she kicked the crutch Arthur had been reaching for away.
‘Alright, enough!’ the guard shouted as he and the man he had shared a glance with strode out of the line, pulling Amanda away from Arthur roughly.
When Arthur glanced in her vague direction, Emily took off, diving through the gap in the wall of guards before they could shuffle along and fill it. Ignoring the shouts that were coming from Amanda as the guards wrestled with her, she set off into the castle.
In some respects, it was a good thing that there was such a buzz of activity. It meant that she didn’t need to worry about someone hearing her footsteps as she headed for the staircase that led towards Sebastian’s office on the third floor.
Just as she reached the top of the staircase, she saw George emerge from one of the rooms. ‘I’m going now!’ he shouted over his shoulder, the door slamming behind him as he headed for the stairs that Emily was heading for as well. It was now a race between her and George to get the crown. Disregarding the staircase, she ran down the corridor. Growing up in the castle had given her the chance to explore. Now all that exploring would pay off as she headed for the hidden staircase at the far end of the corridor, which she had found when she was eleven. As far as she knew, no one else in the castle knew about it.
When she had been working in the castle, she had often used it to get to Sebastian’s office if she was in a rush. For that reason, she had always been able to get things done faster than the other Sisters of Tristan, much to their annoyance. It had also become Sebastian’s favourite.
Pulling back the dusty tapestry of a harbour, which she now recognised as Arcis, she opened the door behind it. Slipping into the dark spiral staircase, she pushed the door shut behind her before setting off up the stairs two at a time. This would take her straight to the third floor, but how far was she behind George already?
Feeling slightly dizzy when she reached the top, Emily stumbled out of the door at the top of the staircase. She was in such a rush that she didn’t even bother to check that it was clear. Fortunately, it seemed as if luck was on her side. Hurrying across the corridor, she pushed the door to Sebastian’s office open, hoping that George hadn’t gotten there first.
It took her a moment, but she spotted the crown sitting on the desk. Since she had last been here, it looked as though someone had tidied up the mess. The slashed tapestry of the Vandemark family tree had been replaced as well.
Before she could fetch the crown, someone crashed into the back of her, snagging the amulet chain as she was knocked flying. Pinching the skin on her neck, the chain snapped, sending the amulet falling to the ground. As it fell, she felt the warmth spreading through her extremities. She was visible again.
Spinning around, she saw George stagger sideways in confusion. Then, as he managed to catch his balance again, his eyes found her. ‘Well, isn’t this a surprise?’ he asked wryly. ‘How’s Hargrove these days? I imagine it must be cold six feet underground.’
‘He’s perfectly fine,’ Emily snapped as she darted towards the crown. She had almost made it as well when George ploughed into her, tackling her to the ground.
Laughing, he pinned her to the ground. ‘No, you don’t,’ he whispered menacingly. ‘So, the old man managed to save him then? It doesn’t matter really; he’ll be dead soon enough.’
‘He’s ready for you this time; we all are,’ Emily spat as she tried to get free. It was no use, though; he was too strong.
‘Is he ready?’ George asked. ‘I doubt he’s ready for the poison to kick in.’
‘Poison?’ Emily whispered.
‘The poison,’ he confirmed. ‘I didn’t have any Starshine poison left, but I found something else for Hargrove. It’s called a two-step poison. The first step is a fast-acting poison. If you’re telling the truth, then he has somehow survived that. He still isn’t right, is he, though?’
‘No,’ she admitted. She had had that feeling ever since he had woken up, regardless of how many times he had assured her that he was fine. Her face fell. He had lied to her.
‘He told you he was fine, didn’t he?’ George said it with a wicked smile. ‘Well, I assure you he isn’t. It’s nothing like the first step of poisoning, though. It takes a lot longer to set in, but I hear that it’s far more painful. Apparently, it can drive a person to insanity before it finally kills them.’
More painful? How could that be possible? Lewis had barely been coherent enough to tell her to remove the arrow in the tomb. She had to find him quickly.
Bringing her knee up into George’s groyne, she threw him off. Getting to her feet quickly, she tried to grab the crown, but his hand found her ankle, pulling her to the ground. As she fell, she caught her head on the edge of the desk. In an instant, blood had blossomed from a cut above her eye. Dazed, she tried to get up again, but George shoved her down, grabbing the crown before running from the room. Staggering to her feet, she chased after him.
She had to find Lewis before it was too late. She had to catch George before he gave the crown to Anthony. No longer caring if anyone saw her, she charged down the stairs, furiously trying to wipe the blood out of her eyes with the back of her hand.
Around her, there were shouts from castle staff and guards alike, but she barely registered them. Jumping down the last few steps, she landed in the entrance hall. For a split second, the guards inside the castle froze at the sight of her. Before they could react, she turned towards the door, barging her way through the line of guards who were oblivious to what was going on behind them.
Leaving them shouting in her wake, she headed for the stage, freezing in her tracks when she saw the scene before her. Standing at the centre of the stage was Anthony. Holding the crown a few paces away was George, but her eyes fell on the crowd. Standing amongst the hundreds of seated people was Lewis, his bow drawn and a golden cloak similar to Anthony’s around his shoulders.